The Assured Tenancies and Agricultural Occupancies (Forms) (Amendment) Regulations 2019 were passed on 7 May 2019. These regulations amend the Section 21 Notice (prescribed Form 6A) for use in England, to evict tenants occupying a property under an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (‘AST’) on expiry of the fixed term of the tenancy. The new Section 21 Notice (Form 6A) must be used in England from 1 June 2019 onwards.
These regulations were introduced to coincide with the Tenant Fees Act 2019. The main change to the prescribed form is the addition of a new subparagraph which explains that you cannot serve a Section 21 Notice (Form 6A) on a tenant in England if you have charged a prohibited payment or have retained a holding deposit in breach of the Tenant Fees Act 2019.
Landlords in England and letting agents acting on their behalf must ensure that they are not in breach of the Tenant Fees Act 2019 prior to serving a section 21 Notice as any breach may invalidate the notice.
Although the Government announced plans on 15 April 2019 to abolish Section 21 Housing Act 1988 notices, no timetable has been set for when this consultation will be launched. Until new legislation is introduced, Section 21 Notices are required to be served using the new prescribed Form 6A from the 1 June 2019.
Here at Simply-Docs we will amend our template Section 21 Notice (Form 6A) (England) to reflect the changes to the form prescribed immediately prior to the 01 June 2019.