On 1 May 2026, every private tenancy in England changed overnight.

No paperwork required. No notice given. No opt-out available.

If you have tenants right now, your tenancy agreement looks different on paper to what it is in law — and most landlords haven't caught up with what that means day to day.

This edition covers exactly what changed, what it means practically, and what you need to do differently from here.

On 1 May 2026, almost every Assured Shorthold Tenancy in England converted into an Assured Periodic Tenancy. Any fixed terms ended, and the tenancy is now periodic — rolling from month to month until either the tenant or the landlord terminates it. Entrepreneur Loop

Your tenancy agreement didn't change. Your tenant didn't change. Your rent didn't change. But the legal framework governing everything changed completely.

Before 1 May most tenancies had a fixed term — usually 6 or 12 months with a set end date. The end date gave landlords a natural exit point.

After 1 May 2026, it is no longer possible for assured tenancy agreements to have a fixed term or a set end date. All tenancies automatically became rolling tenancies — usually monthly, unless the tenancy agreement sets out a shorter period such as weekly or fortnightly. If your tenancy had an end date, it no longer applies. money.co.uk

In plain English — your tenant can now stay indefinitely. There is no natural end point. The tenancy continues until the tenant chooses to leave or you successfully apply to court under Section 8.

No more end-of-tenancy exits Previously if a tenancy ended and you wanted to sell, renovate, or move a family member in — you simply didn't renew. That option is gone. You now need to use Ground 1A (selling) or Ground 1 (moving in) and go through the Section 8 process.

Your existing tenancy agreement may have clauses that no longer apply Break clauses in tenancy agreements can no longer be used. Even if a break clause exists in a tenancy signed before 1 May 2026, landlords cannot use it now. Check your agreements — anything that allowed you to end the tenancy early is now legally unenforceable. Market Clarity

Fixed term end dates are irrelevant If your tenancy agreement says it ends in August 2026 — it doesn't. If a tenant signed a fixed term tenancy agreement before 1 May 2026, it is now a periodic assured tenancy. The August date means nothing in law. Market Clarity

You don't need to re-serve compliance documents The AST and APT are treated as one continuous tenancy — there is no need to re-serve compliance documents such as the Gas Safety Certificate, EICR or EPC. Your existing certificates remain valid until their renewal dates. Entrepreneur Loop

Rent increases are now restricted to those made via a Section 13 notice — landlords can only increase rent once per year and must give at least two months notice. Mapbusinessonline

The process:

Any rent review clauses in your existing tenancy agreement are now overridden by this process. You cannot rely on a clause that says rent increases automatically — you must use Section 13 every time.

New tenancies entered into on or after 1 May 2026 must provide for rent to be paid monthly or for any period up to 28 days in length, and landlords cannot demand more than one month's rent at any one time. Ewa-Ha

Additionally there is now a new duty on landlords to provide a written statement of key tenancy terms and obligations to tenants before an assured tenancy is entered into — failure to do so may result in a fine of up to £7,000. Ewa-Ha

If you are signing any new tenancy agreements from now on, make sure:

Tenants now have a contractual right to request a pet. This doesn't mean you must say yes — but you must respond in writing within 28 days and can only refuse on reasonable grounds. Silence or ignoring the request is not an option and could result in a fine. Mapbusinessonline

Reasonable grounds to refuse include allergies of other residents, building lease restrictions, or property type. Unreasonable refusals risk a civil penalty.

✅ Check your tenancy agreements — identify any break clauses or fixed end dates and note that they are now unenforceable

✅ Note your last rent increase date — you can only increase rent once per 12 months from that point using Section 13

✅ Download Form 4 from gov.uk — this is your Section 13 notice for future rent increases

✅ If signing new tenancies — update your template agreements to reflect periodic terms from the outset and include the written statement

✅ Respond to any pet requests in writing within 28 days

✅ Serve the Information Sheet if you haven't — 11 days left until the 31 May deadline

The biggest shift landlords need to absorb is this — there is no longer a natural end to a tenancy. Every exit now requires a legal process. That makes getting compliance right from day one more important than ever, because a technical failure at any point can collapse your entire possession case.

The good news — if you have good tenants and a well-managed property, a periodic tenancy changes very little day to day. The risk is only if you ever need to end a tenancy.

Coming up next edition — EPC C by 2030: what the upgrade actually costs, which improvements qualify, and how to plan without being ripped off.

The Landlords Brief is published regularly for UK landlords. Subscribe free at thelandlordsbrief.co.uk. This newsletter is for general information only and does not constitute legal or financial advice.