The Top 10 Things No One Is Telling You About the Renters’ Rights Act

By Julie Ford – Founder of Lettings Advice Service

The Renters’ Rights Act is currently the industries Hot Top, with headlines focused on the end of Section 21 and the shift to periodic tenancies, the real day‑to‑day implications for landlords and agents sit in the detail and are barely being mentioned.

Drawing on confirmed government timelines and sector reporting, here’s a clear, practical breakdown of the ten changes that will genuinely reshape how the industry works from 1 May 2026.

1. No more rent in advance – only month one
   
   Up‑front payments are being capped at one month’s rent, removing the ability to request six or twelve months in advance. This will impact the student market, tenants coming from overseas and those with credit checks that may not pass referencing.
   
   

2. You cannot ask for, or accept,  the first month’s rent before the tenancy is signed
   
   This is a major procedural shift. Agents and landlords must not take the first month’s rent until the tenancy agreement is fully executed ( signed). The downside is, if the tenant doesn’t pay the first months rent, the landlord MUST still provide the keys and allow occupation.
   
   

3. The How to Rent guide is being scrapped
   
   The long‑standing requirement to serve the How to Rent guide will end. The document which has long been one of the legally required items to issue to a tenant prior to the start of the tenancy is being scrapped.
   
   

4. Late deposit protection will no longer block a valid Section 8 notice
   
   Currently, in order to issue a valid section 21 the tenants security deposit must be protected within 30 days and prescribed information issue within the same timeframe, failure of either of both of these would result in the s21 being invalid, the landlord would have to return the deposit in full before they could issue a valid s21. Under the new regime, late protection of a deposit will not invalidate a Section 8 notice. This removes one of the most common technical pitfalls that previously derailed possession claims.
   
   

5. Tenants can give notice on the day they move in
   
   Because all tenancies become periodic from day one, and the tenant will be able to give two months notice at any point, this will include the ability to give notice on day 1. The notice must expire on the first or last day of a rent period, although this practice is going to be rare, it is possible.
   
   

6. One joint tenant’s notice will end the tenancy for all joint tenants
   
   Because all tenancies will be periodic, this allow for 1 tenant of a joint tenancy to give notice to end the tenancy for all tenants, even if the other tenants are not aware of the notice. This is a significant risk point for shared households and agents and landlords will need to act quickly to avoid disputes, voids or breaching the legislation when remaining tenants are not under a written tenancy
   
   

7. A new information sheet must be given to all tenants who signed before 1 May 2026
   
   The Government will issue a mandatory information sheet explaining the difference between ASTs and APTs. All existing tenants must receive it between 1^st and 31^st May as part of the transition to the new system. This includes tenants who have signed a contract in 2025 but are not due to take up occupation until 2026.
   
   

8. You can still refuse pets…. but you must have a reasonable reason
   
   Despite headlines suggesting otherwise, landlords can still refuse pets. The Act requires the tenant to make a formal written request for a pet, and requests to be considered fairly, refusals must be reasonable and defensible. This will likely be shaped further by case law.
   
   

9. Limited companies will not be able to use Ground 1 under Section 8
   
   There was a recent scramble for properties purchased in personal name to be placed in Ltd companies to navigate section 24 tax implications.  But moving a property from a personal name to a ltd company comes with a specific restriction many haven’t considered. Section 8 Ground 1 the landlord or family member wanting to move back into the property. This ground simply won’t be available to Ltd companies. Companies are not entities that can move into a property nor can they have family.
   
   

10. 4:30pm on 30 April 2026 is the last moment to serve a Section 21 notice
    
    Section 21 is abolished from 1 May 2026. The final practical cut‑off is 4:30pm on 30 April 2026, the last working window before the mechanism disappears entirely. With 31^st July 2026 the last day to make a court application
    
    Section 21 cannot expire before the fixed term, so any ASTs signed whose end date is after 31^st July 2026 will not be able to use section 21 at all.
    
    

These lesser‑known provisions will have a bigger operational impact than many of the headline reforms. Understanding them now gives landlords and agents the breathing space to adjust systems, documentation, and training before the 1^st May 2026 deadline.