The long-awaited Renters’ Rights Bill (“the Bill”) will be back in the House of Lords on 14 October 2025 for its final stages before Royal Assent. Despite significant delays, the Bill is moving ahead and will shortly become law.
During this period, any of the rejected amendments can be modified and resubmitted. However, the government is expected to reject any further significant amendments.
In terms of structure, most of the core reforms will come into force swiftly including:
- Abolition of Section 21 no fault evictions
- Introduction of new possession grounds
- The end of fixed term tenancies
- Rent-in-advance restrictions
It is understood that other elements, including the landlord database and the Ombudsman requirement will follow later after a transition period.
This article covers some of the important changes in the Bill and what they mean going forward.
No more Section 21 and ASTs
Once the Bill is enacted, Section 21 notices will be abolished, meaning landlords can no longer evict tenants without giving a legal reason. All tenancies will become periodic, rolling month-to-month unless ended by the tenant or landlord through proper legal channels. The accelerated possession process will be scrapped, so all eviction claims will now go through a full hearing in court.
Landlords who wish to repossess their property will need to serve a Section 8 notice on one or more grounds for possession. On the tenant side, they will be allowed to end their tenancy with two months’ notice at any time.
Eviction for rent arrears will be possible after three months of unpaid rent, and landlords will still be able to evict for serious misconduct or breaches of the tenancy agreement.
Registration with the Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database and the PRS Ombudsman
All landlords will be required to register with the PRS Database. Letting a property without registration will become unlawful and may result in significant penalties between £7,000 to £40,000. In addition, all landlords will be required to engage with the PRS Ombudsman for dispute resolution. Disputes must be referred to the Ombudsman service before any legal proceedings can be initiated in court. Rent repayment order can be made up to 24 months’ rent now in comparison to the previous 12 months cap.
The PRS database shall keep a database system of all rogue landlords but some have raised that similar database should be held for rogue tenant.
Increase in Rent
Rent increases will be regulated under the new regime. Landlords will only be permitted to raise rent once per year, and any increase must be implemented through service of a Section 13 notice. The proposed rent must reflect the market rate. As these rules will be enshrined in statute, contractual attempts to opt out of these restrictions will be unenforceable. Where a tenant is experiencing financial hardship, the court will have the discretion to delay any resulting eviction by up to two months. The practice of rent bidding will also be banned, and properties must be advertised at the intended rent, and that figure must not be increased through competitive offers.
No blanket ban
Landlords will no longer be able to advertise blanket restrictions such as “no pets”, “no children”, or “no DSS”. These bans are being removed to make the rental market more inclusive.
Tenants will have the right to request a pet, and landlords must respond within 28 days. Refusals must be reasonable. If landlords do not respond, consent will be assumed. A proposal to allow separate pet deposits was rejected, with the government confirming the existing five-week cap is sufficient.
Similar protections apply to families with children and tenants receiving benefits. Landlords can still carry out affordability checks but must treat all applicants fairly. Any refusal must be based on clear evidence.
Failure to comply with these rules could lead to legal action or financial penalties.
No change to the 12-month re-letting restriction after a failed sale
Thankfully, there is no plan to shorten the time frame a landlord must wait before re-letting a property after requesting a tenant to leave (in order to sell). The House of Lords had suggested reducing the period from 12 to 6 months, but this was also rejected. After careful consideration, the government took the view that the full year is important to stop landlords from abusing the grounds of repossession.
No extension of student possession grounds to smaller properties
Permitting landlords to use the student housing ground for possession for smaller properties, for example one or two-bedroom apartments (not just HMO’s), was also rejected by the UK government.
What happens now?
Other than very minor amendments, it is expected that the House of Lords will approve the Bill, it will only apply in England and will immediately put an end to so-called “no-fault” evictions.
The government, understanding of the Bill’s impact, have stated they will provide a reasonable time between implementation and commencement, which is expected in early 2026.
Once Section 21 is abolished, landlords will need to rely on the existing and newly proposed mandatory and discretionary grounds under Section 8 to evict tenants.
