A leading property law firm is warning that landlords face bankruptcy as a result of the massive increase in fines they are threatened with from the Home Office.

Landlords and agents who are found to have let their properties to unauthorised migrants will face penalties of up to £5,000 per lodger and £10,000 per occupier for a first breach, up from £80 and £1,000 respectively.

Repeat breaches could cost them up to £10,000 per lodger, up from £500, and a maximum of £20,000 per occupier, up from £3,000.

It is thought laws to enforce the fines will be enacted early in 2024.

Responding to the announcement Gary Scott – a partner at law firm Spector Constant & Williams – says: “This announcement is a further nail in the coffin for amateur landlords. The expectation seems to be that landlords should somehow become a branch of the Border Force. 

“The increase of penalties by 1000 per cent, up to £10,000 per occupier for a first infringement of these rules and up to £20,000 for a repeat offence (an increase of 667 per cent), will be likely to frighten off many good landlords. 

“The obligations have not changed but the penalty for getting it wrong have now become more than a headache or a slap across the wrist, but have moved to the territory of potential bankruptcy for many landlords.” 

“In these circumstances a simple error by an unwitting landlord allowing a family of four to take a tenancy when their immigration visas have just expired could arguably lead to fines for the landlord of up to £40,000. 

“Landlords, especially those with four or fewer properties and which make up over 50% of the total number of rented flats in the private rented sector, are not equipped or trained to carry out the role of a Border Force agent. The additional burdens on landlords brought in by the Government have already driven many from the market and this measure is likely to see many more follow suit.”