I don't have a UK address for my landlord

zukias

G_M wrote: »

...

Many thanks again for the response.

I have just realised on the contract it states the address we must serve notices + proceedings to is the landlords address in Austria. Is this breaking section 48 which states it must be an address in England & Wales, so we must withold rent?

I also had no idea this non resident landlord scheme existed... ! There is no mention of it in the contract, and the landlords bank is barclays in the UK so must I still deduct 20%? That would mean I have 17 months worth of rent I haven't deducted

brianposter

zukias wrote: »

So instead I must spend £6.10 for recorded delivery to send a letter to Austria to make sure he has received it, in order for him to tell me his new UK address to which I must send correspondence.

Ordinary post would seem to be quite adequate in the circumstances.

G_M

zukias wrote: »

I have just realised on the contract it states the address we must serve notices + proceedings to is the landlords address in Austria. Is this breaking section 48 which states it must be an address in England & Wales, so we must withold rent?
Yes.

I also had no idea this non resident landlord scheme existed... ! There is no mention of it in the contract, and the landlords bank is barclays in the UK so must I still deduct 20%? That would mean I have 17 months worth of rent I haven't deducted

The location of the LL's bank is irrelevant.
It is the location and status of the LL himself that matters. Hence I asked you earlier "is this permanent do you know?". Building on that is the question of whether he is an overseas resident for taxation purposes. It's a complex area I believe, and depends on things like
* location of his main residence
* number of days each year spent in the UK/overseas
etc

I am not qualified/knowledgeable enough to advise even if I knew the LL's movements so suggest you read the link and anything else relevant to this taxation issue.

On the plus side, even assuming the LL is overseas for tax purposes, and does not have the correct agreement in place with HMRC, yes, HMRC can come after you for the tax on his rental income - but I must admit I have not heard of this happening.

Does not mean it does not happen though.