Signed your tenancy before May 2026? Check which clauses still count
On 1 May 2026, the Renters' Rights Act 2025 changed private renting in England. Most assured shorthold tenancies became assured periodic tenancies automatically, but nobody rewrote the paperwork. Your agreement may still contain clauses that no longer have effect. LeaseScan reads it clause by clause and flags them against the law as it stands today.
Old clauses that no longer have effect in England
If your agreement was written for an assured shorthold tenancy, look for these. The rest of the agreement still applies; the law overrides these parts, so they can't be enforced.
Fixed terms and lock-ins
Your tenancy is now periodic, so a fixed term has no effect. A minimum-term or pay-to-the-end-of-the-term clause can't stop you leaving with 2 months' notice (rent is due until the notice ends).
Housing Act 1988, as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025Section 21 notices
Section 21 "no-fault" eviction is abolished. A landlord needs a legal ground, such as selling or moving in: 4 months' notice, with a date at least 12 months after the tenancy began. A section 21 notice served before 1 May 2026 could only be used if the landlord started a court claim by 31 July 2026 (or within 6 months of the notice, if that was sooner), so an unused one can't be relied on now.
Housing Act 1988, s.8 and Sch. 2 (as amended)Automatic renewal
Clauses that renew a fixed term, or roll it into a new one, have nothing left to act on. The tenancy simply continues from one rent period to the next until you or your landlord end it lawfully.
Renters' Rights Act 2025 (tenancies become assured periodic)Rent review clauses
Fixed-percentage, inflation-linked or "at the landlord's discretion" rent rises no longer have effect. Rent can only go up by a section 13 notice: at most once a year, with at least 2 months' notice, and you can challenge it at the First-tier Tribunal.
Housing Act 1988, s.13 (as amended)Rent in advance
For tenancies agreed from 1 May 2026, a landlord can't take rent before the agreement is signed, and before the start date can only require the first rent payment (about one month on a monthly tenancy). This rule doesn't reach tenancies agreed before 1 May 2026, so an older rent-in-advance clause may still stand.
Housing Act 1988, s.4B; Tenant Fees Act 2019, Sch. 1Pet bans and pet deposits
You can ask in writing to keep a pet; your landlord must reply within 28 days and can't refuse unreasonably. A pet deposit that takes the total deposit over the cap has been banned since 2019: all deposits together are capped at 5 weeks' rent (6 if annual rent is £50,000+). Charging you for pet insurance isn't allowed either.
Housing Act 1988 (as amended); Tenant Fees Act 2019Also new from 1 May 2026: landlords and agents can't accept offers above the advertised rent, and can't refuse you because you have children or receive benefits.
Wales has its own system
The Renters' Rights Act's tenancy reforms don't apply in Wales. Since 1 December 2022, the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 has applied: tenants are contract-holders and tenancies are occupation contracts. Your landlord must give you a written statement of the contract within 14 days of it starting. A landlord's no-fault notice must give at least 6 months' notice and can't be given in the first 6 months. A landlord's break clause is generally only allowed in fixed-term contracts of 2 years or more, and the landlord can't give notice under it until 18 months after the contract started.
Renters' Rights Act: common questions
Do I need a new tenancy agreement after 1 May 2026?
Can my landlord still evict me with a section 21 notice?
My agreement has a rent review clause. Does it still apply?
My agreement says I can't leave before the fixed term ends. Is that still true?
My agreement bans pets or asks for a pet deposit. What now?
Does the Renters' Rights Act apply in Wales?
Is LeaseScan legal advice?
Find out which of your clauses still count
Upload your tenancy agreement or paste the text. England and Wales are checked separately against current law.
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