Section 21 Notice

Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 historically allowed a landlord to recover possession of an assured shorthold tenancy without proving fault. GOV.UK guidance confirms the rules changed from 1 May 2026: for a section 21 notice given before that date, a landlord could only rely on it to start court proceedings 'for up to 6 months after you gave it to your tenant or until 31 July 2026, whichever is sooner.' That window has since closed: 'After 31 July 2026 you will not usually be able to use a section 21 notice to start an eviction process. This will apply even if you gave your tenant notice less than 6 months ago.'

Where a landlord did not apply to court before the deadline, the notice loses effect: 'the section 21 notice will become invalid and the tenancy will be an assured periodic tenancy,' so the landlord must instead serve a new section 8 notice, proving a statutory ground, to seek possession. The accelerated possession procedure historically paired with section 21 is also no longer generally available: a landlord 'cannot usually apply to the court for an accelerated possession order, even if you gave your tenant a valid section 21 notice before 1 May 2026.'