Non-Resident Landlord (NRL)

A Non-Resident Landlord (NRL) refers to an individual, company, or trust that owns and rents out property in the UK but whose main residence is outside the UK for more than six months in a tax year. Despite the term, being an “NRL” is based on tax residency, not landlord status — it simply means the landlord is overseas for long enough to fall within HMRC’s Non-Resident Landlord Scheme (NRLS).

Under the NRLS, tax on rental income must be managed in a specific way. By default, letting agents or tenants paying rent of more than £100 a week are required to deduct basic rate tax (currently 20%) from the rent before passing it on to the landlord. However, NRLs can apply to HMRC for approval to receive their rental income without tax deducted and instead declare it through self-assessment.

This system ensures that UK tax is collected fairly from landlords who live abroad but earn income from UK property. Many overseas landlords choose to use professional letting agents to manage their tax obligations and compliance with HMRC rules.

For tenants and agents, it’s important to confirm whether a landlord is classed as an NRL, as failing to deduct tax correctly can result in liability for unpaid tax.