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What are statutory and contractual periodic tenancies and what do landlords need to know about them?
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Written by
Ben Luxon
PUBLISHED ON
May 17, 2023
UPDATED ON
June 29, 2026
READ TIME
0 min
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Last updated: 26 June 2026
Quick answer: Since the Renters' Rights Act came into force on 1 May 2026, all assured tenancies in England are periodic from the start (assured periodic tenancies, or APTs) and fixed terms have been abolished. The older distinction between statutory and contractual periodic tenancies no longer determines what kind of tenancy you have, but it still matters for understanding tenancies that began before that date and for resolving historic disputes.
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 reshaped how tenancies work in England. The key reforms took effect on 1 May 2026, and they change the starting point for this whole topic.
A new Section 4A of the Housing Act 1988 means any term that purports to let a property for a fixed term is of no effect. In practice, this means:
Because every assured tenancy is now periodic by default, you no longer choose between a "statutory" and a "contractual" periodic tenancy when setting up a new let. The sections below explain what that distinction meant before 1 May 2026 — useful background for any tenancy that began under the old rules. For a full overview of the new regime, see our Renters' Rights hub and our guide to open-ended tenancies.
Before the Renters' Rights Act, when a fixed term ended a tenancy could continue as one of two types of periodic tenancy: a statutory periodic tenancy (created automatically by Section 5 of the Housing Act 1988 when the agreement said nothing about what happened next) or a contractual periodic tenancy (created by a clause in the agreement continuing the tenancy after the fixed term). The practical differences mattered, and they are summarised below.
| Feature | Statutory periodic | Contractual periodic |
|---|---|---|
| How it arose | Automatically under Section 5 of the Housing Act 1988 when there was no continuation clause | Created by a clause in the agreement continuing the tenancy after the fixed term |
| Relationship to the fixed term | A new, separate tenancy | The same continuing tenancy |
| Council tax (pre-RRA) | Tenant liable only while living there | Tenant liable to the end of the term even if they left |
| Deposit penalty exposure | 2–6× the deposit (two tenancies) | 1–3× the deposit (one tenancy) |
| Section 21 route (now abolished) | Section 21(1) | Section 21(4) |
| Status now | Converted to an assured periodic tenancy (APT) on 1 May 2026 | Converted to an assured periodic tenancy (APT) on 1 May 2026 |
In short, both kinds of periodic tenancy have now been folded into the single assured periodic tenancy. The distinction is preserved here as historic context because it can still affect how you read a tenancy that began before 1 May 2026, including any council tax, deposit, or notice issues arising from that period.
The following sections describe the pre-Renters'-Rights-Act position and are retained as historic context. Under the Renters' Rights Act, this distinction no longer determines tenancy type — all assured tenancies are now assured periodic tenancies.
In essence, a contractual periodic tenancy referred to a tenancy that ran on a monthly, weekly, or similar basis, as outlined in the tenancy agreement. The agreement would specify that a periodic tenancy would follow the fixed term.
Typically, these tenancies were drafted as a continuation of the fixed term, using language such as 'continuing as a periodic tenancy' or 'extending from month to month after the fixed term expires.' In this scenario, the fixed term and periodic portion formed part of the same tenancy, which was crucial for council tax purposes. In this guide, references to contractual periodic tenancies pertain to this type of periodic tenancy clause.
In many tenancy agreements, there was no provision indicating how the tenancy would proceed after the fixed term had ended. In such cases, Section 5 of the Housing Act 1988 intervened to establish a new tenancy agreement, known as a statutory periodic tenancy.
This tenancy operated on a monthly, weekly, or similar basis, depending on the frequency of the last rent payment. For example, if the tenant paid rent on a monthly basis during the fixed term, then the periodic tenancy would be on a monthly basis. Alternatively, if the tenant paid five months' rent upfront and one month's rent during the fixed term, then the periodic tenancy would be monthly.
It is important to note that a statutory periodic tenancy was an entirely new tenancy separate from the original fixed term, which had significant implications for council tax, deposits, and document service.
The initial step was to examine the tenancy agreement for any clause mentioning the periodic tenancy. If such a clause was present, it would typically pertain to a contractual periodic tenancy. However, if there was no clause pertaining to the periodic tenancy, or the clause specified that the tenancy would be a statutory periodic tenancy established under Section 5 of the Housing Act 1988, then it would constitute a statutory periodic tenancy.
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In some rare circumstances before 1 May 2026, tenants moved into a property without being granted a fixed-term tenancy. Typically, these tenancies lacked a written agreement and were often the result of informal arrangements. Since a statutory periodic tenancy could only arise from the expiration of a fixed-term agreement, such tenancies were still considered contractual periodic tenancies.
However, many of the advantages associated with contractual continuations did not apply to these informal contracts, particularly when they were agreed upon verbally. It was always strongly recommended to establish a tenancy in writing to clarify the terms and conditions and ensure that everyone understood their responsibilities. Under the Renters' Rights Act, every new assured tenancy is now a written, periodic tenancy from the outset.
Before 1 May 2026, a number of significant differences affected how various laws applied to the two different types of periodic tenancy. This section outlines the main differences, retained here as historic context. Under the Renters' Rights Act, all of these tenancies are now assured periodic tenancies, so the distinctions below no longer apply to new or converted tenancies.
If the tenancy was for a whole house or flat and had a fixed term of at least 6 months, the tenant was responsible for paying the council tax until the end of that term, even if they moved out without providing notice. The same rule applied if the tenancy continued as a contractual periodic tenancy after the fixed term expired.
However, for statutory periodic tenancies, since they were brand new tenancies and did not have a 6-month fixed term, the tenant was only liable for council tax while they were living in the property. If the tenant abandoned the property without notice during a statutory periodic tenancy, landlords might have to pay for possession while also paying the council tax.
This also applied to tenancies that began as periodic tenancies or those with a fixed term of less than 6 months. Under the Renters' Rights Act: as all assured tenancies are now periodic with no fixed term, council tax liability generally follows occupation — broadly the position that previously applied to statutory periodic tenancies. Check current local authority guidance for individual cases [verify].
If a deposit was protected in a scheme and the prescribed information was served on all relevant parties, there was no difference between the two types of periodic tenancy. However, if the deposit was not protected correctly, the law treated each type of tenancy differently.
In the case of contractual periodic tenancies, the landlord's liability for penalty was limited to one to three times the deposit, as there was only one tenancy in which they were in breach — the combined fixed term and periodic tenancy. In contrast, for statutory periodic tenancies, where there were two tenancies, the landlord could face a penalty of 2–6 times the deposit for non-compliance.
If a landlord protected the deposit late in the original fixed term for contractual periodic tenancies, they had to return it before serving a section 21 notice. This differed from statutory periodic tenancies, where landlords could serve a section 21 notice from the start of the new periodic tenancy provided the deposit was protected and the prescribed information served before it began. Under the Renters' Rights Act: Section 21 has been abolished, so deposit compliance now matters chiefly for defending a Section 8 possession claim and avoiding a financial penalty. Deposit protection obligations themselves are unchanged.
In England, landlords are required to ensure that the electrical installations in their rental properties are safe to use. This requirement applies to both new and existing tenancies created on or after the following dates:
To comply with this requirement, landlords must have a competent person inspect the property and provide them with an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) stating that the electrical installations are safe to use.
The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 also specify the following requirements regarding the EICR:
Before 1 May 2026, the choice between contractual and statutory periodic tenancies affected when these regulations came into force for landlords:
Under the Renters' Rights Act: the electrical safety obligations themselves are unchanged — landlords must hold a valid EICR and supply it as set out above. As all tenancies are now periodic, the timing differences that used to depend on the statutory/contractual distinction no longer arise.
To legally market a rental property, landlords must have a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), which is valid for 10 years. This applies to all assured periodic tenancies. Failure to comply can result in a fine.
The Minimum Energy Efficiency Regulations prohibit landlords from renting out properties with an F or G rating, unless an exemption is obtained or the property does not require an EPC. Landlords must obtain an EPC and may need to make improvements if the property is rated F or G. Note: the government has consulted on raising the minimum EPC standard for the private rented sector later this decade — check current requirements before relying on this [verify].
Section 21 has been abolished by the Renters' Rights Act. Landlords can no longer use a "no-fault" Section 21 notice to recover possession; instead they must rely on the reformed Section 8 grounds for possession. The historic detail below is retained only to help interpret tenancies and notices served before 1 May 2026.
Before the change, in England, landlords of a statutory periodic tenancy could follow the easier rules of section 21(1), while landlords of a contractual periodic tenancy had to follow the rules of section 21(4) of the Housing Act 1988. The main difference between the two rules was around the length of the notice in certain circumstances. For statutory periodic tenancies, the section 21 notice period was usually two months or more. For contractual periodic tenancies, the notice period was normally the same, but if the landlord took rent quarterly or six-monthly, the notice period had to be either three or six months long; to avoid this, landlords generally took payments monthly, weekly, or fortnightly.
At the start of a tenancy in England, landlords have a legal obligation to provide certain documents to their tenants. One such document is "How to rent: a checklist for renting in England."
Before 1 May 2026, this requirement interacted with the statutory/contractual distinction: for a statutory periodic tenancy, which was a new, subsequent tenancy, landlords had to ensure they had served any updated version of the document at the beginning of the new tenancy, or risk being unable to serve a valid section 21 notice. For contractual periodic tenancies, which were not new or subsequent tenancies, landlords did not need to re-serve it. Under the Renters' Rights Act: with Section 21 abolished, the document-service rules now sit within the new compliance and Section 8 framework, and landlords should also serve the government's Renters' Rights information sheet to tenants. Confirm the current prescribed-document requirements before relying on this [verify].
Under the Renters' Rights Act, there is now a single route for increasing rent on an assured periodic tenancy: the Section 13 procedure using the prescribed Form 4A. The landlord must give at least two months' notice of the new rent, and rent can be increased no more than once in any 12-month period. Rent review clauses and other contractual mechanisms can no longer be used to raise the rent, and tenants can challenge a proposed increase at the First-tier Tribunal.
For historic context, the position before 1 May 2026 was different and depended on the type of periodic tenancy. For contractual periodic tenancies, landlords could include a rent review clause in the agreement, and as long as it was fair, any increase under it was binding. Where there was no rent review clause, the landlord could only increase the rent using the prescribed Section 13 form (then Form 4) after the fixed term had ended and at least 12 months had passed since the tenant moved in. Landlords of statutory periodic tenancies could not include a rent review clause, as the fixed term and statutory periodic tenancy were separate; they used the Section 13 form and could do so as soon as the fixed term was over.
Yes. Since 1 May 2026, every assured tenancy in England is an assured periodic tenancy from the start, and fixed terms have been abolished. The old statutory-versus-contractual distinction no longer determines the type of tenancy you have, although it still matters for understanding tenancies and disputes that predate that date.
A statutory periodic tenancy arose automatically under Section 5 of the Housing Act 1988 when an agreement said nothing about what happened after the fixed term — it was a new, separate tenancy. A contractual periodic tenancy was created by a clause in the agreement continuing the same tenancy after the fixed term. The differences mainly affected council tax liability, deposit penalty exposure, and which Section 21 notice route applied. Both types converted to assured periodic tenancies on 1 May 2026.
No. Fixed-term assured tenancies were abolished on 1 May 2026. Any term that purports to let a property for a fixed term is of no effect, and a landlord or letting agent who tells a tenant they are on a fixed term can face a civil penalty of up to £7,000 from the local council.
Almost all existing assured shorthold tenancies automatically converted into assured periodic tenancies (APTs) on 1 May 2026, with limited exceptions where valid Section 21 possession proceedings were already underway. Tenants did not need to sign anything for this to happen.
A tenant must give at least two months' notice to quit, in writing, and the notice generally needs to expire at the end of a rental period.
Yes, but only through the Section 13 procedure using Form 4A, with at least two months' notice and no more than once every 12 months. Tenants can challenge the proposed increase at the First-tier Tribunal.
The Renters' Rights Act has simplified the tenancy landscape: there is now a single assured periodic tenancy rather than a choice between statutory and contractual periodic tenancies. Understanding the old distinction still helps when you are dealing with a tenancy that began before 1 May 2026 — for council tax, deposit, or notice questions — but for every new or converted tenancy the rules are the same.
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