Number of landlords fined in immigration crackdown triples in last 18 months

THE NUMBER of landlords fined under a crackdown on illegal immigration has more than tripled in a year and a half, figures show.

More than 200 civil penalties totalling over £150,000 have been issued under the Right to Rent scheme since the start of 2016.

Figures from the Home Office show the number of fines has increased every quarter since the scheme was rolled out in England. Seventy-six penalties worth £47,700 were issued from April to June this year, the most recent period for which figures are available.

This compared with 14 fines with a total value of £13,800 in the first three months of 2016

Right to Rent requires landlords or householders to establish that tenants or lodgers have a right to be in the country by taking copies of documents such as passports or identity cards. Failure to comply can lead to fines of up to £3,000 per tenant. Campaigners claim the clampdown fuels discrimination and argue there is little evidence it is having an impact in the Government’s efforts to create a “hostile environment” for migrants in the country unlawfully.

Separate figures published earlier this year showed that of 654 individuals who came to authorities’ attention between the launch of a pilot programme in December 2014 and September last year, 31 were removed from the UK. Others may be being progressed to removal, have been subject to reporting restrictions, sought to “regularise” their stay, or left the UK voluntarily.

Chris Norris, head of policy at the National Landlords Association, said: “A growing but small number of landlords have been penalised as a result of the scheme so far, with an average fine of around £600 handed out in conjunction with these cases. This suggests that landlords are more likely to be accidentally falling foul of the law, rather than deliberately or maliciously breaking the rules. It’s important to remember that landlords are neither immigration experts nor border agents.”