Tenant Fee Ban transition period is now ended

(This post applies to England only)

Last year, on 1 June 2019 the Tenant Fees Act came into force in England.  It severely limited landlords and agents ability to charge fees to tenants.  You can read our original post setting out the rules here.

At that time the new rules only applied to new tenancies signed on or after 1 June 2019.

However, from now on (ie after 1 June 2020), ALL prohibited payments will be unlawful, regardless of when the tenancy agreement was signed.

This means that any fees clauses in tenancy agreements will be invalid and if you charge those fees

• It will be a civil offence for which you can be prosecuted with a fine of up to £5,000
• Alternatively, your Council can impose a financial penalty charge of up to £30,000 for each offence
• You must refund the prohibited payment to the tenant – and tenants can apply for this by making an application to the First Tier Tribunal (and any order is enforceable as if it were a CCJ)
• You will not be able to serve a valid section 21 notice until the payment has been returned to your tenant (or licensee).

The only situation where you will not need to make a refund is if you have taken, in respect of a pre-June 2019 tenancy, a deposit of over 5 weeks rent.  This does not need to be refunded until such time as the tenancy is renewed.