Renters' Rights Act (Renters' Rights Act 2025 (2025 c.26))
Renters' Rights Act is the 2025 English statute (Royal Assent 27 October 2025; main provisions in force 1 May 2026) that abolishes Section 21 no-fault evictions and fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies, converts existing ASTs to assured periodic tenancies on a phased basis as fixed terms expire, and creates a statutory route for PBSA operators who hold ANUK/Unipol Code membership to let outside the assured tenancy regime.
What did the Renters' Rights Act abolish and when did it take effect?
The Act received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025 and its core tenancy reforms came into force on 1 May 2026, under the Commencement No. 2 Regulations (SI 2026/421). From that date, Section 21 no-fault evictions were abolished. Landlords can no longer serve a notice to quit without citing a statutory ground for possession; all evictions now require a Section 8 notice under the Housing Act 1988.
Fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) were simultaneously abolished as a tenancy type. However, the conversion of existing tenancies is not automatic on 1 May 2026. Under Schedule 6 transitional provisions, an existing fixed-term tenancy continues under the old rules until the fixed term expires, at which point the new assured periodic framework applies. Landlords with existing tenancies were required to serve the statutory Information Sheet on existing tenants by 31 May 2026, regardless of when those tenancies were due to expire.
How does the Act change rent, possession grounds, and tenant rights?
Landlords may raise rent no more than once per year, with at least two months' written notice using Form 4A. Tenants can refer a proposed increase to the First-tier Tribunal if they consider it above market rate. Landlords cannot require rent before a tenancy agreement is signed, and rent bidding (accepting offers above the advertised price) is prohibited under Section 56 of the Act.
On possession, the notice periods and thresholds vary by ground. Grounds 1 and 1A (property sale and landlord's own use) require at least four months' notice and cannot be used at all during the first year of a tenancy. Ground 8 (mandatory rent arrears) carries a notice period of four weeks; the arrears threshold for that ground has been raised to three months of unpaid rent (up from two months). Ground 10 (discretionary rent arrears) likewise carries a four-week notice period.
Does the Act apply to purpose-built student accommodation operators?
PBSA operators are not automatically exempt. From 1 May 2026 new tenancies default to the assured periodic tenancy regime unless the operator qualifies for a specific exemption. SI 2026/327 amends the student accommodation exemption in Schedule 1, paragraph 8(1)(b) of the Housing Act 1988, specifying that membership of the ANUK/Unipol Code of Standards for Larger Developments for student accommodation (the 27 February 2026 version) is the qualifying criterion for that exemption.
Specialist legal advisers have interpreted this as enabling qualifying operators to structure tenancies outside the standard assured periodic framework, including on terms aligned with the academic year, with possession recoverable at term end without establishing statutory grounds. This interpretation is corroborated by several specialist legal publications, though operators should take their own advice on the precise mechanism and how it applies to their specific circumstances. The exemption is not retrospective: it applies only to new tenancies granted on or after 1 May 2026. Existing tenancies that were in place before that date do not automatically benefit from it.
Operators who let to full-time students in HMOs of three or more bedrooms but are not ANUK/Unipol Code members may use modified Ground 4A, which permits possession between 1 June and 30 September for re-letting to students. To use Ground 4A, operators must serve prescribed warning notices on existing tenants and maintain audit records confirming the student test is satisfied. This is a narrower fallback route than the Code membership exemption.
What are the operational compliance obligations for PBSA and BTR operators?
All operators with assured tenancies must have distributed the official Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet to existing tenants by 31 May 2026. PBSA providers seeking the ANUK/Unipol Code exemption must hold current Code membership before granting new tenancies from 1 May 2026 onwards. Operators using Ground 4A must maintain evidence of prescribed warning notice service and that the student test is satisfied for each tenancy.
BTR operators have no sector-specific exemption from the reforms. From 1 May 2026 all new assured tenancies are periodic, Section 21 notices are unavailable, rent increases are limited to once per year with two months' notice, and rent in advance before signing is prohibited. The restructured Section 8 possession grounds apply to BTR in the same way as any other private landlord. A private rented sector database (expected from late 2026) and a compulsory landlord ombudsman (expected around 2028) are being brought into force on a separate commencement timetable.
Key takeaways
- The Renters' Rights Act received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025 and its core tenancy reforms came into force on 1 May 2026.
- Section 21 no-fault evictions are abolished; all possession claims now require a Section 8 ground. Fixed-term ASTs are abolished for new tenancies, with existing fixed terms transitioning to periodic tenancies when they naturally expire.
- Rent increases are limited to once per year with two months' notice via Form 4A; notice periods and thresholds vary by possession ground (four months for Grounds 1/1A; four weeks for Ground 8).
- PBSA operators who hold current ANUK/Unipol Code membership can structure tenancies outside the assured periodic regime for new lets from 1 May 2026; those without Code membership may use Ground 4A as a fallback route.
- BTR operators have no sector-specific exemption; all new assured tenancies are periodic and the full possession-ground framework applies.
How Cloudfox Helps With Renters' Rights Act
The Renters' Rights Act has turned tenancy compliance into a data and workflow problem. PBSA operators need to track tenancy types, Code membership status, notice service dates, and evidence of the student test across a portfolio of bookings that moves every academic cycle. BTR operators face equivalent demands around annual rent-increase notices, Ground 8 arrears thresholds, and the new possession notice requirements.
HubSpot is already the place most PBSA and BTR operators manage enquiries, bookings, and renewals. Cloudfox builds the properties, pipelines, and automated workflows that turn HubSpot into a compliant operating layer: tenancy-type properties, notice-date reminders triggered by deal-stage transitions, and a compliance audit trail visible to the whole team rather than buried in spreadsheets. Where operators are also running Xero and ApprovalMax, we wire the finance stack to match so rent instalment schedules, arrears thresholds, and payment terms stay in sync with the legal position.
Find out how we set this up at cloudfox.it/what-we-do.
Frequently Asked Questions About Renters' Rights Act
Do PBSA operators have to use periodic tenancies under the Renters' Rights Act?
Not if they qualify for the relevant exemption. Operators that hold current membership of the ANUK/Unipol Code of Standards for Larger Developments (the 27 February 2026 version, as specified in SI 2026/327) can structure new tenancies outside the assured periodic tenancy regime. Specialist legal advisers interpret this as enabling fixed terms aligned with the academic year. Operators that do not hold Code membership fall under the standard assured periodic tenancy regime, though they may use Ground 4A for student re-letting where conditions are met.
When did the Renters' Rights Act come into force?
Royal Assent was 27 October 2025. The core tenancy reforms came into force on 1 May 2026 under SI 2026/421 (Commencement No. 2 Regulations), covering the abolition of Section 21, the abolition of fixed-term ASTs for new lets, and the transition of existing tenancies as their fixed terms expire.
Did all existing ASTs automatically convert to periodic tenancies on 1 May 2026?
No. Under Schedule 6 transitional provisions in the Act, an existing fixed-term tenancy continues under the old rules until the fixed term naturally expires. The new assured periodic framework then applies once the first periodic term begins. The conversion is event-triggered, not automatic on the commencement date.
What is the new mandatory rent-arrears threshold for possession?
Under the revised Ground 8, a landlord must show that at least three months' rent is unpaid (up from two months under the previous regime). The notice period for both Ground 8 and Ground 10 has been doubled to four weeks.
Does the Act apply to BTR build-to-rent operators?
Yes. BTR operators have no sector-specific exemption from the core reforms. From 1 May 2026, all new assured tenancies are periodic, Section 21 notices are unavailable, rent increases are limited to once per year with two months' notice, and pre-signing advance rent is prohibited. The restructured Section 8 possession grounds and the private rented sector database and ombudsman requirements apply to BTR in the same way as any other private landlord.