New money laundering regulations come into force today (14 May 2025)
May 14, 2025
This is just a quick post to notify members that, from today, new money laundering regulations apply:
- Landlords and letting agents must check all prospective tenants against the sanctions list
- Letting agents must also check all their landlords
- If any appear on the sanctions list they should be reported immediately to the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI).
If a guarantor is going to pay rent directly or engage with the agent or landlord during the tenancy, they must also be checked.
The fines for non-compliance are eye-watering, so it is really important that all landlords and agents comply.
It’s not entirely clear if the regulations apply to landlords. Some people say they do and others say they only apply to agents. However, if sanctioned individuals are found living in your property, you could still get fined. Particularly if you have ignored suspicious behaviour.
It does not take much time to check names against the sanctions list and keep a screenshot of the search results. Why risk it?
Find out more
We have done a new FAQ, which has more information, and where you will find links to relevant government pages.
For more information and guidance, we suggest you speak to your accountants, who may provide services to help with this
Not a Landlord Law member? Find out more here.
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