The Renters' Rights Act: Everything tenants in England need to know
In a nutshell
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 is the most significant overhaul of private renting in England since the Housing Act 1988. It abolishes no-fault evictions, converts all tenancies to rolling monthly agreements, caps how often landlords can raise rents, and introduces new protections around pets, discrimination, and property standards. The Act received Royal Assent in October 2025 and its core provisions, including the abolition of Section 21, came into force on May 1st, 2026.
Let's imagine that your landlord sends you a letter saying they need the property back. They don't give a reason, because they don't have to. You have two months to leave a home you've lived in for three years. Or maybe you've just been told your rent is going up by £300 a month. You can't afford it, but you're worried that if you push back, you'll get the same letter.
Until recently, both of these situations were entirely legal. The Renters' Rights Act, which came into force on May 1st, 2026, changes that. It abolished no-fault evictions, gave tenants new tools to challenge unfair rent increases, and introduced the strongest protections English renters have had in over three decades.
In this guide, we'll walk through every major change the Act has introduced, what these changes mean in practice, when they apply, and what you can do if your landlord isn't playing by the new rules.
01
Section 21 abolished: No more no-fault evictions
KEY TAKEAWAY
From 1 May 2026, landlords in England can no longer evict tenants without giving a legal reason, also known as a "Section 8" ground. Section 21 "no-fault" eviction notices are permanently abolished for all assured tenancies, both new and existing.
Section 21 was the default route to possession in England and the single biggest driver of "no-fault" homelessness. Thankfully, the Renters' Rights Act repeals it entirely. From May 1st, 2026, every eviction must go through Section 8, which requires the landlord to prove a specific legal ground. The change applies automatically to existing tenancies, meaning there's no new agreement needed, and nothing you have to sign.
What was Section 21?
Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 allowed landlords to end an assured shorthold tenancy without giving any reason. Provided the fixed term had expired (or there was no fixed term), the deposit was protected, and the landlord had complied with a handful of procedural requirements, they could serve a two-month notice and the tenant had to leave. The court process was streamlined via the "accelerated possession procedure," and tenants had almost no grounds to resist. For 35 years, it was the default eviction route, used in roughly 80% of private possession cases.
What replaces it?
All evictions now go through Section 8 of the Housing Act, which has been substantially expanded by the Renters' Rights Act. Section 8 requires the landlord to prove one of a defined list of grounds for possession, such as rent arrears, anti-social behaviour, or the landlord wanting to sell the property. Some grounds are mandatory (the court must grant possession if the ground is proved), while others are discretionary (the court decides whether it's reasonable).
What happens to Section 21 notices already served?
Section 21 notices served before May 1st, 2026, remain valid, but the landlord must file court proceedings by July 31st at the latest. If they miss the deadline, the notice expires and the tenancy continues as an assured periodic tenancy under the new rules. From May 1st onwards, no new Section 21 notices can be served, even on tenancies that started before the Act came into force. If you receive something that looks like a Section 21 notice dated after 30 April 2026, it has no legal effect.
02
All tenancies become periodic
KEY TAKEAWAY
Fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies are abolished. From May 1st, 2026, every tenancy is periodic from day one. You can leave at any time with two months' notice and your landlord cannot lock you into a minimum stay.
Every assured tenancy granted on or after May 1st is a periodic tenancy that's rolling, open-ended, with no expiry date. Existing fixed-term tenancies convert automatically, and the fixed-term clause in your agreement becomes void even if months remain on it. There's nothing to sign and nothing to opt into.
What does "periodic" mean?
A periodic tenancy rolls forward one rent period at a time, usually month to month, with no predetermined end date. Your rent, your landlord, your property, and your rights stay the same. What changes is that neither party is locked in; you can leave by giving notice, and your landlord can only remove you by proving a legal ground under Section 8. The tenancy continues indefinitely until one of those things happens.
Can landlords still offer fixed terms?
No. Any clause in a tenancy agreement that imposes a fixed term on an assured tenancy is void from commencement. Landlords can still write tenancy agreements, and those agreements are still binding in every other respect, but any clauses stipulating a fixed term of X months has no legal effect. You're on a periodic tenancy regardless of what the document says. Purpose-built student accommodation is the only exception.
What happens to my existing fixed-term tenancy?
It converts to a periodic tenancy on May 1st. If your fixed term was due to run until, say, August 2026, the fixed term ends on May 1st, and the tenancy continues periodically from that date. You don't need a new agreement and your landlord can't require you to sign one. Your rent, deposit, and terms all carry over. The only thing that changes is that from 1 May onwards you have the right to leave on two months' notice.
03
The new Section 8 grounds for possession
KEY TAKEAWAY
With Section 21 gone, Section 8 is the only eviction route. Landlords must prove one of a defined list of grounds, give the correct notice period, and (for the most significant grounds) cannot evict in the first 12 months of your tenancy.
Section 8 has been the fault-based eviction route since 1988, but it was rarely used because Section 21 was faster. The Renters' Rights Act expands Section 8 substantially, adding new grounds (landlord sale, landlord or family moving in) and tightening existing ones (the rent arrears threshold, the notice periods). Understanding which ground your landlord is trying to use, whether it's mandatory or discretionary, and whether they've followed the correct procedure is the difference between a valid notice and one you can defeat in court.
What are mandatory vs discretionary grounds?
Mandatory grounds require the court to grant possession if the ground is proved. In contrast, discretionary grounds give the court room to refuse possession even if the ground is made out, if granting it would be unreasonable. Rent arrears at 3 months or more (Ground 8) is mandatory, for example, whereas rent arrears below that threshold (Grounds 10 and 11) are discretionary. Anti-social behaviour (Ground 14) is discretionary, while landlord sale (Ground 1A) and landlord or family occupation (Ground 1) are mandatory.
Grounds tenants are most likely to encounter
The three most common grounds after 1 May 2026 will be Ground 8 (serious rent arrears, raised from 2 months to 3), Ground 1A (landlord wants to sell) and Ground 1 (landlord or a close family member wants to move in). The two landlord-side grounds both require four months' notice, cannot be used in the first 12 months of a tenancy, and come with a 12-month re-letting restriction. Ground 14 (anti-social behaviour) has been expanded to cover behaviour "capable of causing nuisance" rather than only proven nuisance, lowering the bar slightly for landlords but keeping judicial discretion as a safeguard.
Grounds with a 12-month restriction
Ground 1 and Ground 1A both carry a 12-month protected period at the start of every tenancy. Your landlord can't serve a notice under either ground until you've been in the property for at least 12 months, and any notice they do serve cannot require you to leave before the 12 months have elapsed. The effective minimum tenancy length for sale-or-occupation evictions is therefore 12 months plus the 4-month notice period, so 16 months in total.
04
New rules for rent increases
KEY TAKEAWAY
Landlords can only increase rent once every 12 months, must give two months' notice, and must use the statutory Section 13 procedure. Rent review clauses in tenancy agreements are void. You can challenge any increase at the First-tier Tribunal for £47, and the Tribunal cannot raise rent above what the landlord proposed.
Before the Renters' Rights Act, rent increases could happen through a clause in your tenancy agreement, a new agreement at the end of a fixed term, a Section 13 notice, or informal agreement between landlord and tenant. The Act consolidates all of this into a single route: Section 13 and removes the previous rule that allowed the Tribunal to set rent higher than the landlord asked.
Section 13 is now the only way rent can be increased
From May 1st, the only valid way for a landlord to increase rent is to serve a Section 13 notice on the prescribed form (Form 4A). The notice must state the new rent, the date it takes effect, and the tenant's right to challenge it. Any rent increase attempted by any other route — a letter, an email, a clause in the tenancy agreement, a new agreement — has no legal effect. Your rent stays at the existing level until a valid Section 13 notice is served.
How often can landlords increase rent?
Once every 52 weeks. The first increase cannot take effect until at least 52 weeks after the tenancy began, and each subsequent increase must be at least 52 weeks after the last one. Landlords must give at least two months' written notice before the new rent takes effect, and the proposed rent must reflect the open market rate for similar properties in the area. This prevents the use Section 13 to impose a punitive increase as a backdoor eviction tactic.
Challenging a rent increase at tribunal
If you think a proposed rent is above market rate, you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) before the new rent takes effect. The fee is £47 with a Help with Fees scheme available if you're on a low income. Your rent stays frozen at the existing level while the challenge is being considered.
The Tribunal will assess the market rent for your property and set the rent at either the market rate or the landlord's proposed rate, whichever is lower. Crucially, the Tribunal cannot set rent higher than the landlord proposed, which is a significant change from the old rules and removes the main reason tenants were reluctant to challenge.
05
Rent bidding banned, advanced rent capped
KEY TAKEAWAY
Landlords and agents can no longer invite or accept offers above the advertised rent, and cannot demand more than one month's rent in advance. Both rules apply to new tenancies from May 1st, and breaches carry penalties of up to £40,000.
Two connected reforms that together change how rental properties are marketed and let. Rent bidding turned the rental market into an auction in high-demand areas, with tenants pressured to offer over the asking price to secure a property. Demands for six or twelve months' rent upfront effectively shut out anyone without significant savings. The Act bans the first practice outright and caps the second.
What is rent bidding and why is it banned?
Rent bidding is the practice of marketing a property at one price and then inviting prospective tenants to offer more to secure it. From May 1st, every property advert must state a specific proposed rent, and landlords and letting agents are prohibited from asking for, encouraging, or accepting offers above that figure. The rule applies to the listing itself and to anything said during viewings or negotiations, and tenants who voluntarily offer more cannot have their offer accepted. Civil penalties for breach reach £7,000 for a first offence and £40,000 for repeat or serious breaches.
One-month cap on advance rent
For tenancies formed on or after May 1st, landlords cannot require more than one month's rent in advance. The previous practice of demanding three, six, or twelve months upfront from tenants with weaker references or non-standard incomes is over. There's also an absolute prohibition on requiring any rent payment before the tenancy agreement is signed. Tenants can voluntarily pay more in advance if they want to, but the landlord cannot ask for it, request it, or make it a condition of the let. Existing tenancies are grandfathered; if you already pay six months upfront under an agreement signed before May 1st, that arrangement continues until the tenancy is renewed or replaced.
How to report a breach
Both rules are enforced by local authority housing teams. If a property is advertised with a price and you're then asked to offer more, or if a landlord or agent requests more than one month's rent upfront for a new tenancy, the breach should be reported to the local council's housing enforcement team.
06
Your right to request a pet
KEY TAKEAWAY
You have a new statutory right to request a pet, and your landlord can't unreasonably refuse. They must respond in writing within 28 days, and they cannot require pet damage insurance or charge an additional deposit.
"No pets" has been the default in English rental contracts for decades, and tenants who challenged it had no statutory backing. The Renters' Rights Act creates an implied term in every assured tenancy that the tenant may keep a pet with the landlord's consent, and that consent cannot be unreasonably refused. It's not an absolute right, but it shifts the default and puts the burden on the landlord to justify a refusal.
How the request process works
Under the new rules, a tenant has to submit a written request to the landlord describing the pet (e.g., species, breed, size) and relevant details about whether it's house trained or has lived in a rented property before. The landlord has 28 days to respond in writing. If they need more information to make a decision, they can request it, and the 28-day clock pauses until you provide it. If your landlord needs permission from a superior landlord (for example, in a leasehold flat where the head lease prohibits pets), the deadline extends to seven days after the head landlord responds.
What counts as a reasonable refusal?
The Act doesn't define "reasonable" exhaustively, but the explanatory notes and government guidance suggest examples:
- The property is too small for the type of animal.
- A head lease genuinely prohibits pets.
- The specific animal poses a welfare concern (e.g., a large dog in a top-floor flat)
- Local authority restrictions apply.
A blanket "we don't allow pets" policy is not a reasonable refusal. A refusal must be in writing and must state the reasons. Refusals based on stereotype, inconvenience, or general dislike of pets are unreasonable.
What happens if your landlord doesn't respond?
Silence doesn't mean consent. If your landlord fails to respond within 28 days (or within the extended deadline if they've requested more information), you can apply to the court for an order requiring them to give a decision, or for a declaration that consent has been unreasonably withheld. In practice most disputes are likely to be resolved through the new Ombudsman scheme once it's operational, which will be faster and cheaper than going to court.
Pet damage and your deposit
The original Bill allowed landlords to require pet damage insurance and to charge an additional pet deposit, but both provisions were removed from the final Act. Landlords can't require you to take out pet insurance as a condition of consent, and they cannot demand a deposit above the existing five-week cap to cover potential pet damage.
07
Discrimination protections: benefits and families
KEY TAKEAWAY
ing agents cannot refuse to rent to you because you receive benefits or because children would live in the property. "No DSS" and "no children" policies are illegal from May 1st, with penalties up to £7,000 per breach.
Refusing tenants on benefits ("no DSS") and refusing families with children have been challenged through case law for years. Most notable is the 2020 York County Court ruling that "no DSS" policies amounted to indirect sex and disability discrimination under the Equality Act. The Act codifies what the courts had been moving toward and extends it explicitly to families with children, introducing a statutory ban with clear enforcement.
"No DSS" discrimination ban
It's now illegal for a landlord, letting agent, or anyone acting on their behalf to refuse to grant a tenancy, refuse to consider an application, or apply different terms to a prospective tenant because they receive benefits (e.g., Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, PIP, JSA, or any other state support). Discriminatory clauses in tenancy agreements, head leases, and (from April 30) new insurance contracts are void. The ban applies at the marketing stage, the application stage, and during the tenancy itself.
Families and children ban
The same protections apply to families with children. A landlord can't refuse to grant a tenancy because the prospective tenant has children who would live in or visit the property, and cannot impose discriminatory terms. Blanket "no children" or "professionals only" policies in adverts are unlawful. Properties marketed as "suitable for sharers" or with phrases that effectively exclude families fall within scope if the wording amounts to a discouragement.
What landlords can still do
Landlords retain the right to assess affordability provided the same checks are applied to all applicants equally, and a landlord can still refuse a specific applicant who fails affordability assessment. What they cannot do is apply a blanket policy that excludes a category of people regardless of their individual circumstances. The Act also allows a "proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim" exception, which covers narrow situations like genuine overcrowding concerns where a property is genuinely unsuitable for a particular household size.
08
Stronger protections against backdoor evictions
KEY TAKEAWAY
The Act strengthens protections against landlords trying to force tenants out without going through the legal process. Harassment, threats, removing services, and persistent interference with quiet enjoyment carry increased penalties and easier local authority enforcement.
With Section 21 abolished, there's a legitimate concern is that some landlords will try to bypass the legal eviction process by making the tenant's life uncomfortable enough that they leave voluntarily. A disgruntled landlord might, for example, turn off heating, refuse repairs, enter without notice, or start unnecessary "improvement works" while the tenant still occupies the property.
These tactics are already illegal under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977, but enforcement has historically been weak. The Renters' Rights Act massively strengthens the existing legal framework by strengthening the penalties and giving local authorities more scope to act.
What counts as a backdoor eviction?
Any action by a landlord designed to make a tenant leave without going through proper legal proceedings. The most common forms include:
- Harassment, such as threatening behaviour, or persistent, unwanted contact.
- Interference with services, such as cutting off electricity or the internet.
- Refusal of essential repairs, or letting the property deteriorate and become uninhabitable.
- Entering the property without notice or against the tenant's wishes.
It also covers more subtle tactics, such as repeatedly calling at antisocial hours, sending notices the landlord knows are invalid, or making false claims of rent arrears to pressure a tenant into leaving.
Strengthened penalties
Maximum civil penalties for harassment and illegal eviction increase significantly under the Act, reaching £40,000 for serious or repeat offences. Criminal prosecution remains an option for the most serious cases, with potential prison sentences.
In addition, the Act expands rent repayment orders so that tenants who have been illegally evicted or harassed can claim back up to two years of rent (double the previous maximum) and repeat offenders are required to pay the maximum. Local authorities also have new powers to enter premises and demand documents from landlords during investigations, which makes building a case substantially easier.
09
Student tenancies and Ground 4A
KEY TAKEAWAY
A new mandatory possession ground (Ground 4A) lets landlords of student HMOs recover possession at the end of the academic year so they can re-let to the next cohort. It only applies to properties let to full-time students and only if the landlord gave written notice at the start of the tenancy.
The student rental market runs on an academic-year cycle. Without a way to recover possession reliably between June and September, the periodic tenancy model would have broken HMO student lettings because landlords would have been unable to commit to next year's intake. Ground 4A was created in response as a narrow, mandatory ground specifically for student HMOs, with strict requirements on who it covers and how it must be used.
Who Ground 4A applies to
Ground 4A is limited to houses in multiple occupation let to one or more full-time students. It doesn't apply to single students renting a flat on their own, nor does it apply to students renting from a private landlord outside the HMO category. It also doesn't apply to purpose-built student accommodation operating under an approved code, which is exempt from the assured tenancy regime entirely. 4A is therefore only relevant to the shared student houses that make up the bulk of off-campus undergraduate accommodation.
How Ground 4A works
To use Ground 4A, the landlord:
- must have given written pre-tenancy notice that they intend to use the ground; and
- the notice to quit must expire between June 1st and Septmber 30th.
Four months' notice is required. For tenancies that already exist on May 1st, 2026, the landlord must give the written notice by 31 May 2026 to preserve the option of using Ground 4A in future.
4A is a mandatory ground, meaning that the court must grant possession if the two conditions above are met.
Students in non-PBSA properties
If you're a student renting outside a PBSA scheme and outside a student HMO — for example, you're renting a flat on your own, or you're sharing a flat with non-students — you're covered by the standard Section 8 grounds like every other tenant; your landlord can't use Ground 4A to remove you.
NOT YET IN FORCE
The four provisions below are enacted but not yet in force. The exact implementation dates are not yet known, but this guide will be updated when further information comes to light.
10
The Private Rented Sector Ombudsman
KEY TAKEAWAY
Every private landlord in England will have to join a new government-approved Ombudsman. Tenants will be able to complain about landlord behaviour without going to court, and the Ombudsman will be able to order compensation, apologies, and remedial action. This is expected to launch in late 2026.
Until now, the only formal route for a tenant to complain about a landlord has been the courts or the local authority. Both these processes ar eslow and adversarial, and neither are suited to the day-to-day disputes that make up most of the friction in the private rental sector. The new Ombudsman will fill that gap by mirroring the existing Housing Ombudsman that covers social housing, but extends the model to private landlords. Membership is mandatory for landlords, free for tenants, and binding in its decisions.
What can the Ombudsman do?
The Ombudsman will handle complaints about landlord behaviour, such as failures to carry out repairs, breaches of tenancy, harassment, unfair charges, refusal of reasonable requests, poor communication, and any other conduct falling short of statutory or contractual obligations.
It can investigate, order the landlord to take specific action, require an apology, and award compensation. Decisions are binding on landlords, and the scheme is designed to resolve disputes faster and cheaper than court action, in weeks rather than months.
Expected to launch in 2026
There's no specific date yet for when the Ombudsman will launch. The Renters' Rights Act introduces the legal framework but no scheme administrator has been appointed yet, and the finer details (fee structure, complaints process, compensation) will be set out in secondary legislation at a later date.
Government statements suggest the appointment will happen 12 to 18 months before mandatory membership, with the scheme expected to be operational by late 2026 and full landlord membership required by some point in 2028. Until then, tenants who would otherwise use the Ombudsman will need to rely on local authority enforcement, scheme adjudication for deposit disputes, and the courts for everything else.
11
The PRS Database
KEY TAKEAWAY
A new national database will require every private landlord to register their properties and contact information. Tenants will be able to check whether their landlord is registered and whether the property meets the required standards. Landlords who fail to register face fines up to £40,000.
England has never had a national landlord register. Some local authorities run their own selective licensing schemes, but these cover specific areas rather than the country as a whole. The PRS Database changes that, acting as a single, government-run portal where every private landlord must register and every property must be listed. Key compliance documents such as gas safety certificates, EPCs, and deposit protection details must also be uploaded to this database, and tenants and local councils will be able to search it.
What landlords must register
Each landlord registers themselves and each property they let. The database holds the landlord's name and contact details, the property address, current safety certificates (gas, electrical, energy performance), evidence of deposit protection, and any sanctions or banning orders against the landlord. The database is updated continuously: new certificates must be uploaded as they're renewed, and any change of circumstances must be recorded. Letting agents who market properties on behalf of unregistered landlords commit a separate offence.
What can tenants see?
When the database goes public, tenants will be able to search by property address or by landlord name and verify three things: that the landlord is registered (and therefore legally entitled to let property at all), that the property has current safety certificates, and that no banning orders or serious enforcement actions have been recorded against the landlord. This is a significant shift in transparency as, for the first time, prospective tenants will be able to do basic due diligence before signing an agreement, without having to take the landlord's word on compliance.
Penalties for non-registration
Civil penalties for failure to register reach £7,000 for a first offence and £40,000 for repeat or serious breaches. More significantly for tenants, an unregistered landlord cannot obtain a possession order under most Section 8 grounds and is eligible for rent repayment orders, meaning a tenant can recover up to two years' rent from a landlord who has failed to register. Phased rollout begins in late 2026, with full public access following in 2027.
12
The 'Decent Homes Standard' for private renting
KEY TAKEAWAY
The Decent Homes Standard extends to the private rented sector. Properties must be free of serious hazards, in reasonable repair, with reasonably modern facilities and adequate thermal comfort. Full compliance is required by 2035.
The Decent Homes Standard has governed social housing since 2006, and the Renters' Rights Act extends it to private renting for the first time, setting a minimum baseline below which no private rental property in England may legally fall. Roughly 22% of PRS properties currently fail the standard. Bringing them up to compliance is one of the most ambitious reforms in the Act and the one with the longest timetable.
Decent Homes Standard requirements
Under the standard, there are five criteria that state the property:
- Must be free from Category 1 hazards under the Housing Health & Safety Rating System.
- Must be in a reasonable state of repair.
- Must have reasonably modern facilities and services.
- Must provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort, linked to EPC ratings and heating efficiency.
- Must be free from damp and mould.
Not expected until 2035
To allow for landlords to bring their homes up to par, the standard hasn't commenced yet, and sits in Phase 3 of the Act's implementation timeline. That means full compliance won't be required until 2035, but intermediate milestones are expected before then, with the government indicating that enforcement will phase in gradually rather than all at once, giving landlords time to bring properties up to standard without forcing a sudden mass exit from the market. Until commencement, the existing HHSRS regime continues to apply and local authorities retain their existing powers to require landlords to address Category 1 hazards.
13
Awaab's Law: Statutory repair timeframes
KEY TAKEAWAY
Awaab's Law — named after two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died from mould exposure — sets statutory deadlines for landlords to investigate and fix hazards. It already applies to social housing and will extend to the private rented sector through future regulations.
Awaab Ishak died in December 2020 from a respiratory condition caused by prolonged exposure to mould in his family's social housing flat in Rochdale. His parents had reported the mould repeatedly, but repairs were never made. The case became a national scandal and the government's response was Awaab's Law: statutory deadlines that landlords must meet when responding to hazards, replacing the previous vague standard of "reasonable time". It came into force for social housing in October 2025, and the Renters' Rights Act provides the legal framework to extend it to private renting.
Background to Awaab's Law
Before Awaab's Law, landlords had a duty to keep properties in repair, but no fixed deadline for doing so. "Reasonable time" was the standard, which in practice meant landlords could delay for months while tenants and their families lived with serious hazards. The Awaab case demonstrated that this was inadequate, and the new law replaces the open-ended standard with hard deadlines.
Statutory timeframes
For social housing, where the law is already in force, the deadlines are: emergency repairs within 24 hours, investigation of damp and mould within 14 days, and remedial work to begin within a further 7 days after investigation.
The exact deadlines for private renting will be set by secondary legislation but are expected to mirror the social housing framework. Failure to meet the deadlines will be enforceable through the local authority and (once it launches) through the Ombudsman, with civil penalties for breach.
When will Awaab's Law apply to private rentals?
The Act provides the enabling power to extend Awaab's Law to private rented properties, but no commencement date has been set. The government has said it will consult on PRS implementation "in due course" — likely sometime in 2027 or later. Until then, private tenants rely on the existing repair obligations under Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, which still apply but without the hard deadlines.
Implementation timeline
Section 21 abolished
All tenancies periodic
New Section 8 grounds
Rent increase reform
Rent bidding banned
Advance rent capped
Pet rights
Discrimination protections
Backdoor eviction protections
Student tenancy Ground 4A
PRS Database rollout
Ombudsman appointed
Mandatory membership
Decent Homes Standard
Awaab's Law for PRS
EPC C minimum
Who the Renters' Rights Act applies to
KEY TAKEAWAY
The RRA applies to all assured tenancies in England, but there are exemptions for social housing tenants, purpose-built student accommodation, local authority secure tenants, and some others.
Tenancies covered by the RRA
The Act applies to all assured tenancies in England. If you rent from a private landlord, pay rent, and live in the property as your only or principal home, you're covered. It doesn't matter when your tenancy started; existing tenancies converted automatically on May 1st, 2026. No new agreement is needed and your landlord cannot require you to sign one.
Exempt tenancies under the Renters' Rights Act
The Act covers the vast majority of private renters, but not everyone. Social housing tenants are the biggest group outside scope — the government plans to bring them in separately, likely in 2027. Local authority secure tenants are also excluded entirely.
If you're a lodger living in your landlord's home and sharing kitchen or bathroom facilities with them, the Act doesn't apply to you. The same goes for licence agreements where you don't have exclusive possession of a self-contained space — for example, a room in a hostel or a service occupancy tied to a job.
Purpose-built student accommodation is exempt provided the operator is signed up to an approved code of practice (ANUK or Unipol). This is the halls-of-residence model, not a shared student house; if you're renting a regular property from a private landlord while studying, you're covered by the Act like any other tenant.
Holiday lets, agricultural tenancies, and company lets (where the tenant named on the agreement is a business rather than an individual) all fall outside the assured tenancy regime and therefore outside the Act. Properties at the extremes of the rent scale are also excluded: below £250 a year (£1,000 in London) or above £100,000 a year. And if your landlord lives in another part of the same building and the property was let as a separate dwelling before they moved in, you may fall under the resident landlord exemption.
Existing fixed-term tenancies
Your fixed term became void on May 1st, 2026, and your tenancy converted to an assured periodic tenancy automatically. With this, you gained the right to leave on two months' notice immediately, even if your original agreement ran until later in the year.
Your rent, deposit, and all other terms carried over unchanged. Section 21 notices served before May 1st remain valid but the landlord must file court proceedings by July 31st, 202, or the notice expires. The 12-month protected period for sale and occupation grounds runs from your original tenancy start date, not from May 1st.
Outside England
The Renters' Rights Act applies to England only. Housing is devolved, and Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland each have their own rental legislation. The anti-discrimination provisions (benefits and children) do extend to Wales and Scotland, but everything else, including Section 21 abolition, periodic tenancies, rent reform, pet rights, the Ombudsman, the Database, is England only.
Scotland already abolished no-fault evictions in 2017 under the Private Housing (Tenancies) Scotland Act 2016. All private tenancies are open-ended, and rent adjudication goes through Rent Service Scotland. For guidance see Shelter Scotland.
Wales operates under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016. No-fault evictions remain lawful via Section 173 notices but require six months' notice. Landlord registration is mandatory through Rent Smart Wales. For guidance see Shelter Cymru.
Northern Ireland has no equivalent reform in progress. No-fault evictions remain, there are no rent controls, no pet rights, and no ombudsman. For guidance see Housing Rights NI.
Frequently asked questions
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