What is a Section 8 notice?

It is a notice seeking possession under section 8 of the Housing Act 1988. You use it when the tenant has done something that gives you a ground for possession, most commonly rent arrears, and you must state each ground and the facts behind it.

Is Section 8 still available after the Renters' Rights Act 2025?

Yes. The Act abolished no fault Section 21 evictions and made Section 8 the main possession route, with a revised and expanded list of grounds and longer notice periods for several of them.

How much rent arrears do I need?

The mandatory serious arrears ground requires a set level of unpaid rent both when the notice is served and at the hearing. Smaller arrears can still be relied on as a discretionary ground, where the judge decides whether possession is reasonable.

Can I serve Section 8 and Section 21 together?

Section 21 has been abolished for assured tenancies under the Renters' Rights Act 2025, so Section 8 grounds are the route. Do not rely on old templates that still offer a no fault option.

Does a Section 8 notice end the tenancy?

No. It starts the process. If the tenant does not leave by the expiry date you must apply to the county court for a possession order, and only a court appointed bailiff or High Court enforcement officer can carry out an eviction.

What makes a Section 8 notice invalid?

The usual causes are the wrong form, missing particulars, an incorrect notice period, arrears figures that do not match the rent account, the wrong tenant names, or no evidence of how it was served.

Do deposit and compliance failures block a Section 8 notice?

Deposit protection failures mainly affected Section 21, but poor compliance still hurts you at a hearing and can trigger counterclaims, so make sure the deposit, gas safety, EICR, EPC and How to Rent evidence is in order first.

Landlord guide · England and Wales

Section 8 notice template: how to get it right

Since the Renters' Rights Act 2025 removed no fault evictions, Section 8 is the possession route for almost every assured tenancy. That raises the stakes on the paperwork: a notice with the wrong ground, the wrong period or arrears that do not match the rent account will simply be thrown out, and you start again months later. This guide explains the grounds, the notice periods that apply in 2026, and the evidence a judge expects.

What a Section 8 notice actually does

A Section 8 notice tells the tenant that you intend to ask the court for possession, and why. It is a warning shot with legal effect, not an eviction. The tenancy continues until either the tenant leaves or a court makes a possession order.

Because the notice sets the boundaries of your claim, you can generally only argue at the hearing what you put in the notice. That is why the particulars matter: dates of missed payments, dates of complaints, the specific clause breached. Vague wording such as 'the tenant is in arrears' gives a judge very little to work with.

Mandatory grounds and discretionary grounds

Mandatory grounds oblige the court to grant possession if the ground is proved. Serious rent arrears is the best known example. Discretionary grounds, such as persistent late payment or breach of a tenancy term, leave the judge free to weigh whether possession is reasonable in the circumstances.

In practice most landlords plead a mandatory ground with one or two discretionary grounds behind it, so that a tenant who clears arrears just before the hearing does not automatically defeat the whole claim.

Serious rent arrears, proved both at service and at the hearing.
Persistent delay in paying rent, even where the balance is later cleared.
Breach of an obligation in the tenancy agreement, other than rent.
Damage to the property or to furniture, including by a visitor.
Antisocial behaviour or conduct causing nuisance to neighbours.
Landlord grounds such as selling the property or moving in, which carry their own restrictions and longer notice.

Notice periods in 2026

Notice periods run from the ground, not from your preference. Serious rent arrears carries a shorter period than landlord grounds such as sale or moving in, which were lengthened under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 and cannot be used in the protected period at the start of a tenancy.

Count from the day after the notice is served, and add time for the method of service where your agreement deems service to happen a set number of days after posting. If in doubt, add a few days. A notice served slightly too early is fatal, whereas one served slightly late costs you nothing but time.

Always confirm the current period for your ground on GOV.UK before serving. Periods changed with the Renters' Rights Act 2025 and templates written before 2025 routinely quote the old figures.

Serving the notice so it stands up

1
Check the arrears or breach is real and documented
Before you draft anything, reconcile the rent account line by line. A notice that overstates arrears by even a few pounds invites a challenge, and a judge will expect a clear statement of what was due, what was paid and when.
2
Pick the grounds that actually fit
Each ground has its own wording and its own notice period. Serious rent arrears, persistent late payment, breach of the tenancy, antisocial behaviour and the landlord selling or moving in are all separate grounds. List every ground you genuinely rely on rather than one catch all.
3
Use the current prescribed form
Section 8 is served on the prescribed form (historically Form 3). The form must set out each ground in full and give the particulars, meaning the facts behind the ground, not just a reference number.
4
Give the correct notice period
Periods differ by ground and were extended for several grounds under the Renters' Rights Act 2025. Count the days carefully from the day after service, and never round down.
5
Serve it in a way you can prove
Serve by the method your tenancy agreement allows, keep a dated copy, and record how and when it went. Email alone is only safe where the agreement permits service by email and the tenant has agreed an address.
6
Diarise the expiry and next step
The notice does not end the tenancy. If the tenant stays, you apply to court after expiry, within the notice's validity window, with your evidence bundle already assembled.

What tenants and judges look for

Most failed possession claims fail on evidence rather than on merit. The landlord knows the tenant has not paid, but cannot produce a clean rent schedule, a signed tenancy agreement, proof the deposit was protected and the prescribed information served, or proof that the notice reached the tenant.

Assemble the bundle at the same time as the notice: tenancy agreement, rent statement, deposit certificate and prescribed information, gas safety record, EICR, EPC, How to Rent confirmation, and your communication log with the tenant. If you have to hunt for these later, you will serve late and lose months.

How RentDocs.co.uk helps

A rent ledger per tenancy, so the arrears figure in your notice matches the record behind it.
Signed tenancy agreements and deposit prescribed information stored with an audit trail and signing certificate.
Gas, EICR and EPC certificates with expiry reminders, so a compliance gap does not surface at the hearing.
A communication log recording what you sent each tenant and when, useful for the Ombudsman as well as the court.
One click sending of documents to tenants by email, with a record of delivery.

Every document a possession claim needs, in one place

RentDocs.co.uk costs £5 a month per property with a free account to try it on a single tenancy. Rent records, certificates, signed agreements, prescribed information and a timestamped message log all sit together.

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Frequently asked questions

What is a Section 8 notice?: It is a notice seeking possession under section 8 of the Housing Act 1988. You use it when the tenant has done something that gives you a ground for possession, most commonly rent arrears, and you must state each ground and the facts behind it.
Is Section 8 still available after the Renters' Rights Act 2025?: Yes. The Act abolished no fault Section 21 evictions and made Section 8 the main possession route, with a revised and expanded list of grounds and longer notice periods for several of them.
How much rent arrears do I need?: The mandatory serious arrears ground requires a set level of unpaid rent both when the notice is served and at the hearing. Smaller arrears can still be relied on as a discretionary ground, where the judge decides whether possession is reasonable.
Can I serve Section 8 and Section 21 together?: Section 21 has been abolished for assured tenancies under the Renters' Rights Act 2025, so Section 8 grounds are the route. Do not rely on old templates that still offer a no fault option.
Does a Section 8 notice end the tenancy?: No. It starts the process. If the tenant does not leave by the expiry date you must apply to the county court for a possession order, and only a court appointed bailiff or High Court enforcement officer can carry out an eviction.
What makes a Section 8 notice invalid?: The usual causes are the wrong form, missing particulars, an incorrect notice period, arrears figures that do not match the rent account, the wrong tenant names, or no evidence of how it was served.
Do deposit and compliance failures block a Section 8 notice?: Deposit protection failures mainly affected Section 21, but poor compliance still hurts you at a hearing and can trigger counterclaims, so make sure the deposit, gas safety, EICR, EPC and How to Rent evidence is in order first.

Keep reading

This guide is general information about possession procedure in England and Wales and is not legal advice. Check GOV.UK for the current prescribed form and notice periods, and take advice before issuing court proceedings.