No-fault evictions abolished: section 21 and what changed for renters

What is a no-fault eviction?

It was the name for an eviction under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988. A landlord could end an assured shorthold tenancy without giving any reason, on two months’ notice, and the tenant did not have to have done anything wrong — hence “no fault”. That is the route the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 has closed.

When did the no fault eviction ban start?

On 1 May 2026. The Renters’ Rights Act received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025, and the abolition of section 21 took effect in England on 1 May 2026. A landlord could still give a section 21 notice before that date, but the last day to apply to court on one was 31 July 2026. No section 21 notice can be used now.

What replaced it?

The section 8 process. Your landlord has to serve a notice on Form 3A naming one or more grounds for possession, explain why each applies, and give the notice period that ground requires. If you do not leave, they have to go to court and prove the ground rather than simply showing the notice.

What a section 8 notice must contain, and the notice period for each ground.

What grounds must a landlord use now?

One of the grounds for possession in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988. Some are about you: rent arrears, a breach of the tenancy agreement, damage to the property or antisocial behaviour. Others are about the landlord’s circumstances: they or a close family member want to move in, they want to sell, the mortgage lender is repossessing, the property is being redeveloped, or a student house is needed for the next academic year. Some grounds are mandatory, where the court must order possession if the landlord proves them; others are discretionary, where the court must also decide eviction is reasonable.

How much notice does a landlord have to give now?

It depends on the ground, and it is usually four months. Serious rent arrears need four weeks, a breach of the agreement two weeks, and for antisocial behaviour proceedings can begin straight away. A landlord cannot use the moving-in or selling grounds in the first 12 months of a tenancy.

Landlord or family moving in, or selling (grounds 1 and 1A)

4 months’ notice. Not in the first 12 months of the tenancy.

Student house needed for new students (ground 4A)

4 months’ notice.

Serious rent arrears (ground 8) and other arrears (ground 10)

4 weeks’ notice.

Breach of the tenancy agreement (ground 12)

2 weeks’ notice.

Antisocial behaviour (ground 14)

No notice period: proceedings can begin straight away.

I was given a section 21 notice before 1 May 2026. Does it still count?

No. There was a transitional window, and it has closed. GOV.UK is explicit: “You can no longer apply for a possession order using a section 8 or section 21 notice which you gave to your tenant before 1 May 2026. 31 July 2026 was the last date on which you could make an application.” If your landlord did not start court proceedings by then, that notice is spent and they have to begin again under the new rules.

Beginning again means a fresh notice on Form 3A, a ground they can prove, and the notice period that ground carries — which for a sale or a landlord moving in is four months.

What happened to my fixed term?

Most existing assured shorthold tenancies automatically became assured periodic tenancies on 1 May 2026. If your agreement has an end date in it, that date no longer applies. You can leave by giving two months’ notice, and your landlord cannot hold you to the remainder of a term that no longer exists.

Been sent an agreement that still has a fixed term and a section 21 clause? See what an agreement should say now.

Can my landlord just ask me to leave?

They can ask, and you can agree, but agreeing is a decision with consequences: giving up the tenancy voluntarily can affect whether your council treats you as homeless through no fault of your own. Without a notice, a court order and, if it comes to it, a bailiff, your landlord cannot make you go.

• Changing the locks, removing your belongings or cutting off services to make you leave may be a criminal offence.
• A landlord who harasses you to force you out is not enforcing a notice: they are committing one.
• If either is happening, tell the council’s tenancy relations or housing team, and get advice the same day.

Can I still be evicted?

Yes. Abolition removed eviction without a reason, not eviction. A landlord who proves serious rent arrears, antisocial behaviour, a breach of the agreement, or that they genuinely intend to sell or move in, can still obtain possession. What changed is that they must say which it is, and stand behind it.

Can I be evicted if my deposit was not protected?

On most grounds, not until the landlord puts it right. Since 1 May 2026 the court can only make a possession order if your deposit is protected in an approved scheme and you were given the prescribed information about it, or the deposit has been returned. The antisocial behaviour grounds are the exception.

How to check your deposit protection in all three schemes.

What should I do if I am given a notice?

Keep it, with the envelope or the email it arrived in, and note the date it was given. Check the form and the ground before you act on it. Keep paying your rent. Do not give up the tenancy in writing until you understand what that means for your housing options, and get advice while you still have time.

• Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service — free legal advice from the moment you get written notice.
• Shelter on the Renters’ Rights Act — what changed, for private renters.
• Citizens Advice housing — help working out your options.

Check a notice against what a section 8 notice must contain. Locks changed or belongings moved without a court order can be an illegal eviction. Leaving anyway? Give notice that works, so you are not paying rent on two homes.

Does this apply in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?

No. Housing law is different in each nation and section 21 was an England and Wales provision that Wales had already replaced. This page covers private tenancies in England.