Section 21 and Compliance: Why Your Notice Could Be Invalid
DueProper Team · Published 16 April 2026 · Last reviewed 26 February 2026
A Section 21 notice — the "no-fault" eviction route under the Housing Act 1988 — allows you to regain possession of your property without proving a specific ground for eviction. But it only works if you have met every compliance prerequisite first.
Important: Section 21 is being abolished. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 will remove Section 21 for all tenancies in England once the relevant provisions commence. As of February 2026, Section 21 remains available but landlords should prepare for its removal. The compliance requirements below remain relevant — they are legal obligations regardless of which possession route you use.
Get one wrong and the notice is invalid. The court will throw it out, the tenant stays, and you start the process again — weeks or months later.
Here is every requirement you must satisfy before a Section 21 notice is valid in England.
The compliance prerequisites
1. Gas safety certificate
You must have a current, valid Gas Safety Record (CP12) at the time you serve the notice. Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, the certificate must have been issued within the previous 12 months.
You must also have provided a copy of the most recent certificate to the tenant. If you missed giving them a copy at any point during the tenancy, the notice is at risk.
See our full gas safety certificate guide for details on timing and obligations.
2. Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)
Under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, you must have a valid EICR and have provided a copy to the tenant. If the report identified remedial work (C1 or C2 codes), that work must have been completed and confirmed by a qualified electrician within the required timeframe — typically 28 days.
An outstanding remedial notice that has not been resolved is grounds for the court to reject your Section 21. Our EICR guide covers what counts as satisfactory.
3. Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
Under the Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012, you must have provided the tenant with a valid EPC before the tenancy began. The property must also meet the minimum E rating under the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015, unless a valid exemption is registered.
4. Deposit protection and prescribed information
This is where more Section 21 notices fail than anywhere else.
Under sections 213-215 of the Housing Act 2004, you must have:
- Protected the deposit in a government-approved tenancy deposit scheme within 30 days of receiving it
- Served the prescribed information to the tenant within 30 days of receiving the deposit
Both requirements must be met. Protecting the deposit but failing to serve the prescribed information is not enough — the notice will be invalid, and the tenant can claim compensation of one to three times the deposit amount.
If the deposit was not protected in time, you cannot fix this retroactively for the purpose of serving a Section 21 on the current tenancy. Our deposit protection guide explains the prescribed information requirements in detail.
5. How to Rent guide
Under section 21A of the Housing Act 1988 (inserted by the Deregulation Act 2015), you must have provided the tenant with the government's "How to Rent: the checklist for renting in England" guide. It must be the version current at the time of the tenancy start. If the guide has been updated since you last provided it and you are starting a new tenancy or renewal, you need to provide the latest version.
6. No relevant improvement notice or prohibition order
If the local authority has served an improvement notice under section 11 of the Housing Act 2004 or an emergency remedial action notice, you cannot serve a Section 21 notice during the six months following that notice. This is the "retaliatory eviction" protection under section 33 of the Deregulation Act 2015.
Common reasons Section 21 notices are challenged
Deposit prescribed information missing or incomplete. The tenant's solicitor checks this first. If the prescribed information was never served — or was served late — the notice fails.
Gas safety certificate not provided to the tenant. Having the certificate is not enough. You must have provided a copy to the tenant. If you cannot prove you gave it to them, a judge may reject the notice.
Wrong form used. In England, you must use Form 6A for Section 21 notices on assured shorthold tenancies that started or were renewed after 1 October 2015. Using an outdated form or a freeform letter invalidates the notice.
Notice served too early. For tenancies starting after 1 October 2015, you cannot serve a Section 21 notice during the first four months of the tenancy.
EICR remedial work outstanding. If the EICR flagged required work and you have not completed it within the specified period, the notice is invalid.
Tenant complaint followed by local authority action. If the tenant complained to the council about conditions and the council served a relevant notice, the Section 21 is blocked for six months.
What about the Renters' Rights Act?
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 will abolish Section 21 entirely for all tenancies in England. When the relevant provisions come into force, landlords will need to rely on Section 8 grounds for possession — each of which requires a specific reason (rent arrears, antisocial behaviour, landlord intends to sell or move in, etc.).
But here is the critical point: compliance obligations do not go away when Section 21 is abolished. Gas safety, EICR, deposit protection, and all other requirements remain legal obligations regardless of how you seek possession. Non-compliance will still result in fines, prosecution, and difficulty enforcing Section 8 grounds.
Courts will continue to consider a landlord's compliance record when assessing possession claims. A landlord with outstanding safety violations will struggle to persuade a judge that they are a responsible property owner acting in good faith.
For a detailed breakdown of what the Renters' Rights Act means for you, see our Renters' Rights Act guide for landlords.
The checklist before you serve
Before issuing a Section 21 notice, confirm each of the following:
- Gas safety certificate is current and a copy was provided to the tenant
- EICR is satisfactory (or remedial work completed) and a copy was provided
- EPC was provided to the tenant before the tenancy started
- Deposit is protected in an approved scheme
- Prescribed information was served within 30 days
- Current How to Rent guide was provided
- No local authority improvement notice served in the past six months
- Tenancy is at least four months old (post-October 2015 tenancies)
- You are using Form 6A
If any item is missing, do not serve the notice. Fix the issue first.
Stay compliant — before you need to prove it
The worst time to discover a compliance gap is when you are trying to regain your property. DueProper tracks every obligation and alerts you before certificates expire, so you are always in a position to act if you need to.
This article is for information only and does not constitute legal advice. Section 21 law is subject to change as the Renters' Rights Act provisions come into force. Always verify requirements with current legislation at legislation.gov.uk and seek legal advice before serving any notice.
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