Tenancy deposit calculator, 2026/27
Landlords letting a residential property need to stay within the statutory deposit cap and protect the deposit correctly. Enter the annual rent to check the maximum lawful deposit and the deadline for protecting it in a scheme.
The tenancy deposit calculator runs on the rates and thresholds HMRC has published for the 2026/27 tax year, so the figures you see reflect the position your company is actually filing on rather than a historic set of bands. Change any input and the result recalculates immediately, with no sign-up and nothing sent anywhere.
If you are a director of a UK limited company, use it as a first look before a decision rather than as the decision itself. Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, deposits are capped at five weeks' rent where annual rent is below £50,000, and six weeks' rent where annual rent is £50,000 or more. Real company positions bring in other income, reliefs, group structures and prior year adjustments that a single page of inputs cannot see, which is why the workings are written out below under property & landlord. Read those, then check the numbers against your own accounts, and speak to us if anything looks materially different from what you expected.
Last reviewed 12 September 2026 for the 2026/27 tax year. Reviewed by Waqas Sagar, Member of ICAEW, Fellow of ACCA, Fellow of AAT.
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Result, 2026/27
Maximum lawful deposit
Equivalent to 5 weeks' rentYour proposed deposit
Within the statutory capAmount over the cap, if any
Deadline to protect the deposit
Must be placed in a government-approved schemeIllustration only, figures are based on the rates you have selected and the information entered. Please check your own position with us before acting.
Estimates for the 2026/27 tax year using published GOV.UK rates. Switch between 2026/27 and 2025/26 above.
How this is calculated
The statutory deposit cap is set as a number of weeks' rent rather than a flat cash figure, so it scales with the rent charged. Weekly rent is calculated by dividing the annual rent by 52, then multiplying by five weeks for tenancies with annual rent below £50,000, or six weeks for tenancies at or above that threshold.
A deposit above this cap is unlawful under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, and a landlord who takes an excessive deposit can be ordered to refund the excess and may struggle to serve a valid Section 21 notice until the position is corrected.
This calculator compares your proposed deposit against the calculated cap and reports both the maximum lawful figure and how much, if any, your proposed deposit exceeds it.
Protecting the deposit correctly
Once a deposit is taken for an assured shorthold tenancy in England, it must be placed in one of the government-approved tenancy deposit protection schemes within 30 days, and the tenant must be given prescribed information about which scheme is being used and how disputes are resolved.
Failure to protect a deposit in time, or failure to provide the prescribed information, can lead to a court ordering the landlord to pay the tenant between one and three times the deposit amount, on top of returning the deposit itself, and again can prevent a valid Section 21 notice being served.
Returning the deposit at the end of the tenancy
At the end of the tenancy, the deposit should be returned promptly once both parties agree on any deductions for damage, unpaid rent or missing items beyond fair wear and tear, with the relevant scheme's dispute resolution service available if landlord and tenant cannot agree.
Keeping a thorough check-in inventory and photographic evidence at the start of the tenancy makes it much easier to justify any deductions later, and reduces the risk of a dispute escalating to the scheme's adjudication process.
What this means for your company
Treat the result as a planning figure for the 2026/27 tax year. If it changes what you were about to do, take a director's salary, a dividend, a large asset purchase or a filing decision, check it against your own accounts first. We can review the position with you and confirm the tax treatment before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
What is the maximum tenancy deposit a landlord can take?
Five weeks' rent where the annual rent is below £50,000, or six weeks' rent where the annual rent is £50,000 or more, under the Tenant Fees Act 2019 cap on deposits in England.
How long do I have to protect a deposit?
A deposit for an assured shorthold tenancy in England must be placed in a government-approved protection scheme, and prescribed information given to the tenant, within 30 days of receiving it.
What happens if I take too large a deposit?
The excess is unlawful and can be ordered to be repaid, and the landlord may also be unable to serve a valid Section 21 notice to end the tenancy until the deposit is brought within the statutory cap.
What if I do not protect the deposit in time?
A tenant can apply to court, which can order the landlord to repay the deposit and pay a penalty of between one and three times its value, in addition to any other remedies for failing to provide prescribed information.
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