It’s 1 May 2026, so the Renters’ Rights Act is in force for all non-social housing tenancies from today! A brief reminder of what this means and what landlords need to do now:

1. You cannot now serve a s21 notice to end any existing tenancies and you will be liable to a fine if you do.
2. If you have served a s21 notice before today, then you must issue possession proceedings before 31 July 2026. You do not have the normal six months to do so.  
3. You cannot now grant an assured shorthold tenancy or fixed term tenancy - again, you will be liable to a fine if you do.
4. For your existing tenants with written agreements, you (or your agent) must serve the government information sheet by 31 May  - or potentially face a £7000 fine. See Penny Bournes’ earlier blog for more information.
5. For new tenancies, or existing tenancies with no written agreement, you must serve a written statement of terms by 31 May 2026  - our earlier blog has the details.
6. If you need to seek possession, remember many of the existing grounds or notice periods have changed and new grounds have been introduced (e.g. for sale of the property). The Government summary of the grounds is here, but the full text of the actual grounds which need to be used in notices is available here. The s8 Notice of Seeking Possession prescribed form has also been updated - don't use the old one, as it will not be valid.  
7. You can read more about the other updated forms in our previous blog post.
8. Rent increases, pets and bidding wars - not the immediate priorities for May, but they are all changing too. 

If you need help and support navigating these changes, then please visit our Renters' Rights Act Hub for all our blogs and resources and don't hesitate to contact me.