Scope: England and Wales, private rented sector. Verified against the legislation on 12 August 2026. Wales runs occupation contracts under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 — the safety duties largely mirror England's, but the tenancy documents do not; see the divergence map.
The short answer: four documents you must hold, one assessment you can usually do yourself, and one test that produces no document at all.
| What | When | Applies to |
|---|
| Gas Safety Record |
Every 12 months; served before occupation and within 28 days of each check |
Any property with a gas appliance, pipe or flue |
| EICR |
Every 5 years; C1 and C2 remedials within 28 days |
Every rented property |
| EPC |
Every 10 years; needed before marketing |
Every rented property, at the minimum band |
| Deposit prescribed information |
Within 30 days of receiving the deposit — absolute |
Every tenancy taking a deposit |
| Legionella risk assessment |
Reviewed periodically |
Every rented property — an assessment, not a certificate |
| Smoke and CO alarms |
Tested and working on the first day of the tenancy |
Every rented property — a test, not a document |
The two that are not certificates
Legionella. There is no legionella certificate in law. The duty is to assess the risk, and for an ordinary house a competent landlord can carry out and record a simple assessment themselves. It is among the most commonly mis-sold services in the sector, and buying one is not evidence of compliance — the written assessment is.
Alarms. The duty is that alarms are tested and working on the day the tenancy starts. No certificate exists. What protects you is a dated record that you tested them, ideally countersigned by the tenant on the inventory.
What is not on this list, and why
PAT testing is not a statutory requirement for a domestic let, despite being widely sold as one. What the law requires is that electrical appliances you supply are safe; portable appliance testing is one way to evidence that, not a duty in itself.
Nor is there a general "landlord safety certificate" covering everything at once. Anyone offering one is bundling the items above.
HMOs carry more
If your property is an HMO, additional duties attach: fire safety, room sizes and amenity standards, and the management regulations. A licence may also require specific works as a condition.
Serving them matters as much as holding them
Several of these must be given to the tenant, not merely filed — the gas record and the EPC before occupation, and re-served when they renew. See mid-tenancy re-service and the day-one checklist, which sets out what goes out and by when.
A landlord who served everything correctly and cannot prove it is, in a dispute, in the same position as one who served nothing.
Run the free compliance check — five questions, no account, and it returns this list narrowed to your actual property, with the legislation behind each item.
Common questions
What certificates does a landlord legally need?
Four documents and two things that are not documents. You must hold a Gas Safety Record (annually, if there is any gas), an EICR (every five years), an EPC at the minimum band, and the deposit prescribed information served within 30 days. You must also have a legionella risk assessment — which is an assessment you can usually carry out yourself, not a certificate to buy — and working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms tested on the first day of the tenancy, which produces no certificate at all.
Do I need a legionella certificate?
No. No such certificate exists in law. The duty is to assess and control the risk, and for an ordinary house a competent landlord can do and record a simple assessment themselves. Buying a certificate is not evidence of compliance; the written assessment is.
Is PAT testing a legal requirement for landlords?
Not for a domestic let. The requirement is that electrical appliances you supply are safe. Portable appliance testing is one way of evidencing that, and it is widely sold as though it were a duty, but it is not one.
How often does each certificate need renewing?
Gas Safety Record every 12 months. EICR every 5 years, with any C1 or C2 remedial work completed within 28 days. EPC every 10 years. The deposit prescribed information is served once per tenancy, within 30 days of receiving the deposit. The legionella assessment is reviewed periodically rather than on a fixed cycle, and alarms are tested at the start of every tenancy.
Do I have to give the certificates to the tenant?
Several of them, yes — the gas record and the EPC before occupation, and again when they renew. Holding a document is not the same as serving it, and a landlord who served everything correctly but cannot prove it is in the same position in a dispute as one who served nothing. Keep the sent item or a dated receipt.