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England only · RRA 202531 May deadline

Missed the 31 May Information Sheet deadline? What to do now

The 31 May 2026 deadline has passed. Every English landlord with a tenancy that began before 1 May was required to serve the new Government Information Sheet on each tenant. If you have not, you are in breach now and the penalty is up to £7,000 per affected tenant. Serving late still helps: it stops the breach continuing and is what councils look at when deciding whether to enforce.

The 31 May 2026 deadline has passed.

If you haven’t yet served the Information Sheet on every pre-1 May 2026 tenant, do so immediately. Late service is better than no service — see “What if you’ve already missed it?” below.

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What is the Government Information Sheet?

Section 3 of the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 amends Section 21A of the Housing Act 1988 to replace the existing “How to Rent” guide with a new Government Information Sheet from 1 May 2026. The new Sheet sets out the rights and responsibilities of tenants and landlords under the post-RRA regime.

The Government publishes the current version of the Sheet on GOV.UK. Landlords don’t write the content. They serve a copy of the Government’s published version on each tenant whose tenancy began before 1 May 2026. A tenancy that starts on or after 1 May 2026 gets a written statement of terms instead, not the Information Sheet.

Failure to serve the Sheet has two consequences. First, you cannot rely on Section 8 possession grounds until the Sheet has been served. Second, the council can impose a civil penalty of up to £7,000 per offence.

Read the current guidance on GOV.UK

Who has to serve it, and by when?

Every English landlord with a private tenancy that began before 1 May 2026 needs to serve the Sheet. The deadline depends on when the tenancy became an assured periodic tenancy.

ScenarioDeadlinePenalty for missing
New tenancies starting from 1 May 2026Not neededGive a written statement of terms instead
Existing tenancies (pre-1 May 2026)31 May 2026Blocks Section 8 grounds; civil penalty up to £7,000
Tenancies where a pre-1 May Section 21 notice lapsed (no claim issued by 31 July 2026)Within one month of the tenancy becoming assured periodicCivil penalty up to £7,000

How to serve it — the 4-step checklist

  1. 01

    Download the current Information Sheet from GOV.UK

    Always use the latest version published by Government. The link is gov.uk/government/publications/the-renters-rights-act-information-sheet-2026.

  2. 02

    Serve a copy on every tenant

    By email (best practice: request a read-receipt) or by post (recorded delivery). One copy per named tenant. For HMOs with separate tenancies, serve each tenant individually.

  3. 03

    Keep proof of service

    A signed acknowledgement, a read-receipt, or a recorded delivery slip. Without proof you can’t defend a future enforcement action — keep the evidence with the rest of the tenancy file.

  4. 04

    Generate the cover note in DocuTenant

    Record the date served, tenant name, property address, and method of service. The cover note keeps your audit trail tidy and in one place. Try the cover note free →

What if you’ve already missed it?

The penalty isn’t automatic. It depends on enforcement action by the local council or, in some cases, by the tenant. The fact that you’ve missed the deadline doesn’t mean an inevitable £7,000 fine — it means you’re exposed if a tenant raises the issue or a council reviews your file.

Serve the Sheet now, even if late. Late service is materially better than no service. It demonstrates a good-faith attempt to comply and reduces the enforcement risk. Keep proof of service from the date you finally serve.

If a tenant or the council has already raised the issue formally, in writing, get tailored legal advice before responding. For everyone else, the priority is: serve, log it, file the proof.

A DocuTenant cover note records the date you finally served it, so the proof sits with the rest of that tenancy’s paperwork rather than in your inbox.

DocuTenant’s full RRA compliance toolkit

The Information Sheet cover note is one of 47 documents DocuTenant generates for UK landlords. The whole catalogue is updated for the RRA 2025 and the Scottish PRT regime. Preview any of them free and pay only when you download.

AST tenancy agreement (post-RRA)

Periodic-only, Section 48 inline, obligation toggles, advance rent prohibition.

View template

Section 8 notice (Form 3A)

All 37 grounds, correct post-RRA notice periods, UC exception logic.

View template

Rent increase notice (Form 4A)

52-week cap, 2 months’ notice, tribunal upper-limit wording.

View template

Deposit prescribed information

Custodial / insured scheme variants, relevant persons, 5-week cap warning.

View template

Pet consent process

28-day response window, reasonable-grounds wording, no pet-insurance demands.

View template

Section 48 notice

Address for service of notices — standalone or inline in the AST.

View template

Frequently asked questions

Is the Government Information Sheet the same as the How to Rent guide?
No. From 1 May 2026 the Information Sheet replaces the How to Rent guide entirely. The Government publishes the current version on GOV.UK; landlords serve a copy on each tenant. If you served the old How to Rent guide before 1 May 2026 you must still serve the new Information Sheet to remain compliant.
What if my tenant won’t sign anything?
A signature is best practice but not legally required. What matters is proof of service. Email with a read-receipt request, recorded delivery, or a dated note confirming hand-delivery are all acceptable. Keep the proof — you may need it years later if enforcement action is taken.
Does this apply to Scotland or Wales?
No. The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 applies to England only. Scotland uses the Easy Read Notes / Tenant Information Pack regime under the Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016. Wales has its own framework under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2022. DocuTenant supports Scotland today; Wales is on the roadmap.
Does DocuTenant create the Information Sheet itself?
No — the Sheet must come from GOV.UK so it’s always the current version. DocuTenant generates the cover note that records the date served, tenant name, property address, and method of service. That cover note is what you need for your audit trail.
What about HMO tenants?
Each tenant of an HMO with a separate tenancy agreement must be served individually. If the HMO has a single joint tenancy, one Sheet served on the lead tenant with copies to the others is acceptable, but best practice is to serve all named tenants.
What’s the penalty actually likely to be in practice?
Penalties are issued by the local council or pursued through the courts — they are not automatic. In practice early enforcement has focused on landlords who also have other compliance failures (deposit, gas safety, EICR). However, failure to serve the Sheet also blocks Section 8 possession proceedings, so even without a fine, missing the deadline can leave you unable to recover possession.

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Sources

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