Renewing your registration

If you are a registered letting agent, you must apply to renew your registration before your current registration expires. If you do not, it will be against the law for you to carry out letting agency work after the expiry date.

We will send the main contact address given in the original application information about both:

• how to apply to renew your registration
• when you will be able to apply

If the main contact has changed, let us know by emailing lettingagentregulation@gov.scot.

If you submit your renewal application before the expiry of your current registration then you will remain on the register whilst your renewal application is being determined. You will not be committing a criminal offence if you carry on operating as a letting agent during this time.

Registration period for a renewal application

The registration period for approved renewals will run from the expiry of your current registration. It will not run from the date that the application is approved. This is true whether the approval of your renewal application happens before or after the date your current registration expires.

Example of a renewal approval before the expiry date:

1. Your current registration is due to expire on 31 December 2021.
2. You submit a renewal application on 1 October 2021.
3. The renewal is approved on 01 November 2021.
4. Your current registration would continue to run until 31 December 2021.
5. The new 3 year registration period for your renewed registration would begin on 1 January 2022. You would not lose any time from either registration period.

Example of a renewal approval after the expiry date:

1. Your current registration is due to expire on 31 December 2021.
2. You submit a renewal application on 31 December 2021.
3. The renewal is approved on 30 December 2022.
4. Your current registration would end on 31 December 2021.
5. However, because you submitted the renewal application before your current registration expired, you would remain on the register as a registered agent until your renewal application was determined.
6. The three year registration period for your renewed registration would be backdated to start from 1 January 2022, the day after the previous registration expired. You would therefore not gain any additional time on the registration period for your renewed registration.

We strongly recommend submitting your renewal application as soon as you are in a position to do so. This would mean any issues with your renewal application can be identified and addressed more quickly. This will also allow time to resolve any issues that you may have submitting your renewal application.