We look at the new documents below.
What has been published?
In our article Renters’ Rights Act 2025: implementation roadmap we looked at the government’s timetable for ‘switching on’ the measures contained in the Act.Reforms under Phase 1 will come into force for the private rented sector on 1 May 2026. These reforms will abolish so-called section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions and replace assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) with rolling assured periodic tenancies with no fixed end dates (APTs).
To support the transition from the old regime to the new, landlords in the private rented sector will be required to provide existing and new tenants with certain information.
New forms will also need to be used, for example when a landlord proposes a rent increase or seeks possession of the property.
The government has published a number of these documents in advance, so that landlords, tenants and their advisers can see what information will be needed on and after the 1 May 2026 go-live date. These include:
- The Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet 2026.
- Written statement of terms.
- Assured tenancy forms for privately rented properties from 1 May 2026.
Information sheet
For landlords in the private rented sector with existing written AST agreements, the document that is of the most immediate importance is The Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet 2026.This document explains how the RRA 2025 might affect the current tenancy, including the abolition of ASTs, the removal of fixed-terms and how the landlord or tenant can end the tenancy.
Private landlords will need to give existing tenants the exact PDF of the Information Sheet by 31 May 2026. Failure to do so could result in a fine of up to £7,000.
The Information Sheet can be provided in hard copy, by attaching the PDF to an email or preferably both. Sending a link to the tenant will not be valid.
The Information Sheet should be given to every tenant named on the tenancy agreement.
Strictly speaking, the obligation to provide the Information Sheet will only apply from 1 May 2026. However, we take the view that landlords can provide the Information Sheet even before 1 May, if they wish to get a head start. The key is to ensure that the Information Sheet is given to all tenants well before 31 May 2026 and to record how and when this is done.
The government has, separately, indicated that the Information sheet does not need to be given where a valid section 8 or 21 notice has been served before 1 May 2026. This is because those tenancies will not transition to the new regime (unless the notice ceases to be valid, possession proceedings are not started by 31 July 2026, or a possession claim that is commenced in time is unsuccessful for some reason).
Written statement of terms
From 1 May 2026, landlords in the private rented sector will need to provide new tenants with specified written statement of terms before the new tenancy is entered into.The statement contains required information about the main terms of the tenancy, so that landlords and tenants can understand their key contractual rights and responsibilities relating to the property and to each other, and relating to statutory provisions that place obligations on them.
In most cases, this information will be included within the written APT agreement itself. However, it can be provided separately.
This information will also need to be given to existing tenants where a pre-1 May tenancy is based entirely on a verbal agreement (where there is no written tenancy agreement or any written record of the existing tenancy’s terms). In this situation, the written statement of terms must be given to the existing tenant by 31 May 2026.
The intention behind the new requirement to provide basic information about the tenancy, in writing, is that this should ensure that the parties understand their most critical rights and responsibilities. It is perhaps surprising that, under the pre-1 May 2026 law, there is no statutory requirement to provide written information about the agreed tenancy terms unless the tenant asks for it. The RRA 2025 will address this.
New tenancy forms for private rented properties
The new forms that will be of most interest to private landlords and tenants are the new section 8 notice seeking possession (Form 3A) and new section 13 notice of proposed rent increase (Form 4A).Sensibly, the draft versions of the forms the government has published have a watermark on them saying “Do Not Use”. This is so that they cannot be used in error before 1 May 2026.
Section 8 notices will be of much greater significance from 1 May 2026, because landlords in the private rented sector will no longer be able to seek to recover possession by serving section 21 notices on or after that date. Landlords will only be able to seek possession by serving a section 8 notice and relying on one or more of the new or amended statutory grounds for possession set out in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988.
Separate guidance notes have been published alongside the new form of section 8 notice, for both landlords and tenants.
The new section 13 notice will also be very important from 1 May. That is because landlords will no longer be able to increase the rent through a renewal process at the end of the fixed-term (because fixed-term tenancies will cease to exist) or by serving a section 21 notice and granting a new tenancy at a higher rent (because section 21 is being abolished). Contractual rent review clauses will also no longer be effective. Landlords will only be able to increase the rent under an APT by using the revised statutory procedure
