The rules on keeping a pet in private rented housing in England and what’s changing in 2026 with the Renters’ Rights Act.
Published December 2025
This content applies to England.
Pets in private rented housing
More than half of UK adults own a pet, but it's notoriously difficult for England's 11 million private renters to find accommodation where pets are allowed.
Often, landlords will say no pets are allowed, and tenants can’t do much about it. Research by Dogs Trust and Cats Protection shows that while 46% of landlords said they allow pets, only 30% of tenants say their rental agreement allows dogs, and 32% say cats are permitted.
Some renters even need to consider giving up their pets. Ruairidh Nichols, Senior Public Affairs Officer at the Dogs Trust explains 'we receive thousands of enquiries from dog owners struggling with the lack of pet-friendly housing. This year, around 15% of enquiries we received cited accommodation issues.'
What's changing
The Renters' Rights Act changes the rules for pets in private rented housing in England.
From 1 May 2026, a tenant has the right to request to keep a pet, and their landlord cannot unreasonably refuse. The new rules don’t apply to social tenants.
When a tenant must ask permission to keep a pet
A tenant must ask their landlord if they want to keep a pet in their rented home.
Until the Renters' Rights Act comes into force, there are no formal rules on pets in private rented accommodation. Generally, a tenant must ask their landlord for permission to keep a pet and the tenant can request permission in any form.
The landlord has discretion whether to grant permission. A landlord can say no for any reason and doesn’t have to respond in a set manner.
What’s changing
From 1 May 2026, private tenants will have the right to request to keep a pet. Tenants must make the request in writing and include a description of the pet.
This will be implied into private tenancy agreements. This means all private tenants will have the same rights, no matter what’s actually written in their tenancy agreement.
The rules won't apply to someone who is not yet a tenant. Someone who is looking for rented accommodation can still make a request to keep a pet when they move in, but the rules about how the landlord must respond won't apply.
When a landlord can refuse a request for a pet
The Renters’ Rights Act will change the rules on how a landlord should respond to requests to keep a pet.
Under existing rules, a landlord can refuse permission for any reason. There is no set format for a landlord to respond. After the changes come in, landlords should not unreasonably refuse permission. Landlords can still refuse permission if they do so reasonably.
What's changing
From 1 May 2026, landlords should not unreasonably refuse permission when they respond to a request to keep a pet. Landlords can still refuse permission if they do so reasonably.
The landlord will normally have 28 days to respond to the request and must respond in writing.
In some cases, the landlord will have more time to respond. This includes where the landlord has requested more information about the pet within the 28 day period. After this, the landlord has an extra 7 days to issue their response.
A landlord might also have more time to respond if they are waiting on a response from a superior landlord. In these cases, the landlord has 7 days from when they receive the superior landlord's response. A landlord can also respond beyond the allowed period if it's agreed between the landlord and tenant.
When a landlord’s refusal is reasonable
The Act specifies that in some situations the landlord’s refusal will be reasonable, and therefore the landlord can refuse permission. This covers where permitting a pet to be kept would breach an agreement with a superior landlord, or where the superior landlord withholds consent.
Otherwise there’s no clear-cut answer to what is considered unreasonable. It will depend on the circumstances in each particular case.
Government guidance for landlords says that this might include where another tenant has an allergy, the property is too small or the pet is illegal to own.
Guidance also says that it would not normally be reasonable to refuse permission for a pet because the landlord does not like pets, has had issues with tenants who had pets in the past or has general concerns about potential damage.
What a tenant can do if their landlord refuses
A tenant might want to challenge their landlord's refusal to allow them to keep a pet.
In most cases, the tenant should try to sort problems by speaking to their landlord. A tenant could seek to negotiate with the landlord or look for alternative accommodation.
Tenants might be able to complain to the new Private Rented Sector Ombudsman about their landlord’s refusal, but the new Ombudsman won't be introduced at the same time as the new pet rules and other key changes come into force on 1 May 2026. The government has said that it intends to launch the Ombudsman service from late 2026.
If negotiation isn't possible, the tenant might be able to challenge a landlord’s unreasonable refusal by applying to court. When a court agrees that a landlord has unreasonably refused permission, the court has the power to order that the landlord allows the tenant permission to keep a pet. But a tenant won’t be able to get legal aid to make an application to court, so they might be put off by the potential costs.
What if a tenant gets a pet without permission
Currently a private tenant can be evicted by their landlord using a no-fault section 21 notice. This means it’s risky for tenants to get a pet without their landlord's permission, as they can be evicted without any legal reason.
What’s changing
Section 21 notices will be abolished by the Renters' Rights Act. This means that from 1 May 2026, a private landlord will need to prove a reason when they want to evict a tenant.
If a landlord wants to end a tenancy because a tenant has a pet without permission, they will need to prove that a specific ground applies. A landlord could potentially use ground 12, which applies when a tenant has breached the tenancy. If there has been damage caused by a pet, a landlord might be able to use grounds 13 or 15. These grounds cover where there has been deterioration in the property and deterioration in furniture.
Ground 12, 13 and 15 are discretionary grounds, so the court needs to consider whether it’s reasonable to evict the tenant.
When a landlord asks the tenant to pay more
A landlord can’t charge a tenant specific fees related to keeping a pet, unless they are in the list of permitted payments under the Tenant Fees Act 2019. At different stages the Renters' Rights Bill included new pet insurance or extra pet deposit rules, but these changes were not included in the Act when it became law.
If a landlord asks tenants for extra fees to keep a pet after 1 May 2026, any extra fee will be a banned fee. A landlord who accepts a banned fee could be subject to a financial penalty.
From May 2026, a private landlord must advertise a specific rent, and must not encourage or accept higher bids than this figure. If a landlord asks a prospective tenant to pay a higher rent because they have a pet, the landlord commits an offence. Landlords who breach these rules can be subject to a financial penalty of up to £7,000.
Pets and assistance animals
A dog is man’s best friend, but what is a pet? It might sound like a silly question, but the Renters’ Rights Act provides a definition. The Act says that a pet means an animal kept by a person for personal interest, companionship, ornamental purposes or any combination of these.
This should cover most four-legged companions, or even eight-legged ones, but the rules are slightly different for assistance animals.
Assistance animals
Assistance animals are trained to help people with disabilities, including people who are blind, deaf, have physical mobility problems or epilepsy.
Assistance dogs are legally recognised in the Equality Act, which requires service providers, such as landlords, to make reasonable adjustments where an assistance dog is required.
The new rules on pets won't apply to assistance dogs. The rules under the Equality Act will continue to apply.
This means that while a tenant who needs an assistance dog should still ask for permission, a landlord who refuses to make reasonable adjustments for a tenant to have an assistance dog might be found to be in breach of the Equality Act. What reasonable adjustments are required will depend on the circumstances in each case, including the property size and type.
A tenant who needs an assistance dog should seek advice if their landlord refuses permission.
Emotional support animals
Emotional support animals are not legally recognised in the UK, so there is no legal duty for landlords or other organisations to make special allowances for emotional support animals.
This means an emotional support animal will be subject to the same rules as any other pet when renting. This is the case even if they are certified, for example by Emotional Support Animals UK.
What this means for renters
Tenants will have the right to ask to keep a pet and landlords must consider requests, but a landlord can still refuse if it’s reasonable to do so. There isn’t a fixed legal definition of what’s reasonable, so it will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
We don’t yet know what the full impact will be. As landlords can still refuse where it's reasonable, some renters might be disappointed, but Ruairidh Nichols from Dogs Trust says 'these new rights mean that the benefits of pet ownership are no longer exclusive to homeowners, something we have been campaigning on for many years. It is a game-changer for pet-loving tenants.'