Free tool
Holding deposit calculator
The short answer: in England a holding deposit can be no more than one week’s rent, the monthly rent × 12 ÷ 52. On £1,000 a month that is £230.76, and the tenancy deposit is capped at five weeks’ rent, £1,153.84. Enter your rent to see your own limits.
England · Tenant Fees Act 2019 · Checked 14 October 2026
Enter the monthly rent for the whole property, as advertised. The limits update as you type.
Enter a monthly rent to see the maximum holding deposit and tenancy deposit a landlord or letting agent in England can lawfully ask for.
The limits come from the Tenant Fees Act 2019 and apply to assured shorthold tenancies, student lettings and licences to occupy in the private rented sector.
When a holding deposit can be kept
- A holding deposit must be repaid, or put towards the rent or the tenancy deposit, within 7 days of the tenancy being entered into.
- If the landlord decides not to proceed, it must be repaid within 7 days of that decision or of the deadline for agreement, whichever is sooner.
- The deadline for agreement is 15 days after the holding deposit is paid, unless both sides agree a different date in writing.
- It may only be kept if you provide false or misleading information, fail a Right to Rent check, withdraw, or fail to take all reasonable steps to enter the tenancy.
- A landlord or agent may only hold one holding deposit for one property at a time.
What you can be asked to pay
- Rent
- Rent itself is not capped, but rent cannot be front-loaded to disguise a banned fee.
- Holding deposit
- Capped at one week’s rent, and only one property at a time.
- Tenancy deposit
- Capped at five weeks’ rent, or six weeks where the annual rent is £50,000 or more.
- Changes to the tenancy at your request
- Capped at £50, or the landlord’s reasonable costs if higher and evidenced.
- Early termination at your request
- Limited to the landlord’s actual loss, or the agent’s reasonable costs.
- Utilities, communication services, TV licence and council tax
- Where the tenancy agreement makes you responsible for them.
- Default fees
- Only for a late rent payment (interest capped at 3% above the Bank of England base rate, and only after 14 days) or a replacement key or security device, at reasonable evidenced cost.
Payments that are banned
- Viewing fees
- Administration or application fees
- Referencing or credit check fees
- Inventory check fees
- Tenancy renewal fees
- Check-out fees
- Professional cleaning as a compulsory charge
- Requiring a specific third-party service such as a named referencing provider
Applicability
- Jurisdiction:
- England. Different rules apply in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
- Legislation:
- Tenant Fees Act 2019, in force from 1 June 2019 for new tenancies and from 1 June 2020 for all existing ones.
These figures are the statutory limits, calculated exactly as the legislation defines them. They are not legal advice about your particular tenancy. If you think you have been charged a prohibited payment, your local council’s trading standards team enforces the Act.
Questions about holding deposits
What is the maximum holding deposit in England?
One week’s rent, under the Tenant Fees Act 2019. Work it out as the monthly rent × 12 ÷ 52: on £1,000 a month that is £230.76. Don’t round up: anything above one week’s rent is a banned payment.
What is the maximum tenancy deposit?
Five weeks’ rent while the rent is under £50,000 a year, and six weeks’ rent at £50,000 or more. On £1,000 a month that is £1,153.84. It must be protected in a government-approved scheme within 30 days.
How long can a landlord or agent keep a holding deposit?
The deadline for agreeing the tenancy is 15 days after you pay, unless you both agree a different date in writing. Once the tenancy starts, the holding deposit must be repaid or put towards the rent or deposit within 7 days. If the landlord decides not to go ahead, it must be repaid within 7 days.
When can a landlord keep my holding deposit?
Only if you give false or misleading information, fail a Right to Rent check, pull out, or don’t take all reasonable steps to agree the tenancy. If they keep it, they must tell you why in writing within 7 days.
What fees can a landlord or letting agent charge?
Apart from rent, the capped deposits and a few specific payments (such as a lost key, a late rent payment of 14 days or more, or changing the tenancy at your request), fees are banned. Viewing, admin, referencing, inventory and check-out fees are all prohibited in England.
Do these limits apply in Wales and Scotland?
No. This calculator is for England. Wales caps the holding deposit at one week’s rent under its own law, and Scotland bans holding deposits and premiums altogether.