How to evict a tenant for rent arrears

To evict a tenant for rent arrears in England, you serve a Section 8 notice on Form 3A relying on Grounds 8, 10 and 11, wait 4 weeks, then claim possession at the county court. Ground 8 is mandatory if at least 3 months' rent (monthly rent) or 13 weeks' rent (weekly or fortnightly rent) is unpaid both when you serve the notice and on the day of the hearing. Grounds 10 and 11 cover smaller or persistent arrears, at the judge's discretion. Whatever the amount, the only lawful way to evict a non-paying tenant is through this notice and court process.

Which grounds apply to rent arrears?

Ground	What you must show	Type	Notice
Ground 8	At least 3 months' rent (monthly) or 13 weeks' rent (weekly or fortnightly) unpaid at service and at the hearing	Mandatory	4 weeks
Ground 10	Some rent unpaid when proceedings begin, and some in arrears when you served the notice	Discretionary	4 weeks
Ground 11	The tenant has persistently delayed paying rent, whether or not anything is owed when proceedings begin	Discretionary	4 weeks

Use all three together. If the tenant pays enough before the hearing to drop below the Ground 8 threshold, Ground 8 fails, but the claim can carry on under Grounds 10 and 11.

The arrears must be rent that is "lawfully due". Three things catch landlords out:

• Your address for notices. Rent is treated as not due until you've given the tenant an address in England or Wales where notices can be served on you (Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, section 48).
• Charges. Service charges or bills count as rent only if the tenancy agreement makes them part of the rent.
• Old debts. Arrears from a previous tenancy don't count.

If rent is due every 4 weeks (rather than weekly, fortnightly or monthly), Ground 8's thresholds don't clearly apply. In that case rely on Grounds 10 and 11 and get advice from a solicitor.

How much rent must be owed for Ground 8?

Rent	Minimum arrears at service and at the hearing
£1,200 a month	£3,600 (3 months)
£250 a week	£3,250 (13 weeks)
£500 a fortnight	£3,250 (13 weeks = 6.5 fortnights)

Arrears that are unpaid only because the tenant hadn't yet received a Universal Credit housing payment are ignored. GOV.UK's guidance describes the rule more broadly, as covering benefit delays in general, so if any of the arrears relate to benefits, explain the history in your notice and be ready for questions at the hearing. Our rent arrears calculator checks the threshold for your figures.

Notice period and time limits

• Notice: 4 weeks for all three grounds, counted from the day of service. Serve on 2 November 2026 and the earliest court date is 30 November 2026.
• No shortcut on Ground 8: the court cannot dispense with the notice for Ground 8.
• Deadline: you must start proceedings within 12 months of serving the notice.
• Breathing Space: while a tenant is in a debt Breathing Space you must not serve a notice relying on Grounds 8, 10 or 11, or start a claim on one, without the court's permission. Anything done in breach is void. The notice's life can be extended by 8 weeks from the end of the Breathing Space. See Breathing Space and rent arrears.

Evidence to gather before you serve

• A rent schedule showing each date rent was due, each payment and a running balance. The court needs a schedule covering the 2 years before you issue (or from the first missed payment, if later).
• The tenancy agreement, or other evidence of the rent and how often it's due.
• Proof that you gave the tenant your address for notices.
• Whether the tenant receives Universal Credit, and any direct payments to you.
• Copies of letters, messages and any payment plan you offered.
• The deposit protection certificate and proof you gave the prescribed information.
• Proof of how and when you served the notice, ideally form N215.

Watch out: if you took a deposit and didn't protect it or give the prescribed information, the court can't make a possession order on these grounds until you put that right or return the deposit. The notice itself stays valid.

Timeline to evict a tenant for rent arrears

Here is a realistic timeline for a monthly tenancy with £3,600 unpaid, with the notice handed to the tenant:

1. Monday 2 November 2026: serve Form 3A on Grounds 8, 10 and 11, and fill in form N215.
2. Monday 30 November 2026: earliest date you can apply to court.
3. Tuesday 1 December 2026: issue the claim online through PCOL or on paper (N5 and N119).
4. 29 December 2026 to 26 January 2027: the first hearing, which must be at least 28 days after issue and is normally within 8 weeks.
5. Around 26 January 2027: possession order, at the median of 8.0 weeks from claim to order. On Ground 8 the possession date is usually 14 days later, and no more than 6 weeks even for exceptional hardship.
6. Around 4 March 2027: warrant of possession issued, at the median of 13.3 weeks from claim.
7. Around 22 May 2027: repossession by county court bailiffs, at the median of 24.6 weeks from claim.

The medians come from the Ministry of Justice's mortgage and landlord possession statistics for April to June 2026 (published 13 August 2026), for private landlords' standard claims. The figures are provisional, and most of those claims rested on notices served before 1 May 2026. The average (mean) claim took 33.6 weeks to reach repossession, so a slower case could run to late July 2027. Defended claims take longer.

Court fees and costs

• Issuing the claim: £415, online or on paper. Adding the arrears claim costs nothing extra.
• Warrant of possession: £152 if bailiffs are needed.
• Help with Fees: you can apply with form EX160 on a paper claim, but not through PCOL.

Our Section 8 notice costs £39 and our court pack £79; the eviction costs guide compares every route. For the claim stage itself, see claiming rent arrears in court.

What to avoid

• Self-help eviction. Changing the locks, or getting anyone other than court bailiffs to remove the tenant, is illegal eviction. It is a criminal offence, councils can impose a penalty of up to £40,000, and the tenant may get a rent repayment order of up to 2 years' rent. See illegal eviction.
• Counting the wrong amounts. Don't include Universal Credit delays, non-rent charges or a previous tenancy's debt.
• Using an old form. Only Form 3A works for a private tenancy now. Use the 05.26 versions of forms N5 and N119, because older versions risk being returned unissued.
• Ignoring a disrepair counterclaim. If the court accepts it, it can reduce the arrears below the Ground 8 threshold. Take advice from a solicitor if the tenant raises one.

This guide covers England only. Wales (Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016), Scotland and Northern Ireland have different law.

What to do next

If your tenant is not paying rent, eviction should start with an accurate figure: work out the arrears with the rent arrears calculator, then create your Section 8 notice. Our builder applies the 4-week period, inserts the legal wording for Grounds 8, 10 and 11 and gives you an evidence checklist and certificate of service. When the notice expires, the possession claim guide takes you through the court stage. For other reasons to end a tenancy, go back to how to evict a tenant.