Posted 04.08.15
Measures to be included in forthcoming legislation aim to ensure that anyone without the right to live in this country will find it more difficult to rent a home.
Measures will also be introduced to crack down on the unscrupulous landlords who exploit the most vulnerable.
The Government has made clear its commitment to reducing illegal immigration, with the Prime Minister chairing a taskforce dedicated to holding every part of Whitehall to account on tackling the issue.
Quicker eviction of illegal immigrants
Legislation introduced in 2014 made it harder for people to live in the UK illegally - with nearly 36,000 immigration offenders removed from the UK last year.
Measures in the forthcoming Immigration Bill will go further, and will enable landlords to evict illegal immigrant tenants more easily, by giving them the means to end a tenancy when a person's leave to remain in the UK ends - in some circumstances without a court order.
This will be triggered by a notice issued by the Home Office confirming that the tenant no longer has the right to rent in the UK. The landlord would then be expected to take action to ensure that the illegal immigrant tenant or occupant leaves the property.
And, under plans to extend across the country a successful pilot scheme started in the West Midlands, landlords will be also required to conduct "Right to Rent" checks on their tenants' immigration status before offering a tenancy agreement.
Blacklisting and banning rogue landlords
Alongside creating a bigger and better private rented sector, there will be a crackdown on those unscrupulous landlords who exploit migrants.
There will be a new criminal offence targeted at unscrupulous landlords and agents who repeatedly fail to conduct the "right to rent" checks or fail to take steps to remove illegal immigrants from their property. These landlords may face a fine, up to five years imprisonment and further sanctions under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Forthcoming legislation will create a blacklist of persistent rogue landlords and letting agents, helping councils to focus their enforcement action on where it is most needed, and keeping track of those who have been convicted of housing offences.
And new measures will prevent a landlord or letting agent from renting out of properties if they are repeat offenders.
Other measures include:
The measures proposed would apply to England only.
Comment
Commenting on measures announced by the Government to crack down on illegal immigrants renting properties, Terrie Alafat, Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing, said:
"Checking immigration status is complicated so landlords may shy away from letting to anyone they believe isn't British, even if they have a legal right to live in the UK - especially if they face a jail sentence for getting it wrong.
"For many people, private renting is the only option, and if this is removed homelessness and destitution may follow. Illegal immigrants may actually be least affected, as they probably already have to use the sorts of landlords who ask no questions and will rent poor quality accommodation to anyone who'll pay the rent.
"We think it is vital for the Government to publish its evaluation of the right to rent pilot that has been taking place in the West Midlands.
"Measures to tackle rogue landlords are welcome, although we will need to see the detail - it's important that local authorities are given the resources they need to enforce the new rules and that the majority of landlords who comply with the law aren't burdened with unreasonable extra costs."
