ARLA Propertymark has prepared a template letter to help agents struggling to carry out Right to Rent checks on overseas students in joint tenancies.

Many students secure tenancies which begin weeks or months before they arrive to take up occupancy, meaning that agents cannot comply with the Code of Practice requirement to carry out a face-to-face check within the 28 days preceding the start of the tenancy.

ARLA Propertymark raised the issue as part of ongoing implementation work with the Home Office who have now agreed a template letter

It can be used to implement an exemption in place for universities to nominate students to take up residence in a specified property in the private rented sector.

The student can activate the process by requesting the letter; however the correspondence must be on the university’s letterhead and must specify the student’s name and date of birth along with the address of the property.

The process is similar to arrangements made with the Home Office last year in order to enable agents to accommodate US Air Force personnel, allowing the institution to vouch for the individual.

While technically this process creates an exemption, ARLA advises that it remains best practice to carry out a face to face check on the student’s arrival and retain records according to the code, even if this check is taking place outside the 28 days of the start of the tenancy.

Rachel Hartley, marketing communications manager at ARLA Propertymark and a member of the Home Office Consultative Panel on Right to Rent checks, said: “This is a big step forward for agents, particularly those who have to process large numbers of students in joint tenancies over a short period of time. Right to Rent checks are one of the hidden tasks in setting up a tenancy.

“What is referred to as ‘glancing at a passport’ in this case involves an initial check when the tenancy is organised, followed by a second check within 28 days of the start of the tenancy and a further follow-up check carried out either before the expiry of the ID or at 12 months. Records have to be kept at every stage.

“In Right to Rent checks the most important thing is always to record the checks that you make accurately.

“Any enforcement activity will focus on the paper trail, and having an accurate record of what you have done and the decisions that you have taken is essential.”

http://www.arla.co.uk/news/september-2017/right-to-rent-checks-and-students-with-time-limited-id/