There’s a call today for letting agents to prepare for new regulations coming into effect on Wednesday.
From May 14, letting agents will be required to screen all landlords, tenants, and — where applicable — beneficial owners of corporate landlords or tenants against the UK Sanctions List. Any positive matches must be reported immediately to the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI).
So from Wednesday From 14 May, letting agents will need to:
- Screen all landlords and tenants involved in rental agreements;
- Identify and screen any Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBOs) if the landlord or tenant is a legal entity;
- Keep up-to-date with the UK Consolidated Sanctions List;
- Immediately report matches to OFSI and ensure transactions are frozen where required;
- Monitor ongoing tenancies for changes in designation status.
The call for agents to ready themselves comes from PropTech firm Coadjute, which urges agents to look upon the regime change as an opportunity to streamline operations and enhance compliance processes.
Coadjute advises that agents consider four key areas to stay compliant:
1. Review screening processes: Ensure your agency has access to up-to-date screening tools and is following a consistent due diligence workflow;
2. Improve documentation and audit trails: Maintain clear, timestamped records of checks conducted, decisions made, and any reports filed;
3. Train your team: Ensure all staff understand what sanctions are, how to perform checks, what constitutes a match, and how to report;
4. Stay compliant beyond onboarding: Sanctions checks must be performed not just at the start of a tenancy but monitored throughout the tenancy term.
