New UK rental laws take effect today – What tenants and landlords need to know
Key Points
- The Renters' Rights Act takes effect today, bringing the biggest change to UK tenancy regulations in 30 years.
- The new rules abolish no-fault evictions, end fixed-term tenancies, and provide tenants with a raft of protections against rogue landlords and unfair rent increases.
- From today, landlords will also need sufficient reason to deny tenants from having a pet.
- Landlords do not need to issue a new tenancy agreement for existing tenancies, but they must provide existing tenants with the government's Information Sheet by 31 May 2026 or face fines of up to £7,000.
The Renters’ Rights Act officially takes effect today, Friday 1 May 2026, bringing significant changes to private rentals in England.
Aimed at providing more protections to tenants and holding rogue landlords accountable, the legislation overhauls the private residential letting system in England with major changes that apply to both new and existing tenancies.
As of Friday 1 May 2026, the first phase of the new rules are in effect, and the provisions of the legislation now automatically apply to all tenancies in the country.
New rules include the removal of all fixed-term tenancies, the abolition of Section 21 notices, restricting rent increases, and more.
Whether you are a landlord renting our your property or a tenant living in England, the new rules will likely have a significant effect on the terms of your tenancy.
What the Renters’ Rights Act means for tenants
One of the biggest changes introduced in the Renters’ Rights Act is the removal of fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs). These tenancies were relatively common in England, and provided tenants with assured occupation of a property for the pre-determined period.
All tenancies are now automatically changed to an assured periodic tenancy, and this is now the default type of tenancy going forward.
Tenants now no longer have a fixed date of termination; instead, all tenancies will be ‘rolling’, where the landlord is unable to end the tenancy unless they plan to take occupancy of the property or sell it.
Tenants are able to end the tenancy whenever they want, provided they give two months’ notice to the landlord.
Section 21 notices for no-fault evictions are also abolished, preventing landlords from evicting tenants without providing a specific reason.
Rent increases are limited under the new rules introduced today, meaning that if a landlord attempts to increase rent by an unfair amount, tenants will have the right to appeal this increase through an ombudsman.
Tenants will also have the right to keep a pet, and landlords will only be able to refuse accommodating this request given sufficient reason.
In summary, tenants living in England will see the following changes take effect from today:
- No more no-fault evictions
- All tenancies will change to ‘rolling’ ASTs with no fixed terms
- Rent increases will be limited
- No more than one month’s rent payable in advance
- No more bidding wars between tenants
- Landlords will need sufficient reason to deny tenants a pet
- More protection against rogue landlords
Read more about how your tenancy will change in our previous article on the Renters’ Rights Act.
What the Renters’ Rights Act means for landlords
Now the Renters’ Rights Act is in effect, landlords will have to accommodate the new protections and provisions made available to tenants, including all of those listed above.
This means that in order to evict a tenant, landlords will now have to issue a Section 8 notice, citing one or more legal grounds to end a tenancy. This can include selling the property or taking occupancy themselves.
Landlords are also now required to provide tenants with a written statement of key tenancy terms before a new tenancy begins, and they are prohibited from demanding more than one month’s rent at a time.
From 1 May 2026, landlords will only be able to increase rent by first serving a Section 13 notice, and if a tenant appeals to the tribunal and the rent increase is found to be valid, it cannot be backdated to before the hearing date.
They are also banned from taking rent from a tenant before a tenancy agreement is signed.
Importantly, landlords will not need to issue a new tenancy agreement to existing tenants – the tenancy will be automatically converted to an assured periodic tenancy.
They will, however, be required to issue the government’s official Information Sheet for existing tenancies by 31 May 2026.
If they fail to provide this information sheet or a written statement by this date, landlords could face fines of up to £7,000 for a first offence. A second offence can carry a penalty of up to £40,000.
The government’s official Information Sheet is available from its website.
