Adding foreign spouse to rental agreement
 

Hi all -

I realise that rental market in the UK is hot right now in some areas, more tenants than those who rent out. Apparently tenants need to entice home owners who can be very choosy .

In the light of this what is anyone’s experience adding your recently arrived spouse (on spouse visa with BRP issued) to a rental agreement straight away ? Also there is a “Right to Rent” check required to be done on a foreign spouse which can further complicate the issue.

Is it easier to draft the initial rental agreement on a returning UK national spouse’s name as a primary tenant and then include a foreign spouse later ?

Many thanks in advance for any thoughts.

Re: Adding foreign spouse to rental agreement
 

When applying for the spouse visa, proof of accommodation is required. If the British partner already has a rental home, his/her partner cannot be added to a tenancy agreement until they can pass a Right to Rent check but this need not be a problem.

What's needed for the application is letter from the landlord, stating that he/she has no objection to your partner being added to the tenancy once the landlord has verified that your partner has the right rent a property in the UK. This is perfectly acceptable for meeting the proof of accommodation requirement.

The applicant can prove their right to rent to landlords with their BRP, and can then be added to the tenancy agreement.

Re: Adding foreign spouse to rental agreement
 

Apologies for confusion , actually my husband already got his spouse visa approved for 2.5 years on 4/8 and we are heading to the UK in November .

Just thinking ahead about getting a proper rental once we arrive there and whether to put his name on the rental agreement straight away or not , given problems with this additional “Right to Rent” check .

Re: Adding foreign spouse to rental agreement
 

Ah, I see what you mean. I'd apply for the rental in both your names. It will be easy for your partner to prove their right to rent, they just need their BRP (and maybe passport too, can't remember). In my opinion there's no point in just getting the rental in your name initially, then applying later on to have your partner added to the tenancy agreement. If the landlord has a problem with your partner being on the tenancy, then they'd have that same problem down the track when you apply to add your partner to the tenancy agreement.

As a side note, if landlords are following the Rent to Rent legislation properly, they will check all prospective tenants' right to rent in the UK, not just those who don't conform to their idea of what a 'typical' British person looks or sounds like.