Tenant Fees Act 2019 — 5-week cap (or 6-week for high-rent). Instant. No signup.
High-rent tenancy (£50K+/yr) — 6-week cap applies.
7-point UK deposit-protection checklist (DPS/MyDeposits/TDS) — free PDF.
In England, the Tenant Fees Act 2019 caps the deposit a landlord or letting agent can take for an assured shorthold or assured tenancy. The cap depends on the annual rent: 5 weeks' rent where the annual rent is under £50,000, and 6 weeks' rent where it is £50,000 or more.
To find the weekly rent from a monthly rent, multiply by 12 and divide by 52. The calculator above does this for you and shows the working, so you can put the figure straight into the tenancy offer.
Once taken, the deposit must be protected in a government-approved scheme within 30 days, and the prescribed information must be given to the tenant within the same 30 days.
Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, a deposit is capped at 5 weeks' rent where the annual rent is under £50,000, and 6 weeks' rent where the annual rent is £50,000 or more.
Multiply the monthly rent by 12, divide by 52 to get the weekly rent, then multiply by 5. For £1,200 a month that is £276.92 a week, so the cap is £1,384.61 (rounded down, so you are never a fraction over).
Anything above the cap is a prohibited payment under the Tenant Fees Act 2019. It must be repaid to the tenant, and the landlord or agent can be fined by the local council.
Yes. A holding deposit is capped at one week's rent. It does not need protecting while it is a holding deposit, but once the tenancy starts and it becomes part of the deposit, it must be protected.
30 days from receiving it. The prescribed information must also be given to the tenant within the same 30 days. If not, a court can order compensation of between one and three times the deposit.
