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England · Updated 19 April 2026

Landlord Move-in Pack UK 2026: the 7-document checklist every England landlord must serve

Gas Safety, EICR, EPC, Deposit Prescribed Information, How to Rent, written terms and — from 1 May 2026 — the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet. The complete pack with statute, deadlines and the proof-of-service rules courts actually want to see.

7 statutory items RRA 2025 commences 1 May 2026 Sourced from legislation.gov.uk + GOV.UK

Why every item matters

Until 1 May 2026 a missing item invalidates a future Section 21 notice under the Deregulation Act 2015 ss.38\u201341. From 1 May 2026, Section 21 is abolished and missing items become the evidence tenants use to defend Section 8 grounds 1 / 1A possession claims.

In practice: the move-in pack you serve at day one is load-bearing for the entire tenancy. A landlord who served the full pack at move-in is in a strong position whatever route to possession they later need. A landlord who skipped one item is exposed for years.

The 7 statutory items

Item 1

Gas Safety Certificate (CP12)

Statute
Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 reg 36(6)–(7)
Deadline
Before move-in (and within 28 days of every annual renewal thereafter)
Penalty for non-service
Unlimited fine + up to 6 months imprisonment; Section 21 invalid
Service rule landlords forget
Email the latest CP12 PDF to the tenant. A copy in your filing cabinet is not service — the court wants the moment of delivery.

Primary source

Item 2

Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)

Statute
Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 reg 3(2)(c)
Deadline
Before move-in (every 5 years; 28 days after any renewal)
Penalty for non-service
Civil penalty up to £30,000 per property; Section 21 invalid
Service rule landlords forget
Send the formal EICR (not the engineer’s job sheet). It must include the property address, inspector body and grade every observation C1 / C2 / C3 / FI.

Primary source

Item 3

Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)

Statute
Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 reg 6
Deadline
Before tenant enters into the tenancy (valid 10 years)
Penalty for non-service
Trading Standards £200 fixed penalty; MEES civil penalty up to £5,000; Section 21 invalid
Service rule landlords forget
Give the EPC to the prospective tenant before they sign. Letting an F or G rated property without a registered exemption is a separate MEES breach.

Primary source

Item 4

Deposit Prescribed Information (PI)

Statute
Housing Act 2004 ss.213–215A + Housing (Tenancy Deposits) (Prescribed Information) Order 2007
Deadline
Within 30 days of receiving the deposit
Penalty for non-service
1×–3× the deposit awarded to the tenant by the County Court; Section 21 invalid
Service rule landlords forget
The deposit-scheme certificate is evidence of protection; the Prescribed Information is a separate signed document with deposit amount, scheme details, dispute process and what triggers deductions.

Primary source

Item 5

GOV.UK How to Rent guide

Statute
Deregulation Act 2015 s.39 + AST Notices and Prescribed Requirements (England) Regulations 2015
Deadline
At the start of the tenancy (latest version as of that day)
Penalty for non-service
No civil fine — but Section 21 is invalid until you serve it
Service rule landlords forget
Email the PDF as an attachment, not a link to GOV.UK. At any renewal, serve the most current edition published on GOV.UK.

Primary source

Item 6

Written tenancy agreement / written statement of terms

Statute
Renters’ Rights Act 2025 (commences 1 May 2026)
Deadline
At start of tenancy. For existing verbal-only tenancies, by 31 May 2026.
Penalty for non-service
Civil penalty referenced up to £7,000 per breach; deductions hard to enforce without written terms
Service rule landlords forget
Include rent, deposit, landlord name and address, repair responsibilities and any rules about pets, smoking and altering the property.

Primary source

Item 7

Renters’ Rights Act 2025 Information Sheet

Statute
Renters’ Rights Act 2025 c. 26 + commencement regulations
Deadline
31 May 2026 for existing tenancies with written agreements; at start for new tenancies from 1 May 2026
Penalty for non-service
Civil penalty referenced up to £7,000 per breach
Service rule landlords forget
Attach the official GOV.UK Information Sheet PDF to the tenant’s move-in email — a paragraph in your covering letter is not the same as serving the file.

Primary source

How to serve the pack in 5 steps

A repeatable workflow for getting the entire pack into the tenant\u2019s inbox before they pick up the keys, with proof of service that survives a tribunal challenge.

  1. Step 1

    Collect every required document

    Latest Gas Safety Certificate (CP12), latest EICR, current EPC, the deposit Prescribed Information PDF from your scheme, the latest GOV.UK How to Rent guide, written terms and from 1 May 2026 the Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet.

  2. Step 2

    Verify the documents are current

    CP12 within the last 12 months. EICR within the last 5 years (and any C1 / C2 remedied). EPC band E or above. How to Rent: latest GOV.UK version on the day of service.

  3. Step 3

    Send a single move-in email with all PDFs attached

    Email the tenant with the documents as PDF attachments — not as links. Total attachment size under 20 MB so the email reliably reaches Gmail / Outlook / iCloud.

  4. Step 4

    Record the date and time of service

    Save the sent email and any read-receipt. The LetCompliance move-in pack sender writes one structured row per attachment to your audit log so each document is independently provable.

  5. Step 5

    Re-serve when documents are renewed

    Each year (Gas Safety) or when EICR / EPC / How to Rent is updated, send the new version to the existing tenant within 28 days of issue.

Inside LetCompliance

Send the entire pack in one click — with one audit row per attachment

On the property page the move-in pack sender pre-ticks every uploaded statutory document, shows an amber warning for anything missing (with statute reference and the GOV.UK link), and emails the tenant via Resend with the landlord set as reply-to. The audit log writes one structured row per attachment so the tribunal export shows each CP12, EICR and EPC as its own entry.

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Move-in pack FAQs

Is email service of a Gas Safety Certificate enough?

Yes — service by email with the PDF attached is widely accepted in England, provided the tenancy agreement allows electronic notice. Keep a timestamped copy in your audit log. A link to a folder is not service; the file itself must reach the tenant’s inbox.

What invalidates a Section 21 notice?

A missing CP12, EICR, EPC, How to Rent guide or Deposit Prescribed Information at the date of the notice all invalidate Section 21 under the Deregulation Act 2015 ss.38–41. The court will dismiss an accelerated possession claim outright.

Does the move-in pack still matter after Section 21 is abolished on 1 May 2026?

Yes — even more so. Section 8 grounds 1 and 1A (landlord moving in or selling) require that statutory information duties have been complied with. A missing item becomes the tenant’s defence in court.

Do I have to re-serve documents at every renewal?

You serve the latest version of the GOV.UK How to Rent booklet at any renewal where it has changed since the last service, and any renewed Gas Safety, EICR or EPC certificate within 28 days of issue. You do not re-serve unchanged documents.

How does LetCompliance help?

On the property page, the move-in pack sender pre-ticks every uploaded statutory document, shows an amber warning row for anything missing (with statute reference and the GOV.UK link), and emails the lot to the tenant via Resend — with one structured audit row per attachment.

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