Section 21 Abolition: What Landlords Must Do Now

Section 21 is gone - what does that actually mean?

From the commencement of the Renters' Rights Act 2026, Section 21 "no-fault" eviction notices cannot be served. Not for new tenancies, not for existing ones. Every landlord in England who wants to regain possession of their property now has one route: Section 8, using the new Form 3A.

This is not a future change. It is in force now.

What is Section 8, and how is it different?

Section 8 is a "fault-based" possession route. To serve a valid Section 8 notice, you must cite at least one statutory ground for possession set out in Schedule 2 of the Housing Act 1988, as amended by the RRA 2026.

The most commonly used grounds are:

Ground 8 - Mandatory possession (rent arrears)

Ground 8 requires that the tenant is at least 13 weeks in arrears (for monthly tenancies) at the date the notice is served AND at the date of the court hearing. If this threshold is met, the court must grant possession - it has no discretion.

The critical catch: if a tenant makes a partial payment that drops arrears below 13 weeks before the court date, the court must dismiss the claim. This is why Ground 8 should always be served alongside Grounds 10 and 11.

Ground 10 - Discretionary (some rent unpaid)

Ground 10 covers any rent arrears, no matter how small. It is discretionary, meaning the court can refuse possession if it considers it unreasonable. Use it alongside Ground 8 to preserve a fallback if arrears reduce before the hearing.

Ground 11 - Discretionary (persistent late payment)

Ground 11 covers tenants who consistently pay late, even if they are not currently in arrears. A pattern of late payments over several months, documented in your payment records, is sufficient.

The compliance checklist that must be complete before you serve

Before a Section 8 notice has any legal effect, all of the following must be in place:

1. Tenancy deposit protected and Prescribed Information served on the tenant within 30 days of receipt
2. Current Gas Safety certificate served on the tenant
3. Valid EICR served on the tenant
4. EPC rated E or above served on the tenant
5. How to Rent guide (current version) served on the tenant
6. RRA 2026 Information Sheet served on the tenant

A court will dismiss any Section 8 claim if any of these are missing. Landlords who rely solely on Ground 8 have been caught out when courts refused to hear their cases because a certificate was expired or a document had not been served.

How to serve a Section 8 notice correctly

Step 1: Use Form 3A

The notice must be on Form 3A, the prescribed form. Using the wrong form, or a custom letter, invalidates the notice. Form 3A must include the specific grounds relied upon, the prescribed wording, and the correct notice period.

Step 2: Check your notice period

For Ground 8, the statutory minimum notice period is 4 weeks (previously 2 weeks under the old regime). This means you cannot apply to court until 4 weeks after the date the notice was served.

Step 3: Serve correctly and record proof of service

The notice must be served on the tenant personally, by post, or through the letterbox. Keep proof: a signed acknowledgement, a recorded delivery receipt, or a statement from a witness. Upload this to your records immediately - you will need it in court.

Step 4: Apply to court after the notice period expires

Once the notice period has expired, you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) for a possession order. Do not apply before the notice period ends - the application will be rejected.

What this means in practice

The shift from Section 21 to Section 8 means that landlords who were previously using Section 21 as a "clean exit" route now need to:

• Keep accurate, up-to-date payment records (arrears are now a key ground)
• Have all compliance documents in order before problems arise
• Understand the Section 8 grounds and which apply to their situation
• Act earlier when arrears begin to build, because the Ground 8 threshold is specific and time-sensitive

STEMHQ's Form 3A wizard walks you through ground selection, verifies the compliance checklist, and generates a court-ready PDF with the correct statutory wording and calculated possession date.