A new type of tenancy for private renters
From 1st May 2026, tenants who rent from private landlords are better protected by the law. Landlords now need a legal reason or 'ground' to end your tenancy.
Your tenancy is now a tenancy without a fixed end date.
The tenancy will roll on, on a weekly or monthly basis depending on whether you pay your rent weekly or monthly. This is often called a 'rolling' or ‘periodic’ tenancy.
Having a rolling tenancy means you can stay in your home until you need or want to move, unless the landlord wants the property back to sell or live in.
When you need or want to move out, you will need to give 2 months’ notice to your landlord.
What if my landlord gave me a section 21 notice before 1st May?
If your landlord gave you a valid section 21 notice before 1st May, your tenancy will not automatically change to the new rolling kind. If you do not leave the property within the time your landlord has asked you to, they can go to court and get an order to take possession of the property and then you have to leave. But to do this, they will need to apply to court by 31st July. If they do not do this, they will not be able to evict you through the section 21 route and they will need to use one or more of the new reasons to evict you.
Often section 21 notices are not valid. To work out if yours is valid, go to our guide on section 21 eviction notices.
New rules on evictions
From 1st May, landlords must have a clear reason to evict you. These are called ‘grounds’ by lawyers. There are various different reasons, but the most common ones are:
- The landlord wanting to sell the property (they can’t do this in the first 12 months of the tenancy and must give you at least 4 months’ notice).
- The landlord or a close family member needing to live in the property (they can’t do this in the first 12 months of the tenancy and must give you at least 4 months’ notice).
- Rent arrears – this is when you get behind with your rent and build up a debt with your landlord.
- Antisocial behaviour.
Landlords have to protect your deposit in a protected tenant deposit scheme to be able use the grounds of selling or moving into the property.
New rules about rent charges and starting your tenancy
Since 1st May 2026, landlords and their agents:
- Must not ask you for more than one month’s rent in advance.
- Must not create bidding wars between would-be tenants – they will only be able to accept the amount that they advertise it for.
- Can only put up the rent once a year and they will need to give you two months’ notice before they do. If you think the rent increase is unfairly high, you will be able to challenge it at a tribunal.
- Need to give you specific information about your tenancy and your rights. If you didn't have a written tenancy agreement before 1st May, your landlord must put the key ‘terms’ in writing for you. These are the most important legal parts of the agreement - who the agreement is between, when the agreement will start, how much rent must be paid. If you have a written tenancy agreement already, your landlord must give you a government fact sheet about the changes by the 31st May.
Discrimination against people who receive benefits or have children
It is now illegal for landlords to discriminate against people because they claim benefits or have children.
If you believe that a landlord has discriminated against you for one or both of these reasons, you can ask the local council to take action against the landlord. You will need to provide evidence such as:
- copies of communications with the landlord or property agent, such as text messages, voicemails or emails,
- copies of, or links to, discriminatory adverts or property listings, dated where possible.
The council can then fine the landlord.
You can also take legal action against the landlord yourself but should get legal advice about how to do that. See Where to get more help now.
Pets
If you have or would like a pet, you can ask your landlord if you can keep it at the property. Landlords must think about this request properly and not refuse it, unless they have a good reason. If you want to know more about this, you can look at the government guide for landlords that gives examples of possible good reasons for refusing a pet.
