Section 21 transitional deadline: Action required before 31 July 2026
The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 came into force on 1 May 2026. From that date, landlords have no longer been able to serve “no fault” eviction notices under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988, and there have been various changes to the possession grounds that can be relied on under section 8 of the Housing Act 1988.
There are, however, important transitional provisions:
- Where a section 21 notice or a section 8 notice on old grounds was served before 1 May 2026, landlords may still issue possession proceedings based on that notice once it has expired.
- Proceedings must be issued by no later than 31 July 2026. This is a strict longstop date.
If the deadline is missed:
- the notice will no longer be valid;
- the tenancy will become an assured periodic tenancy;
- the landlord will need to rely on the revised section 8 procedure to recover possession.
Landlords in this position should consider taking advice now on timing and next steps ahead of the July deadline.
In addition, where a section 21 notice expires without proceedings being issued, or proceedings conclude without an order for possession being made, landlords must serve the prescribed Information Sheet within one month.
If you need support with the transitional deadline, please reach out to our team, or check out our Renters Rights’ Act hub for more information.
