How to Complete a Section 13 Rent Increase Notice

A section 13 notice is the prescribed Form 4A a landlord in England must use to increase rent on an assured periodic tenancy. Serve it at least two months before the new rent starts. The increase must begin at the start of a tenancy period, at least 52 weeks after the tenancy began or the last increase.

Updated 2 November 2026. Applies to England unless stated.

Since 1 May 2026, the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 has made the section 13 notice the only way to raise rent on a private tenancy in England. Rent review clauses no longer do the job, and a tenant’s informal agreement is not enough. This guide applies to England only; Wales and Scotland have their own rent increase rules.

Below are the nine steps to complete Form 4A correctly, the errors that most often invalidate it, and what happens if your tenant challenges the increase.

Before you start: the four rules that decide validity

Every section 13 notice must pass four tests. Fail one and the tribunal can refuse the increase.

How to complete a section 13 notice: step by step

1. Check the tenancy qualifies

   Form 4A applies to assured tenancies in England’s private rented sector. Most former ASTs became assured periodic tenancies on 1 May 2026. The tenancy period must be a month or less, which Form 4A itself confirms.

   Confirm the dates. If the tenancy started less than 52 weeks ago, or the last increase took effect less than 52 weeks ago, you cannot yet set a start date. That includes increases made under a Form 4 or a rent review clause before 1 May 2026.

2. Set a realistic proposed rent

   Government guidance says a tenant who thinks the increase is above open market rent can ask the First-tier Tribunal to decide. Open market rent is what you would expect to receive if you relet the property on the open market.

   Gather three or four comparable listings for similar properties nearby and save them with the date. The tribunal decides the market rent itself, but the tenant will never pay more than the figure in your notice.

3. Work out the start date

   This is the step that sinks most notices. The date must satisfy all three timing rules at once:

   • at least two months after the tenant receives the notice;
   • at least 52 weeks after the tenancy began or the previous increase took effect;
   • the first day of a tenancy period.

   Form 4A adds a fine point. Where the tenancy has had an increase since 11 February 2003, the new date cannot fall more than six days before the anniversary of that first increase. If it would, you wait an extra week, making 53 weeks. This stops weekly tenancies drifting earlier each year.

4. Download the current Form 4A

   Use the version on GOV.UK’s assured tenancy forms page for privately rented properties from 1 May 2026. The current edition is marked (05.26). A pre-May 2026 Form 4, or a template copied from an old letting pack, is the wrong form.

5. Complete sections 1 to 3: the parties

   Section 1 asks for every tenant’s name and the full property address. For joint tenancies, name all tenants.

   Section 2 asks for the landlord’s name and contact address. Phone and email are optional, but adding an email address lets the tenant and tribunal serve documents on you by email. Section 3 repeats this for an agent, if you use one.

6. Complete section 4: the rent

   Fill in each line carefully:

   • 4.1 current rent and how often it is paid;
   • 4.2 the date the tenancy started;
   • 4.3 the date of the most recent increase (blank if none since the tenancy began);
   • 4.4 the date of the first increase after 11 February 2003 (blank if none);
   • 4.5 the proposed new rent and frequency;
   • 4.6 the new rent start date, from step 3;
   • 4.7 any charges included in the rent: council tax, water, fuel, communication services and fixed service charges, with existing and proposed amounts.

   Under Note B, only list charges that form part of the rent. Leave out anything the tenant pays directly to a supplier, and variable service charges that change with costs. Write “nil” where a row does not apply.

7. Sign and date the notice

   The landlord or agent signs, prints their name and dates the form. Joint landlords either all sign or one signs on behalf of all, using the additional signatures box.

8. Serve it and keep proof

   Form 4A lists the permitted methods: hand delivery, leaving it at the tenant’s address, registered post, or any method set out in the written tenancy agreement. Email is valid only if the tenancy agreement allows it.

   You must be able to prove service. Keep a dated photograph, a certificate of service or the postal receipt. Build in a few days’ margin for post so the two-month period is not cut short.

9. Diary the start date and watch for a referral

   If the tenant does nothing, the new rent applies from the date in 4.6. If they disagree, Form 4A tells them the tribunal must receive their application before that date. The tenant should tell you they have applied.

   Update your rent schedule, your records and any standing order reminders once the new rent is confirmed.

Worked example

A monthly tenancy began on 15 March 2025, with rent due on the 15th. There has been no increase. The landlord hand-delivers Form 4A on 1 November 2026.

• 52 weeks since the start: passed in March 2026.
• Two months after service: 1 January 2027.
• First day of the next tenancy period after that: 15 January 2027.

The correct entry in 4.6 is 15 January 2027. Entering 1 January 2027 would fail the start-of-period rule.

Common section 13 errors

• Using the old Form 4. Private landlords need Form 4A from 1 May 2026.
• Start date mid-period. The new rent must start on the first day of a tenancy period, not on a convenient calendar date.
• Short notice. Counting two months from the date you posted the notice rather than the date the tenant received it.
• Too soon after the last increase. Forgetting a rent review increase from before 1 May 2026 that still triggers the 52-week rule.
• Missing a tenant. Leaving a joint tenant off section 1.
• Charges table errors. Including bills the tenant pays directly, or variable service charges.
• No proof of service. If you cannot show when and how you served it, you cannot show the notice period was met.
• Emailing without a clause. Email service only works if the written tenancy agreement provides for it.
• Relying on agreement. Government guidance says you must follow the section 13 process every time, even if the tenant has already agreed the increase.

If the tenant challenges the increase

The tenant can refer the notice to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) using the online market rent determination application. The tribunal must receive it before the start date in the notice, and that deadline cannot be extended.

The tribunal decides the market rent. It may be higher or lower than your proposal, but the tenant will not pay more than the rent in your notice. The new rent applies from the date the tribunal sets, and the tenant does not need to pay it until the decision.

The tribunal can also refuse the increase if the notice is invalid. Our rent increases guide covers tribunal practice and evidence in more detail.

Notices served before 1 May 2026

If you served the old Form 4 before 1 May 2026, the notice period and increase in that form still apply, even if the new rent starts later. The tenant can still challenge it at the tribunal.

A rent review clause increase agreed before 1 May 2026 but due to take effect after that date does not apply. Your next increase cannot take effect until at least a year after the last one. GOV.UK gives the example of an increase from 1 February 2026, meaning the next one can start no earlier than 1 February 2027.

Section 13 notice period summary

Keep each notice with your tenancy records. Your rent increase history is the evidence you will need for the next one. For the wider set of forms, see our landlord documents and forms guide, and check your tenancy agreement no longer relies on a review clause with our guide to periodic tenancy agreements.

This guide is general information, not legal advice.