
The Scottish Government, in conjunction with the Scottish Association of Landlords (SAL) and the Council of Letting Agents (CLA), recently held a series of awareness raising events across Scotland to help letting agents prepare for the Letting Agent Code of Practice Regulations 2016.
Members of the SafeDeposits team attended the events in Dundee and Edinburgh, and we have summarised the key topics covered below:
Requirements on letting agents in Scotland
If you do letting agency work in Scotland you will soon be required by law to:
- Comply with a Letting Agent Code of Practice (the Code) by 31st January 2018;
- Join the Register of Letting Agents (the Register) by 30th September 2018.
Getting ready for registration
Before you apply for registration you should make sure that:
- Anyone in your business who needs certain qualifications has them;
- Your business meets the requirements of the Code of Practice;
- All your staff understand and follow the Code of Practice;
- You hold client money in at least one separate and dedicated client bank account;
- You hold client money protection;
- You hold professional indemnity insurance.

Registration - qualification and training
Before you can register you have to make sure that everyone in your business who needs to has the correct training.
Those who have to be trained as part of the registration process will need to have a relevant qualification covering essential aspects of letting agency work at, or at the equivalent of, Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) level 6 or above.
If you're applying as a sole trader, the people who need the qualification, plus any necessary training are:
- You;
- Every person directly concerned with managing and supervising the day-to-day running of your letting agency work.
- The person who holds the most senior position in the organisation's management structure (unless they aren't involved in the day-to-day running of the letting agency work);
- Every person directly concerned with managing and supervising the day-to-day running of the organisation's letting agency work.
There are currently two programmes leading to qualifications that are considered acceptable. They are:
- The LETWELL programme, delivered by Landlord Accreditation Scotland and the Chartered Institute of Housing Scotland: CIH level 3 certificate in letting and managing residential property (equivalent to SCQF level 6);
- Propertymark qualifications (formerly National Federation of Property Professionals) programme: level 6 technical award in residential letting and property management.
This must include at least 15 hours of formal training which could consist of:
- Courses;
- Conferences;
- Lectures;
- Seminars;
- Webinars.
The rest of the hours needed can be informal training. This may include:
- Work shadowing and coaching;
- Informal learning within your company;
- Interactive discussions with experts;
- Informal teaching for others;
- Reading and writing articles on letting agency work.
The Code of Practice sets out the standards all those doing letting agency work must meet.
You must make sure you meet the obligations in the Code from 31st January 2018. If you don't, tenants and landlord can apply to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Housing and Property Chamber) to resolve a dispute.

Penalties for failing to comply
If someone fails to join the Register by the specified date, they will be liable to criminal prosecution, which if convicted could result in a fine of £50,000 and/or up to 6 months imprisonment.
If someone fails to ensure compliance with the Code by the specified date, tenants and landlords can apply to the First-Tier Tribunal for Scotland (Housing and Property Chamber) to resolve any dispute.
Further information
You may find it helpful to look at the Scottish Government's Letting Agent Registration Guide.
If you would like any further information, you can also email the Scottish Government's letting agent regulation team at lettingagentregulation@gov.scot.
You may also want to contact one of the following organisations for more support and advice:
- Council of Letting Agents;
- Propertymark (formerly National Federation of Property Professionals);
- Chartered Institute of Housing Scotland;
- Landlord Accreditation Scotland;
- Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors;
- Scottish Land and Estates.
- Letting Agent Code of Practice (Scotland) Regulations 2016 - this sets out the standards of practice that letting agents will be required to meet in delivering their services;
- Letting Agent Registration (Scotland) Regulations 2016 - this sets out the additional information applicants must provide as part of registration and will be included in an entry to the register of letting agents as well as the training that must be met for applicants to be admitted to the register.