Legal reference
Landlords seeking possession of an assured periodic tenancy must now rely on Section 8 of the Housing Act 1988 (as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025).
Start here
The short answer
The grounds for possession are the 37 grounds in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988, as amended by the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. Since 1 May 2026 they are the only route to possession of an assured tenancy. 26 are mandatory: once the ground is proved, the court must order possession (s.7(3)). 11 are discretionary: the court orders possession only if it considers it reasonable (s.7(4)). The landlord names each ground in a Section 8 notice (s.8(2)) and cannot start proceedings until the notice period for that ground has run (s.8(4AA)).
| Notice | Grounds |
|---|---|
| 4 months | 1, 1A, 1B, 2, 2ZA, 2ZB, 2ZC, 2ZD, 4A, 6, 6A, 6B |
| 2 months | 5, 5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5H, 7, 9 |
| 4 weeks | 5E, 5F, 5G, 8, 10, 11, 18 |
| 2 weeks | 4, 7B, 12, 13, 14ZA, 14A, 15, 17 |
| None | 7A and 14: proceedings may begin on service (s.8(4)); an order cannot take effect within 14 days of service (s.7(5D)) |
Jump to: every ground in one table · Ground 8, rent arrears · Ground 12, breach of tenancy. In depth: the grounds a London landlord actually uses and Ground 8 and rent arrears after the Renters’ Rights Act.
Section 21 — the "no-fault" notice — has been abolished. Every possession claim must now rest on one of the grounds set out in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988, as amended by Schedule 1 to the Renters' Rights Act 2025. This page is the reference table of the grounds, their notice periods, and whether each is mandatory (the court must order possession if the ground is proven) or discretionary (the court orders possession only if it considers it reasonable to do so).
The new reality
The abolition of Section 21 means that possession is now a contested process in front of a court. A landlord cannot end an assured periodic tenancy without naming and proving a ground. The tenant has the right to defend, and free legal advice is available through the Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service (HLPAS) before and on the day of any possession hearing.
Section 8 is now the only mechanism. The notice (Form 3A for a private-sector tenancy since 1 May 2026) must cite the specific grounds relied on, with the prescribed notice period, supported by evidence sufficient to satisfy the court. Even on a mandatory ground, the court process typically takes several months from notice to possession order — and longer where the tenant defends. Landlords should not assume immediate possession after the notice period expires.
The operational reality is that every managed-tenancy possession claim is now a documented, evidence-based exercise. We verify deposit protection at the point of any Section 8 notice (the court will not make a possession order if the deposit has not been protected under HA2004 s.215 as amended). We prepare and serve the notice on the landlord's instructions, and we coordinate with the landlord's eviction specialist or with the rent guarantee insurer where one is in place.
Mandatory grounds
These are the grounds that arise routinely on private-sector tenancies. The "no-fault" Section 21 notice having been abolished, the mandatory grounds below are the only routes to a guaranteed possession outcome if proven — and each carries strict statutory pre-conditions.
The landlord (or a close family member) intends to use the property as their only or principal home. Notice: 4 months. Cannot expire in the first 12 months of the tenancy.
The landlord intends to sell. Notice: 4 months. Cannot expire in the first 12 months of the tenancy. Cannot be used on a pre-1 May 2026 non-shorthold assured ("lifetime") tenancy.
The lender requires vacant possession to enforce a mortgage. Notice: 4 months.
The property is or is in an HMO let to full-time students, and the landlord intends to re-let to a fresh cohort. Notice: 4 months, ending between 1 June and 30 September. The landlord must have given written notice before the tenancy began that this ground might be used.
Held for occupation by a minister as a residence from which to perform the duties of office. Notice: 2 months.
Let in consequence of employment by the landlord (or via agreement with the employer) and the tenant has ceased that employment, or the tenancy was for the early period of employment and that purpose has been fulfilled. Notice: 2 months. (Previously Ground 16, where it was discretionary; renumbered to 5C and made mandatory by Schedule 1 paragraph 14 of the RRA.)
Notice: 4 months. Generally cannot be served in the first 6 months of the tenancy.
Where letting the dwelling would breach a banning order; where an improvement or prohibition notice has been issued; where an HMO or selective licence has been refused or revoked; where an HMO is occupied above the licensed maximum; or where a planning enforcement notice or injunction makes continued occupation incompatible. Notice: 4 months.
The tenancy has devolved on a person who was not occupying as their only or principal home immediately before the former tenant's death (or, in narrow successor cases, the new tenant inherited a special tenancy). Notice: 2 months. Proceedings must begin within 12 months of the death.
The tenant (or a person residing with or visiting them) has been convicted of a serious offence, breached an injunction, breached a closure order excluding occupation for more than 48 hours, or similar. No minimum notice period — proceedings may begin from the date the notice is served (s.8(4)), but a possession order cannot take effect within 14 days of service (s.7).
The Secretary of State has notified the landlord that the tenant does not have, or has lost, immigration permission to occupy. Notice: 2 weeks.
At the date of the Section 8 notice and at the date of the court hearing, the tenant must owe at least 13 weeks' rent (weekly or fortnightly tenancies) or at least 3 months' rent (monthly tenancies). Thresholds raised by Schedule 1 paragraph 24 of the RRA from 8 weeks / 2 months pre-RRA. Any amount unpaid only because the tenant has not yet received a Universal Credit award is disregarded. Notice: 4 weeks, and the court cannot dispense with it (s.8(5)). Our Ground 8 rent-arrears guide covers what counts and what to do first.
Discretionary grounds
On a discretionary ground the court has discretion. Even where the ground is proven, the court may refuse possession, may suspend the order, or may order possession on conditions. Discretionary grounds tend to be the rent-arrears-below-the-Ground-8-threshold cases, breaches of tenancy obligations other than rent, and anti-social behaviour cases below the Ground 7A threshold.
Other accommodation suitable for the tenant has been or will be available when the order takes effect. Notice: 2 months.
The tenant owes some rent at the date of the notice and at the start of proceedings. Notice: 4 weeks.
A pattern of late payment, even if there are no arrears at the date of the notice. Notice: 4 weeks.
Any obligation of the tenancy other than paying rent has been broken or not performed: unauthorised alterations, subletting, and similar breaches. Notice: 2 weeks. As a Part II ground, the court orders possession only if it considers it reasonable (s.7(4)).
Due to the tenant's acts of waste, neglect, or default (or that of a person residing with the tenant for whom the tenant has not taken reasonable steps). Notice: 2 weeks.
The tenant (or person residing or visiting) has been guilty of conduct causing nuisance or annoyance to a person residing in, visiting, or engaging in lawful activity in the locality, or has been convicted of using the dwelling for immoral or illegal purposes or of an indictable offence in the locality. No minimum notice period — proceedings may begin from the date the notice is served (s.8(4)), but a possession order cannot take effect within 14 days of service (s.7).
Notice: 2 weeks.
By the tenant or a person residing with them for whom the tenant has not taken reasonable steps. Notice: 2 weeks.
Knowingly or recklessly made by the tenant or a person at the tenant's instigation. Notice: 2 weeks.
The full list
Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988, as amended by the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, contains 37 live grounds: 26 mandatory (Part I — the court must order possession if the ground is proved) and 11 discretionary (Part II — the court orders possession only if it is reasonable). The table lists all of them with the minimum notice period from section 8(4AA). Ground 3 (holiday lets) was omitted by the RRA and Ground 16 was renumbered 5C, so neither appears. Each line is a summary; the ground’s own conditions govern.
| Ground | Type | What it covers | Notice |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mandatory | Landlord, or a close family member (spouse or partner, parent, grandparent, sibling, child, grandchild, or a partner’s child or grandchild), needs the home as their only or principal home. Tenancy must have begun at least a year before the relevant date. | 4 months |
| 1A | Mandatory | Landlord intends to sell the freehold or leasehold, or grant a lease of over 21 years. Tenancy at least a year old (or a compulsory-acquisition notice served). Not available on a legacy assured tenancy (entered into before 1 May 2026 and not then a shorthold: S.I. 2026/421 reg. 5). | 4 months |
| 1B | Mandatory | A private registered provider of social housing intends to sell or re-let a home that was let under a rent-to-buy agreement whose stated period has expired. | 4 months |
| 2 | Mandatory | A mortgage lender with a power of sale requires vacant possession to sell the property. | 4 months |
| 2ZA | Mandatory | The landlord is itself a tenant under a superior tenancy that will end within 12 months of the relevant date, following a valid notice or the expiry of its fixed term. | 4 months |
| 2ZB | Mandatory | The landlord holds the property under a superior lease of more than 21 years that expires within 12 months of the relevant date, or has been ended by notice after expiry. | 4 months |
| 2ZC | Mandatory | A superior landlord who became the tenant’s landlord (under s.18) within the last six months, after an intermediate landlord’s tenancy ended, where the previous landlord was a registered provider, an agricultural tenant or in a similar listed category. | 4 months |
| 2ZD | Mandatory | A superior landlord who became the tenant’s landlord (under s.18) within the last six months because a superior lease of more than 21 years came to an end. | 4 months |
| 4 | Mandatory | Within the 12 months before the tenancy began, the property was let by a specified educational institution to students (a tenancy within Sch. 1 para. 8). | 2 weeks |
| 4A | Mandatory | An HMO let to full-time students, where the landlord gave a written statement before the tenancy that this ground might be used, the tenancy was agreed no more than six months before it began, the relevant date falls between 1 June and 30 September, and the landlord intends to re-let to students. | 4 months |
| 5 | Mandatory | The home is held for a minister of religion and is now required for one. | 2 months |
| 5A | Mandatory | The landlord requires the home to house a qualifying agricultural worker. | 2 months |
| 5B | Mandatory | A private registered provider holds the home for employment-linked occupiers and needs it for someone who meets those requirements; the tenant does not. | 2 months |
| 5C | Mandatory | The tenant was housed because of their employment by the landlord (or under an agreement with the employer) and has left that employment, or the tenancy was for the early period of employment and that purpose is fulfilled. Formerly Ground 16. | 2 months |
| 5D | Mandatory | A private registered provider’s tenancy agreement includes an employment-linked requirement that the tenant no longer meets. | 2 months |
| 5E | Mandatory | The landlord needs the home to let as supported accommodation, and the tenant did not take the tenancy in order to receive care, support or supervision. | 4 weeks |
| 5F | Mandatory | Supported accommodation where the support the tenancy was granted for has ended, or the tenant no longer needs or receives it. | 4 weeks |
| 5G | Mandatory | The tenant was housed under a council’s homelessness duty (s.193 Housing Act 1996); the council has notified the landlord the tenancy is no longer needed, and the relevant date is within 12 months of that notice. | 4 weeks |
| 5H | Mandatory | A registered provider or charity let the home on written eligibility conditions that the tenant no longer meets. | 2 months |
| 6 | Mandatory | The landlord (or the person in the ground’s table) intends to demolish, reconstruct or carry out substantial works that cannot reasonably be done with the tenant in place. Tenancy at least six months old, unless a compulsory-acquisition notice has been served. | 4 months |
| 6A | Mandatory | A relevant social landlord moved the tenant into this home to allow redevelopment of their previous home, and suitable, affordable alternative accommodation (the previous home or other premises) is available. | 4 months |
| 6B | Mandatory | Possession is needed to comply with enforcement action: a banning order; an improvement notice specifying overcrowding; a prohibition order; an HMO or Part 3 licence refused or revoked; an HMO occupied above its licensed maximum; or a planning enforcement notice or injunction incompatible with continued occupation. | 4 months |
| 7 | Mandatory | The tenancy passed by will or intestacy to someone who was not living there as their only or principal home; proceedings within 12 months of the death. | 2 months |
| 7A | Mandatory | Serious anti-social behaviour: conviction for a serious offence in or near the home or against the landlord or staff; breach of an injunction or criminal behaviour order; a closure order excluding access for more than 48 hours; or conviction for breaching a noise abatement notice or order. | From the date of service* |
| 7B | Mandatory | The Home Office has notified the landlord that the tenant, or an adult occupier, is disqualified from occupying the home by their immigration status. | 2 weeks |
| 8 | Mandatory | Serious rent arrears: at least three months’ rent (13 weeks if rent is weekly or fortnightly) unpaid both when the notice is served and at the hearing. Rent unpaid only because a Universal Credit housing award has not yet arrived is ignored. | 4 weeks |
| 9 | Discretionary | Suitable alternative accommodation is, or will be, available for the tenant when the order takes effect. | 2 months |
| 10 | Discretionary | Some rent is unpaid when proceedings begin and, unless the court dispenses with notice, was in arrears when the notice was served. | 4 weeks |
| 11 | Discretionary | The tenant has persistently delayed paying rent, whether or not anything is owed when proceedings begin. | 4 weeks |
| 12 | Discretionary | An obligation of the tenancy other than the payment of rent has been broken or not performed. | 2 weeks |
| 13 | Discretionary | The condition of the home or the common parts has deteriorated through the tenant’s waste, neglect or default, or that of another resident the tenant has not taken reasonable steps to remove. | 2 weeks |
| 14 | Discretionary | Nuisance or annoyance to neighbours, visitors or anyone lawfully in the locality; or conviction for using the home for immoral or illegal purposes, or for an indictable offence in the locality. | From the date of service* |
| 14ZA | Discretionary | The tenant, or an adult living in the home, has been convicted of an indictable offence committed at the scene of a riot in the UK. | 2 weeks |
| 14A | Discretionary | Social landlord only: one partner of a couple has left the home because of violence or threats of violence by the other, and is unlikely to return. | 2 weeks |
| 15 | Discretionary | The landlord’s furniture has deteriorated through ill-treatment by the tenant or another resident. | 2 weeks |
| 17 | Discretionary | The landlord was induced to grant the tenancy by a false statement made knowingly or recklessly by the tenant or someone acting at the tenant’s instigation. | 2 weeks |
| 18 | Discretionary | Supported accommodation: the tenant has unreasonably refused to co-operate with the person providing support services. | 4 weeks |
* Grounds 7A and 14: proceedings may begin from the date the notice is served (s.8(4)), but a possession order cannot take effect within 14 days of service (s.7). Where a notice cites several grounds, the longest period applies (s.8(4AA)). Notice periods are read from the Act as revised to 29 June 2026; the prescribed form is published on gov.uk under “Assured tenancy forms”.
Out of scope
The RRA 2025 introduces several grounds that apply only to specific landlord categories: PRPs of social housing, registered charities, supported-accommodation providers, agricultural landlords, social landlords, or landlords letting under a local authority's homelessness duty. These include Grounds 1B, 2ZA-2ZD, 4, 5A, 5B, 5D, 5E, 5F, 5G, 5H, 6A, 14A, and 18.
Harvey W James does not, in the ordinary course of business, manage tenancies that fall under these grounds. We list them here for completeness only. Where any of these grounds appears relevant to a managed property, we escalate to a director and obtain legal advice before serving notice.
Before you serve
A landlord can rely on more than one ground in a single Section 8 notice. Where the notice cites grounds with different notice periods, the longest applicable period applies (HA 1988 s.8(4AA), substituted for the old s.8(4A)–(4B) by RRA s.3(3)(e)). Notices that combine Ground 8 with Grounds 10 and 11 on arrears are a common pattern — Ground 8 secures the mandatory route if the arrears threshold is met at the hearing, and Grounds 10 and 11 act as discretionary fallbacks if arrears have been paid down below the Ground 8 threshold by the hearing date.
Ground 3 (holiday accommodation) was omitted from Schedule 2 by Schedule 1 paragraph 8 of the RRA 2025 and is no longer available.
Even on a mandatory ground, the court process can take several months. The tenant is entitled to defend the claim and to receive free legal advice through HLPAS before and on the day of any possession hearing. Landlords should not assume immediate possession after the notice period expires.
The court may make a possession order only if the tenancy deposit is held in an authorised scheme and the scheme’s requirements and the prescribed information were complied with (Housing Act 2004 s.215, as substituted by RRA 2025 s.26). The bar does not apply on Grounds 7A or 14, or where the deposit has been returned in full or with agreed deductions, or a s.214 claim has been determined. Harvey W James verifies deposit protection at the point of any Section 8 notice on a managed tenancy. Where protection is not in place, we put it in place — or the landlord remedies the position — before any notice is served.
Once the Private Rented Sector Database goes live (the registration duty is section 82 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025; GOV.UK's rollout starts 15 December 2026 and reaches London on 15 July 2027, deadline 14 October 2027), the court may not make a possession order while the landlord is in breach of that duty, except on Ground 7A or Ground 14 (HA 1988 s.7(5ZC), inserted by RRA s.90). The registration is the landlord's to start; we tell every managed landlord when their window opens and help with the entries as far as the regulations allow.
The prescribed form for a private-sector tenancy since 1 May 2026 is Form 3A — notice seeking possession of a property let on an assured tenancy or an assured agricultural occupancy in the private rented sector (Assured Tenancies (Private Rented Sector) (Prescribed Forms and Transitional Provisions) (England) Regulations 2026, SI 2026/354) — published on gov.uk under "Assured tenancy forms"; Form 3 is now the social-housing version. Use the version current at the date of service. A defective notice will be challenged and may need to be re-served, restarting the notice period.
Managed-tenancy process
On managed tenancies, the arrears workflow is documented and operates through Goodlord's Lettings Accounts platform. The schedule below summarises §70 [POSSESSION-002] of the Essential Terms and Charges v2.4.0 (6 October 2026) in plain English.
Eviction is a last resort after other avenues have been exhausted. Where Rent Guarantee and Tenant Eviction Insurance are in place, we initiate the claim with the insurer and the insurer takes over communication. Where no insurance is in place, we assist the landlord in instructing an eviction specialist; legal and court fees are the landlord's responsibility and may be claimed from the tenant.
Common questions
They are the 37 grounds in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988, as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025. Part I holds 26 mandatory grounds: if one is proved, the court must order possession (s.7(3)). Part II holds 11 discretionary grounds: the court orders possession only if it considers it reasonable (s.7(4)). The landlord must name each ground relied on, with particulars, in a Section 8 notice (s.8(2)).
Section 8(4AA) sets four periods, each running from the date the notice is served. Four months: Grounds 1, 1A, 1B, 2, 2ZA to 2ZD, 4A, 6, 6A and 6B. Two months: Grounds 5, 5A to 5D, 5H, 7 and 9. Four weeks: Grounds 5E, 5F, 5G, 8, 10, 11 and 18. Two weeks: Grounds 4, 7B, 12, 13, 14ZA, 14A, 15 and 17. Grounds 7A and 14 have no minimum period (s.8(4)). Where a notice names several grounds, the longest period applies.
Ground 8 is the mandatory rent-arrears ground. Both when the Section 8 notice is served and at the hearing, at least three months' rent must be unpaid where rent is paid monthly, or 13 weeks' rent where it is paid weekly or fortnightly. Rent unpaid only because a Universal Credit housing payment has not yet arrived is ignored. The notice period is four weeks, and the court cannot dispense with the notice on Ground 8 (s.8(5)).
Ground 12 is a discretionary ground: an obligation of the tenancy, other than paying rent, has been broken or not performed, such as an unauthorised sublet or alterations made without consent. The notice period is two weeks (s.8(4AA)). Because Ground 12 sits in Part II of Schedule 2, the court orders possession only if it considers it reasonable to do so (s.7(4)), so the breach and its seriousness have to be evidenced.
Related pages
For the five grounds a private London landlord realistically uses, and the evidence each needs, read Section 8 grounds for possession in 2026. For arrears, read Rent arrears after the Renters’ Rights Act: Ground 8. For the full post-RRA regulatory framework, see The Renters' Rights Act 2025. For the operational pitch for landlords, see the Landlords page. For the legally binding contract version of our operational terms, see the Landlord Terms of Business. For the full tenant-rights explainer, see the Tenants page. For the complaints procedure and the two external redress routes, see the Internal Complaints Procedure. For specific questions, see the FAQ. For terminology, see the Glossary.
Contacts & registers
This page reflects Harvey W James' operational understanding of the Housing Act 1988 (as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025), in particular section 8 and Schedule 2; of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (chapter 26), in particular section 5 and Schedule 1; and of MHCLG's Grounds for possession: guidance for landlords and letting agents (updated 1 May 2026). It is not legal advice. For the published Act text refer to legislation.gov.uk; for your specific situation seek independent legal advice. Last reviewed on 12 October 2026 against the Housing Act 1988 sections 7 and 8 and Schedule 2, and the Housing Act 2004 section 215, as published on legislation.gov.uk (Statute Law Database, revised to 29 June 2026), and against Essential Terms and Charges v2.4.0.
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