# Do I have to protect a lodger’s deposit? Source: https://tenancyvaults.co.uk/faqs/do-i-have-to-protect-a-lodgers-deposit By TenancyVaults (Run by a landlord in England) · Last checked 19 October 2026 ## The short answer Usually not. The protection duty covers assured tenancies, and a letting by a resident landlord in the same building can’t be one under Schedule 1 to the Housing Act 1988. So a lodger in your home is normally outside it. If you don’t live there, the deposit must be protected within 30 days. ### Key points - A letting by a resident landlord, in the same building and not a purpose-built block of flats, can’t be an assured tenancy, so the deposit protection duty doesn’t apply. - GOV.UK says a lodger who shares your kitchen, bathroom or living room is likely to be an excluded occupier. - If you don’t live in the building, a room let is usually an assured tenancy, and the deposit must be protected within 30 days. - The Tenant Fees Act 2019 covers licences to occupy housing, including lodgers, so in England a lodger’s deposit is capped at five weeks’ rent where the annual rent is under £50,000. - TDS Custodial only accepts deposits for assured periodic tenancies, so a lodger’s deposit can’t go there. ## Do I have to protect a lodger’s deposit in England? Usually not. [Section 213 of the Housing Act 2004](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/34/section/213) applies to deposits taken for assured tenancies. A letting by a resident landlord can’t be an assured tenancy ([Housing Act 1988, Schedule 1, paragraph 10](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/50/schedule/1/paragraph/10)). So when your lodger lives in your home, the deposit protection duty normally doesn’t apply. The resident landlord exception has three conditions, and all must be met: 1. The room is in a building that isn’t a purpose-built block of flats. 2. When you let it, you lived in another part of the same building as your only or principal home. 3. You’ve lived there as your only or principal home ever since. GOV.UK describes the duty in terms of assured periodic tenancies ([GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/tenancy-deposit-protection)). DPS lists resident landlords who live in the property among the lettings that don’t need a deposit registered ([DPS](https://www.depositprotection.com/learning-centre/more-information-about-deposit-protection/)). mydeposits says a tenancy can’t be an assured periodic tenancy if the landlord lives in the same accommodation ([mydeposits](https://www.mydeposits.co.uk/law/)). ## Who counts as a lodger? Someone who lives in your home with you. GOV.UK describes two kinds ([GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/rent-room-in-your-home/your-lodgers-tenancy-type)): - **An excluded occupier** lives in your home and shares a kitchen, bathroom or living room with you or your family. - **An occupier with basic protection** lives in your home but shares no living space with you. The difference matters for ending the arrangement. It doesn’t change the deposit position, because both are lettings by a resident landlord in the same building. ## When does a room let need deposit protection after all? When the resident landlord exception doesn’t apply. These are the usual cases: - **You don’t live there.** A tenant who rents a room in a shared house, with a kitchen or bathroom shared with other tenants, is treated as having an assured tenancy of their room ([Housing Act 1988, section 3](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/50/section/3)). Their deposit must be protected within 30 days. - **A purpose-built block of flats.** Living in one flat and letting another flat in the same block doesn’t count as a resident landlord letting. - **Some other exception applies.** [Schedule 1](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/50/schedule/1) has its own list, such as rent over £100,000 a year or rent of £250 a year or less (£1,000 in Greater London). If you move out for good, the third condition stops being met, and the letting may become an assured tenancy. A deposit for it would then need protecting. Check the position before you move, or when you let the room again. ## Did the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 change this? Not for lodgers. From 1 May 2026, the deposit rules follow the assured tenancy rather than the assured shorthold tenancy. The resident landlord exception in [paragraph 10](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/50/schedule/1/paragraph/10) still stands, so lodger lettings in your home stay outside the duty. ## Is there a limit on how much deposit I can take from a lodger? In England, yes. The [Tenant Fees Act 2019](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/4/section/28) applies to a “licence to occupy housing”, and that includes a licence granted by someone who lives in the housing. So the Act’s deposit cap applies to a lodger in your home ([Schedule 1](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/4/schedule/1)): - **five weeks’ rent** where the annual rent is under **£50,000** - **six weeks’ rent** where it’s **£50,000** or more A week’s rent is the annual rent divided by 52. Wales has no equivalent cap. ## Can I protect a lodger’s deposit anyway? Not with every scheme. TDS Custodial only accepts deposits for assured periodic tenancies in England or Wales ([TDS Custodial Scheme Rules](https://www.tenancydepositscheme.com/help-centre/article-categories/Key-documents), rule 3.1). DPS may agree, at its sole discretion, to protect a deposit for another type of tenancy ([DPS custodial terms](https://www.depositprotection.com/documents/custodial_terms_and_conditions.pdf)). If a dispute arises on one, DPS may charge the landlord **£500 plus VAT** or **10%** of the deposit, whichever is greater. It may also refuse to handle the dispute. Whether the letting is an assured tenancy depends on the arrangement, in Schedule 1, not on where the deposit is held. ## How do I keep a lodger’s deposit without a scheme? Keep the same record a scheme would expect. Without protection, there’s no scheme dispute service, so a disagreement at the end is settled between you or in the county court. A clear record helps either way: 1. A written agreement saying what the deposit covers and when it’s returned. 2. A dated receipt for the deposit. 3. A check-in report of the room and any rooms you share, with dated photos. 4. A check-out report in the same terms when your lodger leaves. 5. Invoices or quotes for any deduction you propose. ## What about lodgers in Wales? In Wales, the deposit duty applies to occupation contracts ([section 45](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2016/1/section/45)). A letting isn’t an occupation contract if two things are true ([Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016, Schedule 2](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2016/1/schedule/2)): - its terms let the occupier share accommodation with you - you live in the home as your only or principal home The exception falls away if you give notice, before or when the letting is made, that it will be an occupation contract. Sharing means using accommodation in common with you. Storage areas, stairs, passages and corridors don’t count. If the exception doesn’t apply, for example because you share no accommodation, the letting is usually an occupation contract. The deposit must then be protected and the required information given within 30 days. ## Where next? The full list of lettings outside the rules is on [Do I have to protect my tenant’s deposit?](https://tenancyvaults.co.uk/faqs/do-i-have-to-protect-my-tenants-deposit), and the timing for a deposit that does need protecting is on [How long do I have to protect a deposit?](https://tenancyvaults.co.uk/faqs/how-long-do-i-have-to-protect-a-deposit) For the record at the start, the [check-in inventory template](https://tenancyvaults.co.uk/guides/check-in-inventory-template) sets out each room. Where a room let is an assured tenancy and its deposit goes to a scheme’s dispute service, a [deposit dispute pack](https://tenancyvaults.co.uk/dispute-packs) puts your evidence in that scheme’s order. ## Common questions ### Do lodgers have to pay a deposit? No. Nothing requires one. If you take a deposit from a lodger in England, the Tenant Fees Act 2019 caps it at five weeks’ rent where the annual rent is under £50,000, or six weeks’ rent where it’s £50,000 or more. ### My lodger has a self-contained flat in my house. Do I need to protect the deposit? Usually not, if you live in another part of the same building and it isn’t a purpose-built block of flats. The resident landlord exception in Schedule 1 to the Housing Act 1988 doesn’t require you to share rooms. GOV.UK says a lodger who shares no living space is likely to be an occupier with basic protection. ### Does a lodger’s deposit need protecting if they stay for years? No. The length of the stay doesn’t change the rule. What matters is whether you live in the same building as your only or principal home, and have done since you let the room. ### Can a lodger take me to court over an unprotected deposit? Not under section 214 of the Housing Act 2004 if the letting isn’t an assured tenancy, because that claim applies to deposits that had to be protected. A lodger can still ask the county court for the deposit back if they think deductions weren’t justified. ### Is a lodger in Wales treated the same way? Broadly. Under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016, a letting isn’t an occupation contract if you share accommodation with the occupier and live there as your only or principal home. The exception is where you give notice that it will be one. Without an occupation contract, the deposit duty in section 45 doesn’t apply. ## Sources The facts on this page come from these official sources, checked on 19 October 2026. 1. [Housing Act 2004, section 213](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/34/section/213) 2. [Housing Act 1988, section 3](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/50/section/3) 3. [Housing Act 1988, Schedule 1](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/50/schedule/1) 4. [Housing Act 1988, Schedule 1, paragraph 10 (resident landlords)](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/50/schedule/1/paragraph/10) 5. [Tenant Fees Act 2019, section 28](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/4/section/28) 6. [Tenant Fees Act 2019, Schedule 1](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/4/schedule/1) 7. [Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016, section 45](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2016/1/section/45) 8. [Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016, Schedule 2](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2016/1/schedule/2) 9. [GOV.UK: Renting out a room in your home, your lodger’s tenancy type](https://www.gov.uk/rent-room-in-your-home/your-lodgers-tenancy-type) 10. [GOV.UK: Tenancy deposit protection](https://www.gov.uk/tenancy-deposit-protection) 11. [DPS: More information about deposit protection](https://www.depositprotection.com/learning-centre/more-information-about-deposit-protection/) 12. [DPS custodial terms and conditions (v35, May 2026)](https://www.depositprotection.com/documents/custodial_terms_and_conditions.pdf) 13. [TDS key documents (TDS Custodial Scheme Rules, 2nd edition, 1 May 2026)](https://www.tenancydepositscheme.com/help-centre/article-categories/Key-documents) 14. [mydeposits: Deposit protection scheme rules (the law)](https://www.mydeposits.co.uk/law/)