From June 1st provisions in the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 preventing landlords from discriminating against contract-holders will commence. Following this, two new fundamental provisions will be added to the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 as sections 54A and 54B. 

These provisions prevent landlords from discriminating against tenants who have children and/or are in receipt of welfare benefits. These changes are intended to improve access to housing for people and reduce discriminatory practices in the Welsh rental sector.

Let’s take a look at what these changes mean in practice.

Section 54A: Right for children to live at or visit dwelling

Landlords and property managers cannot impose blanket “no children” rules for most rented homes covered by:

• Secure contracts
• Fixed term standard contracts
• Periodic standard contracts 

This includes restrictions on:

• Children living at the property
• Children visiting the property 

Any restriction must be:

• Justified
• Proportionate
• For a legitimate reason 

Examples of legitimate reasons

A restriction may be lawful if:

• The property would become overcrowded
• There are genuine health and safety concerns linked to the size or layout of the property
• Ultimately, whether a restriction is lawful could be decided by a court.

What landlords and property managers should do now

Review:

• Property listings
• Tenant screening practices
• Standard tenancy wording
• Landlord instructions 

to ensure they do not unlawfully discriminate against tenants with children.

Exceptions

Insurance exception (temporary)

There is a limited exception where an existing insurance policy already requires restrictions on children living in or visiting the property.

However:

• This only applies while that current insurance policy remains active.
• Once it expires, future insurance policies cannot override the tenant’s rights because the law will render such insurance restrictions ineffective. 

So, this exception is expected to be temporary in most cases.

Supported accommodation exception

The new rule does not automatically apply to supported standard occupation contracts. This recognises that some supported accommodation may not be appropriate for children. However, landlords can still allow children where suitable.

Section 54B: Right to claim benefits

Landlords and letting agents cannot impose blanket bans such as:

• “No DSS”
• “No benefits”
• “Working tenants only” 

on applicants who claim welfare benefits.

This protection applies to:

• Secure contracts
• Fixed term standard contracts
• Periodic standard contracts 

The law is designed to stop discrimination against tenants who receive housing support or other welfare payments.

What landlords and property managers should do now

Review:

• Property adverts
• Applicant criteria
• Landlord instructions
• Referencing processes 

to ensure they do not unlawfully exclude benefit claimants. Keep clear records showing decisions are based on objective criteria, not benefit status.

What landlords and agents can still do

You can still:

• Carry out affordability checks
• Request references
• Assess whether rent is affordable
• Decline applicants for legitimate financial reasons unrelated to benefit status 

The key issue is that decisions must not be based solely on the fact that someone receives benefits.

Insurance exception (temporary)

There is a limited exception where an existing insurance policy already requires landlords to prohibit tenants from claiming benefits.

However this only applies while that current insurance policy remains in force.  Once the policy expires, future insurance restrictions of this kind will no longer be enforceable under Welsh law. 

This means the exception is expected to reduce over time. Property managers should explain to their landlords that insurance restrictions are unlikely to remain valid long-term.

How Dezrez keeps you compliant

Estate agents managing Welsh rental properties should:

Review existing occupation contracts 

Dezrez provides a central database of managed tenancies, including searchable tenancy records, landlord and property-level visibility, and contract storage linked to each tenancy. 

This allows agents to:

• quickly identify all Welsh occupation contracts
• segment affected tenancies
• review existing clauses
• track which agreements need updating

Update template contracts and written statements 

Dezrez’s document generation and template management tools allow agents to:

• amend standard occupation contract templates
• roll out updated wording across future tenancies
• standardise compliant documents
• reduce the risk of staff using outdated versions

For agencies using integrated document workflows, this means new contracts automatically contain the updated Welsh fundamental terms.

Ensure tenants receive the required paperwork before the deadline 

Dezrez supports automated document sending, tenancy communication workflows, task tracking, and digital correspondence records. 

This allows agents to:

• bulk issue updated written statements
• assign compliance tasks to teams
• monitor completion progress
• maintain a clear audit trail

Keep records confirming service of updated terms 

Dezrez keeps communication histories, document records, tenancy timelines, and activity logs. 

This creates an audit trail showing:

• when updated terms were generated
• when they were sent
• who sent them
• which tenancy they relate to

That evidence becomes important if:

• a dispute arises
• a landlord is challenged
• compliance is investigated

Final thoughts

Agencies that take proactive steps now will be better placed to reduce legal risk, protect landlords, and demonstrate fair and compliant letting practices.

With the right systems in place, managing these changes does not need to be complicated. Dezrez helps agents streamline contract updates, manage tenancy records, automate communications, and maintain the audit trails needed to support ongoing compliance under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016.