What Is a Section 21 Notice: How and When To Use

For a long time, the Section 21 notice has been the trusty multi-tool in a landlord's pocket. Commonly known as the "no-fault" eviction, it’s the legal mechanism that lets you ask for your property back at the end of a tenancy without having to list a specific reason or prove that the tenant has done anything wrong.

The Abolition of Section 21

As you are probably aware, Section 21’s days are numbered. 

The government has now confirmed the date: Section 21 will be abolished on the 1st May 2026. 

This is a hard deadline. From that date onwards, you will no longer be able to serve a no-fault notice. With this change, the tenancy system will shift toward a simpler structure where all assured shorthold tenancies become periodic (open-ended) from day one. 

However, until that date, the current rules apply. This means there is a small window of opportunity. If you have a valid reason to regain possession using the no-fault route, you can do so if you serve your notice before the 30th April 2026. Miss that deadline, though, and you will be forced to use the newer and much stricter Section 8 grounds. 

Related: Renters' Rights Act 2025: Your Complete Implementation Timeline

Is Section 21 Still Valid Today?

So, until the 1st May 2026, are Section 21s still valid, and are landlords still using them? 

The answer to both those questions is a resounding yes. 

In fact, the numbers suggest that landlords are actually using Section 21s more than ever, likely to get their ducks in a row before the rules change. Between July 2024 and June 2025, private landlords in England issued over 30,000 Section 21 claims. That paperwork resulted in around 11,400 households being removed by bailiffs, a figure that has risen by nearly 8% year-on-year.

So, while the route might be closing soon, the queue to use it is currently out the door. It remains an important tool for portfolio management, provided you get the paperwork exactly right. And let’s be candid, getting the paperwork right is half the job of being a landlord.

The Reality of "No-Fault"

To really understand what is a section 21 notice, you have to look past the label. "No-fault" sounds a bit harsh, implying landlords are evicting perfectly good tenants on a whim because they woke up on the wrong side of the bed.

In reality, Section 21 is often used because the alternative (Section 8) is slow, bureaucratic, and prone to getting thrown out of court on a technicality. Landlords use Section 21 when they need to sell or deal with a situation that is legally messy but practically untenable.

A perfect example of this popped up on the r/UKLandlords subreddit recently. A landlord asked about strict occupancy limits in HMOs (Houses in Multiple Occupation), mentioned a scenario where a couple in a two-person unit has a baby:

"Suddenly the household becomes three people which technically breaches the licence conditions. In the past, the way this has been handled is that the landlord serves a Section 21 notice so the household can move on and the property can be returned to compliant occupancy levels. It’s not about blame or pressure, just complying with the licence conditions imposed by the council."

That is the Section 21 dilemma in a nutshell. The tenant hasn't done anything "wrong" (unless you count expanding their family), but the landlord is facing a breach of their licence conditions. It’s not malicious. It’s just the only button available to press.

The "Valid Notice" 

Before you even think about downloading a Section 21 Notice Form 6a, you need to audit your own paperwork. The law has evolved to stop "retaliatory evictions," which means you only get to use the no-fault route if you have been a model landlord.

If you missed any of the following steps, your Section 21 notice will be worth less than the paper it's printed on.

Related: A Guide to Landlord Responsibilities: Maintenance & Repairs

1. The Gas Safety Certificate

You must have provided a valid gas safety certificate before the tenant moved in. A court case known as Trecarrell House Ltd v Rouncefield decided that late service might be okay in some specific instances, but do you really want to test that theory in front of a judge? Probably not.

2. The EPC

The property needs an Energy Performance Certificate rating of 'E' or above, and the tenant needs to have seen it. If your property is rated 'F', you shouldn't be renting it out, let alone trying to evict someone.

3. The "How to Rent" Guide

This is the one that catches everyone out. You must have provided the version of the government's "How to Rent" guide that was current at the start of the tenancy. If you are serving notice now, check you sent the right PDF years ago.

4. Deposit Protection 

This is where most claims fall flat. You must have protected the deposit in a government-approved scheme within 30 days of receiving it. You also need to have served the "Prescribed Information" within that same 30-day window.

If you missed that deadline, you cannot serve a Section 21 notice. Your only option is to return the deposit to the tenant in full, essentially paying for your own administrative error, and then serve the notice.

Tired of playing paperwork roulette? Missing a single document date can leave you stuck with a tenant you can't evict. Landlord Studio keeps all your compliance certificates and dates in one place, sending you reminders so you never have to explain to a judge why you forgot to send a PDF three years ago.

How To Serve: Section 21 Form 6A

If you have survived the compliance audit, you can now serve the notice. You cannot write a letter. You cannot send a WhatsApp message. You must use the prescribed legal document: Section 21 Notice Form 6a.

This form is mandatory for all Assured Shorthold Tenancies in England. Using an old version is an immediate fail.

The Timing

You cannot serve a Section 21 notice during the first four months of the original tenancy. This rule exists to stop landlords from handing out eviction notices along with the keys on move-in day.

The Notice Period

The form requires you to give the tenant at least two months' notice. But be careful with your calendar. The notice period starts when the tenant receives it, not when you write it.

If you post it, the law assumes it arrives two working days later. If you post it on a Friday, don't assume the clock starts Saturday. Most savvy landlords add a few "buffer days" to the date just to be safe.

Proof of Service

This is really important. If the tenant stands up in court and says "I never got it," the judge will look at you.

• The Gold Standard: Use a process server. It costs money, but they give you a certificate that holds up in court.
• The Silver Standard: Hand-deliver it with a witness who isn't related to you.
• The Risk: Recorded delivery. If the tenant refuses to sign for it, it comes back to you, and you haven't served it.

The "Accelerated" Section 21 Procedure

If the notice expires and the tenant is still there, you cannot change the locks. That is a criminal offence, and it tends to frown upon by the police. You must apply for a Possession Order.

Most Section 21 claims use the "accelerated possession" route. In legal terms, "accelerated" means "we skip the court hearing." It does not mean "quick."

• The Paperwork Review: The judge looks at your tenancy agreement, your section 21 notice form 6a, and your proof of service. If a single date is wrong, they strike it out.
• The Timeline: You are typically looking at 6 to 10 weeks just to get the order.
• The Order: The court usually gives the tenant 14 days to leave. If the tenant pleads "exceptional hardship," the judge can extend this to 6 weeks.

The Bailiffs

If the tenant still refuses to leave, you have to apply for a Warrant of Possession to send in the bailiffs. Due to the backlog mentioned in the intro (remember those 30,000 claims?), waiting for a bailiff appointment can take another 5 to 10 weeks.

So, the "accelerated" route is usually a 4-6 month process. 

The Future of Section 21

From 1 May 2026, Section 21 won't be available, so Section 8 will become the standard way to regain possession.

The main difference between the two is that with a Section 8, you have to prove you have a valid reason, known as a “ground," for the eviction. 

Unlike the old accelerated Section 21 route, which rarely involved leaving your desk, Section 8 is a hands-on, evidence-heavy process. Most cases will now require a full court hearing where a judge scrutinises your proof.

Traditionally, Section 8 grounds have worked in two ways. First, you have what are known as mandatory grounds. These are the ones that offer certainty because they leave the judge with no choice. If you can prove the problem exists, for example, that the tenant is in serious rent arrears, the court must give you the property back.

Then you have discretionary grounds, which are much riskier. With these, you might prove that the tenant has done something wrong, like constantly paying their rent late, but that doesn't guarantee you get the property back. The judge can look at the situation and simply decide that eviction feels unfair, meaning the tenant gets to stay.

But with Section 21 on the way out, the government are introducing some new mandatory grounds to make sure Section 8 is a viable route for a landlord to take when necessary. If you can prove these grounds apply, the court will always grant you possession:

Selling or Moving In

You can now explicitly evict a tenant to sell the property or move family in. However, you need to give 4 months' notice, and you cannot use this ground during the first 12 months of a tenancy.

Rent Arrears

You can evict a tenant for being in rent arrears, but the threshold will rise from two months to three months' of arrears, and the notice period you need to give will double to 4 weeks.

Final Words: Navigating Section 21 and Section 8 Notices

The section 21 notice form 6a is still a powerful tool, but it is a precision instrument, not a blunt object. The courts are processing claims, but they are also rejecting any that fail the strict validity tests.

Success depends entirely on your ability to prove you have been a compliant landlord from day one. This is where Landlord Studio steps in.

Our platform is built to handle the heavy lifting of compliance for you, which means that if you ever need to serve notice, your paperwork stands up in court:

1. Secure Document Storage: Keep every Gas Safety Certificate, EPC, and tenancy agreement safe in the cloud, instantly retrievable when you need to prove your claim.
2. Smart Reminders: Get automated alerts for expiring certificates so you never create a gap in your compliance history.
3. Tenancy Management & Tracking: Maintain a flawless digital audit trail of rent payments and communications, essential for both current possession claims and the future Section 8 rules.

Create your free Landlord Studio account today to digitise your documents and manage your timelines effectively.