On 1 May 2026 the largest change to English tenancy law in a generation took effect. The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 ended the assured shorthold tenancy, abolished the “no-fault” section 21 notice, turned every existing tenancy into an open-ended periodic one, and rewrote the rules on rent, possession and paperwork. A landlord in Dubai letting through an agent is bound by all of it; the flat can no longer be let for nine months and taken back for the summer.
Owning and letting
The Renters’ Rights Act for an overseas landlord: what changed on 1 May 2026 and what to do about it
Renters' Rights Act: what changed for overseas landlords from 1 May 2026
From 1 May 2026 every assured shorthold became an open-ended periodic tenancy and the section 21 notice is gone. An overseas landlord can recover the flat only on a section 8 ground, such as living in it or selling it, not in the first twelve months and on four months’ notice. Rent rises once a year by section 13 notice, rent in advance is capped at one month, and council fines run up to £7,000 for a first paperwork breach and £40,000 for repeated ones. The catch: a nine-month let with the family back for summer no longer works.
Before May 2026 most private tenancies were assured shortholds: a fixed term of six or twelve months, after which the landlord could end the tenancy with two months’ notice under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 without giving a reason.
What changed on 1 May 2026
From 1 May 2026 no new fixed-term assured tenancy can be granted, every existing assured shorthold became a periodic assured tenancy automatically, and section 21 is gone: 30 April 2026 was the last day a section 21 notice could be served, and court proceedings on any notice served before then had to begin by 31 July 2026.
A landlord who wants the property back must now use one of the grounds in section 8 of the Act, state the ground in the notice, and prove it if the tenant does not leave.
How periodic tenancies and annual rent increases now work
A tenancy runs from month to month with no end date. The tenant can leave at any time by giving two months’ notice. The landlord cannot end it except on a ground. The rent is whatever was agreed, and it can be raised once a year by a section 13 notice giving at least two months’ notice; the tenant can challenge the new rent at the First-tier Tribunal, which can hold it at the market level but not above it.
Rent in advance, advertising and deposits
Rent in advance is limited to one month once the tenancy is signed, and no rent can be taken before signing. Advertisements must state the rent, and the landlord and agent cannot invite or accept offers above it. The deposit cap of five weeks’ rent from the Tenant Fees Act 2019 is unchanged. Our guide on letting and managing a London property from the Gulf sets out what an agent does for you under these rules.
Getting possession: landlord's own-use and sale grounds explained
The grounds that matter to an overseas owner are the landlord’s own: that the landlord or a close family member intends to live in the property (ground 1), or that the landlord intends to sell it (ground 1A).
Conditions on the landlord's own-use and sale grounds
Both are mandatory, so the court must grant possession if the ground is made out, but both come with conditions written for exactly this situation: neither can be used in the first twelve months of the tenancy, both require four months’ notice, and a landlord who uses the sale ground and then does not sell, or relets within a restricted period, faces a civil penalty.
Other possession grounds: rent arrears, antisocial behaviour and breach
The other grounds are the familiar ones: rent arrears (now three months’ arrears at both notice and hearing for the mandatory ground), antisocial behaviour, breach of tenancy, and new grounds for student lets and for properties needed by an employer. Every notice must name the ground and give the right period; a defective notice fails.
Rent increases and rent in advance under the new rules
Once a year, by section 13 notice, two months’ notice, and the tenant may refer it to the tribunal. The rent set at the start of a tenancy can also be challenged in the first six months if it is above market. For a landlord whose agent used to put the rent up at each fixed-term renewal, the practical change is that there is no renewal: the increase is a formal notice, and it must be defensible against comparable rents. Rent paid in a currency other than sterling, or paid a year in advance by a tenant’s employer, is no longer possible; the one-month limit applies to everyone.
Pets, children and benefits: what tenants can now ask
A tenant may ask to keep a pet, the landlord must answer within 28 days, and consent cannot be refused without a reasonable ground; the landlord may require pet insurance. A landlord or agent may not refuse a tenant because they have children or receive benefits, and a blanket “no DSS” or “no families” instruction to an agent is unlawful. None of this prevents a landlord choosing between applicants on affordability and references, which is where the agent’s judgement now matters more.
Paperwork requirements and council fines for landlords
Every tenancy granted on or after 1 May 2026 must include prescribed written information about the key terms, in the agreement or in a separate statement. Every tenant who was on an assured shorthold on 1 May had to be served the government’s Information Sheet by 31 May 2026. The penalties are civil, imposed by the council, and large: up to £7,000 for a first breach of the information requirements, up to £40,000 for repeated or serious breaches, and the same scale for misusing a possession ground.
The landlord abroad is liable
A landlord abroad is liable for the agent’s omissions, and the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme already requires an agent or tenant to deduct tax at source, so the agent’s competence is now the landlord’s main protection; our guide on tax on rent for overseas landlords explains that scheme.
Parts of the Renters' Rights Act still to come
Two parts of the Act are not yet in force. The private rented sector database, on which every landlord must register before letting, is being rolled out region by region from late 2026; a landlord who is not registered will be unable to serve a possession notice. The landlord ombudsman, which every landlord must join and which can order compensation, is being set up during 2026 with compulsory membership expected around 2028. The Decent Homes Standard and Awaab’s Law, on repair timescales, are to follow after consultation. Each will arrive with a date, and the agent should be asked, in writing, what it has done about each.
Why the summer-use tenancy no longer works for Gulf families
The arrangement many Gulf families relied on, a nine-month tenancy to a student or a corporate tenant from September to June, with the family in the flat for July and August, no longer exists. There is no fixed term, so the tenant need not leave in June; the family-occupation ground cannot be used in the first year and then needs four months’ notice; and a tenant who stays is lawfully entitled to.
The three honest options
The honest options are three: let the flat properly and stay in a hotel or a rented flat in summer; keep the flat for the family and pay the council tax second-home premium our guide on council tax on a London second home explains; or let it to a company for its staff, since a letting to a company is not an assured tenancy and can still carry a fixed term, with the risks that a company let brings. What is not an option is a tenancy agreement that says the tenant will leave in June, because it is unenforceable.
Sources: Renters’ Rights Act 2025 (legislation.gov.uk) · Guide to the Renters’ Rights Act (GOV.UK) · Non-Resident Landlord Scheme (GOV.UK). Checked against the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 and the government’s implementation guidance. The database, ombudsman and Decent Homes provisions are not yet in force and their dates may change. General information, not legal advice; the reader’s solicitor or agent decides. Figures verified 14 October 2026.
Frequently Asked
Questions about the Renters' Rights Act
Yes. Rent arrears remain a mandatory ground, now at three months’ arrears when the notice is served and at the hearing; smaller arrears and persistent lateness are discretionary grounds.
Yes, under the sale ground, with four months’ notice, provided the tenancy is at least twelve months old when the notice expires, and provided you then sell; reletting after using the ground is penalised.
Yes. It converted automatically to a periodic assured tenancy on 1 May 2026, and the tenant should have received the Information Sheet by 31 May 2026.
No. From 1 May 2026 no new fixed-term assured tenancy can be granted. A tenancy runs from month to month with no end date; the tenant can leave at any time on two months’ notice, and the landlord cannot end it except on a section 8 ground. A tenancy agreement that says the tenant will leave in June is unenforceable.
Once a year, by a section 13 notice giving at least two months’ notice. The tenant can refer the new rent to the First-tier Tribunal, which can hold it at the market level but not above it, and the rent set at the start of a tenancy can be challenged in the first six months if it is above market. There is no fixed-term renewal at which the agent puts the rent up; the increase must be defensible against comparable rents.
No longer. Rent in advance is limited to one month once the tenancy is signed, no rent can be taken before signing, and the one-month limit applies to everyone, including rent paid in a currency other than sterling. Advertisements must state the rent, and the landlord and agent cannot invite or accept offers above it. The deposit cap of five weeks’ rent is unchanged.
A tenant may ask to keep a pet; the landlord must answer within 28 days and cannot refuse without a reasonable ground, though pet insurance may be required. A landlord or agent may not refuse a tenant because they have children or receive benefits, and a blanket “no families” instruction is unlawful. Choosing between applicants on affordability and references remains allowed, which is where the agent’s judgement now matters more.
Civil penalties imposed by the council: up to £7,000 for a first breach of the information requirements, up to £40,000 for repeated or serious breaches, and the same scale for misusing a possession ground. Every tenancy granted on or after 1 May 2026 must include prescribed written information about the key terms, and a landlord abroad is liable for the agent’s omissions.
Not yet, but soon. The private rented sector database is being rolled out region by region from late 2026, and a landlord who is not registered will be unable to serve a possession notice. The landlord ombudsman is being set up during 2026 with compulsory membership expected around 2028. The Decent Homes Standard and Awaab’s Law are to follow. Ask the agent, in writing, what it has done about each.
Yes. A letting to a company for its staff is not an assured tenancy and can still carry a fixed term, with the risks a company let brings. The other honest options for a family that wants summer use are to let the flat properly and stay in a hotel or rented flat in summer, or to keep it for the family and pay the council tax second-home premium.
