Application for Landlord Registration - Guidance

Background

Landlords letting residential property in Scotland must register with, and be approved as ‘fit and proper’ by, the local authority in the area of the let property. Landlords letting property in multiple local authority areas must register with each local authority that they let property in.

Registration lasts for three years and a renewal application must be made before an existing registration expires if the landlord is still letting property. Renewal applications can be made within the three months before a registration expires without losing any registration time period.

Most landlords applying for registration or renewing an existing registration use the online application system: Landlord register home - Scottish Landlord Register

Paper applications can also be submitted. These notes accompany the paper application. Whether you are applying for the first time or renewing an existing registration please read these notes before you begin. Failure to do so could lead to errors in your application and/or renewal which may attract additional fees.

Exemptions

There are exemptions from the requirement to register, the most common examples are:

Live in landlords – where a landlord lives in the same property as their tenant(s), they must also share facilities and this does not apply where each occupier has their own front door or does not share any facilities.
Letting to a close family member – where a landlord lets a property to their mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter (but not cousin)
Short-term holiday lets

If you think you may be exempt from the requirement to register please contact the local authority for advice and confirmation.

Before you begin

The landlord application form will ask for your personal details and information about your let property(s). This information is required by law from anyone operating as a private landlord in Scotland.

The form will also ask you to confirm that you comply with various legal obligations around letting houses in Scotland. If you need further information on what these obligations mean please contact the local authority or visit the online resources for landlords detailed at the end of these notes.

Keeping your registration up to date

As a registered landlord you are required by law to keep your registration up to date. This includes your personal details, including your email address (if you have one) along with details of your let property and any agent involved. You can update your registration at any time by visiting landlordregistrationscotland.gov.uk or by contacting the local authority.

Guide to Completion

Question 1 – About your application

Please indicate if this is a new application or whether you are renewing an existing application. If you are renewing an existing application please provide your registration number.

Please indicate if you are applying as an individual or as a company.

Question 2a – if you are an individual

Please tell us your full name along with any other names that you have been legally known as.

Please provide your date of birth (dd/mm/yyyy), your email address (if you have one) and a contact telephone number (this number will only be used by the local authority in connection with your registration).

Question 2b – if you are applying on behalf of an organisation

Please tell us the organisation name, your name and your position in the organisation, along with the organisation’s Company Registration Number, if it has one.

If this organisation is a registered Scottish Charity please tell us the registration number.

If you are applying on behalf of a trust please contact us for further advice.

Question 3 – your address history

You must provide your address history for the last 5 years, for example if you have lived in the same house for the last 6 years this is the only address you have to provide. If you have lived in your current home for the last 2 years and in your previous address for 7 years before that you should include both, starting with your current address.

If you are applying on behalf of an organisation you should provide the business address, again for the previous 5 years.

Question 4 - the Tolerable and Repairing Standard

The Tolerable Standard is a basic level of repair your property must meet to ensure it is fit for a person to live in. The Repairing Standard is a basic level of repair that all private rented properties must meet. Further information is available from Repairs FAQ | Housing and Property Chamber and the Scottish Government have also published information about forthcoming updates to requirements Regulations to modify repairing standard: summary - gov.scot

Please indicate that you have read and understood your obligations under these standards.

Your obligations

This series of questions will ask you about the various obligations and standards involved in letting residential property in Scotland. If you indicate not applicable for any question (Q5-Q19) please let us know why you believe the question is not applicable to your situation.

Question 5 – Gas Safe certificate

Where a let property uses a gas supply it must be covered by a yearly Gas Safe certificate. This certificate is issued by a registered Gas Safe engineer.

Please answer yes or no to this question, answering not applicable would only be appropriate if your let property does not have a gas supply or if you do not have a let property.

Additional guidance is available at Landlords' responsibility for gas safety - HSE

Question 6 – Electrical Safety

All let properties must have a current Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) or a current Electrical Installation Certificate (EIC) at the time of let. An EIC certificate is appropriate only if the electrical installation is less than 5 years old, an EICR certificate must be renewed every 5 years, if it is more than 5 years since the electrical installation was commissioned, or when a change of tenancy occurs.

Please note: the ‘Not Applicable’ option would only be appropriate if you have no let properties or no electricity at the property you let.

EICR and EIC certificates can be issued by a suitably qualified electrician, these should be NICEC, SELECT or NAPPIT approved or able to provide self-certification as detailed in the Scottish Government Statutory Guidance available at housingandpropertychamber.scot

Question 7 – Electrical appliance testing

In any let property where you supply electrical appliances portable appliance testing (PAT) must be carried out annually by a suitably qualified electrician.

Answering not applicable would only be appropriate if you do not supply electrical appliances in your let properties or if you do not have a let property.

Question 8 – Fire, smoke and heat detection

As a landlord it is your responsibility to comply with the repairing standard concerning fire, smoke and heat alarms. In order to comply there must be at least:

one functioning smoke alarm in the room which is frequently used by the occupants for general daytime living purposes (normally the living room/lounge),
one functioning smoke alarm in every circulation space on each storey, such as hallways and landings, or in main room if no landing in upper storey
one heat alarm in every kitchen,
all alarms must be ceiling mounted, and
all alarms must be interlinked (this can be wired or wireless)

Please note: the ‘Not Applicable’ option would only be appropriate if you have no let properties.

Further information is available at gov.scot - Detecting and warning of fires

Question 9 – Carbon monoxide detection

Private landlords have an obligation to ensure that a detection system is installed in all properties you rent where there is:

a fixed combustion* appliance (excluding an appliance used solely for cooking) or
a fixed combustion* appliance in an inter-connected space, for example, an integral garage
a combustion* appliance necessarily located in a bathroom ( advice would be to locate it elsewhere ) - the CO detector should be sited outside the room as close to the appliance as possible

*Combustion appliances include Gas (any form), Oil, Solid Fuel eg wood, coal etc or any other that may give rise to Carbon monoxide.

Further information is available here housingandpropertychamber.scot

Question 10 – Private water supply

As a landlord in Scotland you will likely find that most of your properties are supplied by Scottish Water. Approximately 3% of the Scottish population uses a private water supply for drinking water ie one NOT provided by Scottish Water.

There is an additional question for let properties that are not supplied by Scottish Water.

Question 10a – Private water supply (continued)

This question is only appropriate if your let property has a private water supply (not supplied by Scottish Water).

The Water Intended for Human Consumption (Private Supplies) (Scotland) Regulations 2017 came into force in October 2017 and is intended to ensure the provision of clean, safe drinking water.

Additional guidance is available at Private Water Supplies | Argyll and Bute Council

Question 11 – Energy performance

Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) provide information on how energy efficient your building is, and how it could be improved. Buildings are rated on a scale from A to G, with A being the most efficient. Information is also provided on measures which could be made to improve the energy efficiency and an indication of the cost for each improvement.

Landlords must have a current Energy Performance Certificate for their let properties, a copy of this must be given to new tenants at any change of tenancy and the EPC rated must be included in any advert for a rental property.

If an EPC has been carried out within the previous 10 years a copy which can be downloaded and submitted with your application should be available at Energy Saving Trust

Question 12 – Legionella risk assessment

Legionnaires' disease is a potentially fatal form of pneumonia caused by the inhalation of small droplets of contaminated water containing Legionella. All water systems can provide an environment where Legionella may grow.

The landlord has a duty to ensure legionella risk assessment is carried out on their properties and this should be reviewed every 2 years. This is to help guard their tenants against any risk of getting the illness from contaminated water. More information on Legionella risk assessments and landlords responsibilities is available from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

There is not usually a requirement for sampling to take place. We can provided some additional templates that may assist in the assessment if required, contact landlord.registration@argyll-bute.gov.uk.

Question 13 – Rental property insurance

If renting out a tenement or flat within Scotland you will be responsible for obtaining insurance cover for the reinstatement value of your part of the tenement building/ block.

This rule came in to effect in 2004 via the Tenement (Scotland) Act 2004.

Question 14 – Common repair obligations

As a landlord you are responsible for a share of repairing common areas, for example;

the ground (solum) on which your building stands (but not always the garden)
the foundations
the external walls - but individual owners are responsible for the part of these walls that lies in their flat
the roof (including the rafters)
other structural parts of the building such as beams, columns and load bearing walls
the close and stairs (when they are not mutual)
staircases in blocks of flats.

Question 15 – Tenancy deposits

If you take a deposit from a tenant you must lodge it with one of the three government-backed tenancy deposit schemes:

Letting Protection Service Scotland
Safe Deposits Scotland
My Deposits Scotland

The deposit must be lodged within 30 day of being received and information provided to the tenants regarding where it is placed and how to get it repaid at the end of the tenancy. More information is available at mygov.scot - Tenancy Deposit

Question 16 – convictions and judgements

As part of the approval process, local authorities must be satisfied that a person applying to be a private landlord in Scotland is ‘fit and proper’ to be letting residential properties. Landlords applying for registration must declare any unspent criminal convictions and spent convictions if not protected.

Landlords must also declare any court judgements or tribunal decisions relating to housing, discrimination or equality.

Question 17 and 18 – Antisocial Behaviour Orders (ASBOs ) and Antisocial Behaviour Notices (ASBNs)

Similar to the questions on convictions and judgements, landlords must declare any

Antisocial Behaviours Orders or Antisocial Behaviour Notices served on them or their tenants.

Question 19 – licences, registration and accreditations

Landlords should declare any licences, registrations or accreditations relating to housing. Landlords must also declare any negative decisions relating to such licences, registration or accreditations.

Question 20 – about your rental property(s)

Please use this section to provide details about your rental property(s). If you have more than one rental property please use the additional properties sheet.

You should tell us about any joint owners, Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMO) properties *, any Repairing Standard Enforcement Orders (RSEO) on the let property and details of your letting agent** if you have one.

If the joint ownership details are complicated please tell us separately about this.

* A House of Multiple Occupation (HMO) is a house where:

at least 3 or more unrelated people live in the same property, and
they share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet

HMOs must be licensed in their own right, if you think your property is an HMO and you don’t have a licence please contact us.

** Agents: All owners of let properties must register and declare anyone who acts for them in relation to their letting.

An agent may be:

a commercial agency
a letting agency
a property management agency
an estate agency
a charity
someone who manages the property on your behalf
a representative of an organisation, for example a factor, a trust or a company

From the 1 October 2018 a paid letting agent must be registered on the Scottish Letting Agent Register and adhere to the Letting Agent Code of Practice.

For further information can be found at the following website: Letting agent code of practice - gov.scot

This means that the register number you are required to provide for your agent should be for the Letting Agent Register and not a landlord registration number - you may need to contact our agent for this number which should begin LARN.

The landlord registration number may still apply in some instances if your Agent is exempt from Letting Agent Registration – if you believe this to be the case – please contact us.

Unregistered agent fee: If someone manages your property for you without payment, their details must be noted on your registration. You will be charged a further principal fee for this, unless they already have their own separate registration.

Question 21 – the public register

Registered landlords and their let property will be displayed on the public search at landlordregistrationscotland.gov.uk

This search facility enables tenants and neighbours to confirm a landlord or a property is registered.

It can also be used to obtain the contact details (address) of the landlord of a specific property. Landlords can opt to use their home address, the address of their agent or another relevant address. A registration is very much a matter between the landlord and the local authority so it is important that landlords do not use the address of the let property as their contact address.

Declaration

Landlords are required to complete the declaration and sign their application for registration, important information is contained within the declaration.

Additional Information

The following information is useful to existing and new landlords.

Joint Owners

A landlord must declare any joint owners on their application.

All joint owners must also apply to register separately, and renew registrations, in their own right. Declaring the joint owner on your registration will not also register them.

The lead owner will pay the appropriate fee and applications from the other joint owners are typically free of charge unless their applications expire.

**Fees* (note these change annually, below are the fees for 1/4/2026 to 31/3/2027)**

The fees incurred in Landlord Registration are typically:

Principal Fee: £85.00
- Where a landlord lets property in more than one local authority area and uses the online application process this fee is discounted to £42.50
Property Fee: £20.00 per let property
Late Application Fee: £170.00 (where an application is not renewed/ applied for within the required timescale, these are chargeable even where other fees receive a discount (e.g. HMO’s, charities or joint owners)

Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) will typically attract a 100% discount on the principal and property fee, but only for the property that is covered by the HMO licence (additional non-HMO properties will be charged) Late fees will be charged where appropriate, on all properties/registrations irrespective of HMO licence or discount.

Registered Scottish Charities attract 100% discount on fees other than any late application fees.

Your registration

Once approved, a landlord is required by law to keep their registration details up to date, including their contact address, email address (if provided) and telephone number.

Renewal Reminders

Renewal reminders are typically issued by email, where an email address is held or otherwise by letter, and sent at 90 days and 30 days before a registration expires. Failure to renew will result in a Late Application Fee so landlords should manage their junk and spam email folders to ensure reminders are not missed. This fee also applies to joint owners who must renew their own registration.

Payment to accompany an application for registration

Please include a cheque for the appropriate fee with your paper application. Cheques should be made payable to Argyll and Bute Council.

Assistance for landlords

Local authority Landlord Registration teams are here to help landlords meet their obligations and provide quality accommodation to meet Scotland’s housing needs.

For advice or assistance please contact:

Landlord Registration (Environmental Health), Development and Infrastructure Services, Argyll and Bute Council, Kilmory, Lochgilphead PA31 8RT email landlord.registration@argyll-bute.gov.uk or call 01546 604818 and leave a message for us to call you back.

Online resources for further information

There are a variety of online resources available for landlords, here is a selection of useful web-sites:

To register or renew online

please visit

www.landlordregistrationscotland.gov.uk