Rent increases for assured periodic tenancies in England follow a formal process. This archive article was reviewed on 15 October 2026 against the government’s landlord guidance.
Check the timing and form
A landlord can increase rent only once a year and not during the tenancy’s first year. The landlord must use Form 4A and give at least two months’ notice through the section 13 process. That process is required even where the tenant has agreed to the amount.
Before issuing the form, check the tenancy start date and when the last increase took effect. Discuss the proposal clearly and keep a copy of the completed notice and its delivery record.
Understand transitional notices
The guidance makes a distinction for a Form 4 notice given before 1 May 2026: its stated notice period and increase can still apply even if the new rent starts later. An increase agreed under a rent-review clause before May but taking effect after 1 May is treated differently and does not apply. Read the transitional section carefully instead of assuming every older notice has the same outcome.
Keep the evidence clear
A tenant who considers the proposed rent higher than the open-market rent can ask the First-tier Tribunal to decide it. Keep the property details and any comparison evidence accurate and dated. An asking price for a different property is not automatically a like-for-like comparison.
This overview is for the specified English tenancy type. Other UK jurisdictions and regulated tenancies have different rules.
Source: GOV.UK landlord and tenant rent-increase guidance. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.