If you signed a fixed-term tenancy agreement, say for 12 months, you may have assumed your rent was fixed for that period. Or you may have spotted a rent review clause somewhere in the contract and wondered what it means for you.
Since 1 May 2026, the answer is straightforward: rent review clauses are void, fixed-term assured tenancies no longer exist, and every private rent increase in England must follow the same statutory process regardless of what any contract says.
What was a fixed-term tenancy?
Before the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, there were two main types of assured tenancy:
- Fixed-term: an agreement for a set period (commonly 6 or 12 months), after which the tenancy either ended, was renewed, or rolled into a periodic tenancy
- Periodic: a rolling tenancy with no fixed end date, monthly or weekly, depending on how rent was paid
During a fixed term, a landlord could only increase rent if the tenancy agreement contained a rent review clause, a contractual provision specifying when and how rent could be changed. Without one, rent was fixed for the duration of the fixed term.
What changed on 1 May 2026
The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 abolished the fixed-term assured tenancy. Two changes apply from commencement.
1. All tenancies are now periodic
Every private assured tenancy in England automatically became a rolling periodic tenancy on 1 May 2026. This applies to tenancies already in existence, not just new ones. Your tenancy is not terminated. It continues, but the fixed term no longer operates as a matter of law.
2. Rent review clauses are void
The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 provides that rent review clauses in assured tenancy agreements cannot take effect on or after commencement. Even if your agreement contains a clause purporting to allow mid-tenancy increases by reference to a formula, index, or schedule, it has no legal effect.
If your landlord attempts to increase rent by relying on a rent review clause after 1 May 2026, the increase is not lawful. Your obligation is to continue paying the rent that was in place before the attempted clause operation.
The only way rent can now be increased
There is now exactly one route for a private landlord to increase rent: Section 13 of the Housing Act 1988, using the prescribed Form 4A.
The requirements are:
| Requirement | Rule |
|---|---|
| Form | Form 4A, published 1 May 2026; old Form 4 is no longer valid |
| Notice period | At least 2 months before the proposed effective date |
| Effective date | Must fall on the first day of a rental period |
| First increase | Cannot take effect within 52 weeks of the tenancy start |
| Frequency | Maximum once per 52-week period |
A notice that does not comply with these requirements is invalid. If your landlord serves a defective notice, you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal under section 14(A3) of the Housing Act 1988 to have it declared invalid. Your old rent continues as if the notice was never served.
See what makes a Form 4A notice invalid →
What if your landlord is claiming a rent review clause applies?
If your landlord has communicated a rent increase by referring to a rent review clause, whether by letter, email, or by presenting an increased direct debit amount after 1 May 2026, that communication has no legal status as a rent increase notice.
You are not obliged to pay the new figure. Your obligations under the tenancy continue at the rent previously in place.
If your landlord then serves a valid Form 4A, the clock starts from that notice. All the usual rules apply: 2 months’ notice, the 52-week gap, the effective date on a rental period start.
A landlord who relies on a void rent review clause and fails to serve a valid Form 4A in time will simply have to wait longer before any increase can take effect.
Your rights to challenge a valid increase
If your landlord properly serves a Form 4A, you have the right to challenge the proposed amount before the effective date. You can submit the Rents 1 application for free to preserve the deadline and keep the old rent in place while the case is pending. There is then a £47 payment for the government to process it. The First-tier Tribunal assesses open-market rent and cannot set rent above the landlord’s proposed figure, so there is no risk of the tribunal setting a higher rent.
You continue paying your current rent throughout the process. There is no backdating of the new rent once an application has been filed.
Generate a Rents 1 application →
Full guide to challenging a rent increase at tribunal →
What the abolition of fixed terms means for your security
The abolition of fixed-term tenancies changes more than just how rent increases work. It also means:
- Your landlord can no longer use the end of a fixed term to remove you
- Section 21 no-fault evictions are abolished
- Challenging a rent increase carries no eviction risk
The periodic tenancy that now governs your situation gives you a continuing right to remain unless the landlord can establish a specific statutory ground for possession. A rent challenge no longer exposes you to Section 21, which removes a major source of pressure from the old system.
See all the changes from 1 May 2026 →
If your landlord is relying on old contract wording, check the notice itself before paying the increased rent.
Appendix: what if the increase was already operating before 1 May 2026?
Rent review clauses operated lawfully under the old rules. If your landlord validly operated a clause before commencement and the new rent took effect before 1 May 2026, that increase stands. The void only applies from commencement.
For notices served before 1 May 2026 but with effective dates after commencement, check what route the landlord used. Government guidance says pre-commencement Section 13 notices continue under the old rules, but rent review clause increases generally needed to take effect before 1 May 2026. If you are dealing with a March or April 2026 notice, keep proof of when it was served and do not let the effective date pass without taking advice or considering a tribunal application.
Frequently asked questions
- Since 1 May 2026, fixed-term assured tenancies no longer exist in England. All private tenancies are now periodic. Your landlord can only increase rent by serving a valid Form 4A notice under Section 13, with at least 2 months' notice. Rent review clauses in your tenancy agreement have no legal effect.
- It is void. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 provides that rent review clauses in assured tenancy agreements cannot take effect on or after 1 May 2026. Even if your agreement contains one, your landlord cannot rely on it to increase rent.
- No. Rent review clauses in private assured tenancies have been void since 1 May 2026. Your landlord must follow the Section 13 process using Form 4A. If they do not, the attempted increase has no legal effect.
- Yes. On 1 May 2026, all existing assured shorthold and assured fixed-term tenancies automatically became periodic tenancies, governed by the Renters' Rights Act 2025. Your agreement continues, but the fixed term no longer operates. The relationship is not terminated.
- If the rent review clause was operated correctly under the old rules and the new rent took effect before 1 May 2026, it stands. If the clause was purportedly operated after 1 May 2026, it has no legal effect. Your old rent continues, and the landlord must serve a valid Form 4A to begin again.