What changed about rent increases in 2026?

Since 1 May 2026 every private assured tenancy in England is periodic, so one set of rules applies. The rent can rise once a year at most, only with a Form 4A notice giving at least two months’ notice, and rent review clauses in tenancy agreements no longer work. The tenant can challenge the new figure at the First-tier Tribunal, which can’t set it higher than you proposed.

Form 4A is the prescribed government form ("Landlord’s notice proposing a new rent for assured tenancies in the private rented sector") that a private landlord in England must use to increase rent under Section 13 of the Housing Act 1988. It came in on 1 May 2026 with the Renters’ Rights Act and is now the only valid way to raise the rent on a private assured tenancy: rent review clauses in tenancy agreements no longer work.

How much notice does Form 4A require?

At least two months. The new rent cannot start earlier than two months after the notice is served, 52 weeks after the tenancy began, or 52 weeks after the last increase took effect. These minimums are counted independently, so you can serve the notice two months before the anniversary. The new rent must also start on the first day of a rent period.

Can I still use a rent review clause instead of Form 4A?

No. Under the Renters’ Rights Act, contractual rent review clauses are unenforceable for assured tenancies. Section 13 via Form 4A is the single route for every private assured tenancy in England, once a year.

What is the difference between Form 4 and Form 4A?

Form 4A is for private landlords from 1 May 2026. Form 4 is now used only by landlords who rent out social housing. GOV.UK says a Form 4 notice a private landlord served before 1 May 2026 remains valid, but any new notice from a private landlord must be on Form 4A.

Can I send Form 4A by email?

Only if your tenancy agreement allows notices by email. Otherwise hand it over in person or send it by post. Whichever method you use, keep evidence of the date it was served, because the two months run from then.

Does Form 4A apply in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland?

No, Form 4A is England only. In Wales landlords use Form RHW12 with at least two months’ notice. In Scotland a private residential tenancy needs the prescribed rent increase notice with at least three months’ notice. In Northern Ireland rent can rise once in 12 months with three months’ written notice.

What happens if my tenant challenges the rent increase?

The tenant can apply to the First-tier Tribunal before the proposed start date. The Tribunal decides the open-market rent, and the tenant pays whichever is lower: that figure or the rent you proposed. The old rent continues while it decides, the new rent starts from the first rent period on or after the decision rather than being backdated, and the Tribunal can defer it by up to two months for undue hardship.

Where do I get Form 4A?

It is free on GOV.UK, on the page called "Assured tenancy forms for privately rented properties from 1 May 2026". Download it fresh each time rather than reusing a saved copy, because using an out-of-date prescribed form is one of the classic ways a rent increase notice fails.

Form 4A explained: serving a rent increase notice in 2026

Free tool: Rent increase calculator →When can I next increase the rent?

Since 1 May 2026, the rent on a private assured tenancy can only go up through a Section 13 notice on Form 4A. Get the form, the dates or the service wrong and the increase doesn't take effect.

The short answer

Form 4A is the notice a private landlord in England must use to raise the rent. It is free on GOV.UK. Give at least two months' notice, and the new rent can't start until 52 weeks after the tenancy began or the last increase took effect. Hand it over, post it, or email it if your tenancy agreement allows email. Your tenant can ask the First-tier Tribunal to decide the market rent, but the Tribunal can't set it higher than you proposed.

Form 4A at a glance
Question	Answer
Who uses it	Private landlords in England, for notices from 1 May 2026
Minimum notice	2 months from service
How often	Once a year: not within 52 weeks of the tenancy starting or the last increase
Start date of new rent	First day of a rent period
How to serve	In person, by post, or by email if the tenancy agreement allows it
If the tenant disagrees	They apply to the First-tier Tribunal before the start date
Where to get it	GOV.UK, free

This video goes through a rent increase in five minutes: the dates with a worked example, serving the form, choosing the figure, and what happens if your tenant challenges it. The rest of this guide takes the form itself, section by section.

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What Form 4A is, and why it's now the only route

Form 4A's full title is “Landlord's notice proposing a new rent for assured tenancies in the private rented sector”. It is the prescribed form for a rent increase under Section 13 of the Housing Act 1988, and it arrived with the Renters' Rights Act on 1 May 2026.

Form 4 or Form 4A?

Before 1 May 2026 landlords used Form 4. It still exists, but GOV.UK now lists it only for landlords who rent out social housing. If you are a private landlord, use Form 4A. A Form 4 notice you served before 1 May 2026 remains valid, but anything you serve now must be on the new form. If you have an old Form 4 saved from a previous increase, delete it so you don't reach for it by mistake.

The bigger change is to the rules around the form. Because every assured tenancy is now periodic, and because the Act made contractual rent review clauses unenforceable, the informal routes landlords used for decades (a clause in the agreement, a letter proposing a new figure, a verbal agreement at renewal) are gone. To raise the rent you now have to serve Form 4A, and without it the old rent stands, whatever your tenancy agreement says.

The three rules before you fill anything in

Once a year. The new rent cannot start earlier than 52 weeks after the last increase took effect, or 52 weeks after the tenancy began if you've never increased it. Occasionally the wait is 53 weeks, where the increase date has crept earlier over the years (section 13(3B) of the Housing Act 1988 has the test).

Two months' minimum notice. The date you put in the form for the new rent to start must be at least two months after the notice is served. Build in a few days' margin for service. The two months and the 52 weeks are counted independently, so you can serve the notice before the anniversary.

Base the figure on local market rents. The amount you propose should be defensible against comparable local lettings, because your tenant can send it to the First-tier Tribunal, and the Tribunal sets what it judges the market rent to be. Your own costs, a higher mortgage payment or inflation don't count unless the market reflects them.

Filling in Form 4A, section by section

The form itself is short, and these are the details that matter.

The parties and the property. Use the exact names on the tenancy agreement and the full property address. A notice addressed to the wrong entity (one joint tenant out of two, a misspelled company name) is an invitation to challenge.

The existing rent and the proposed rent. State both, with the payment period (weekly, monthly). If anything else is bundled into the payment (council tax, utilities, services), the form asks you to break it out.

The start date for the new rent. This is where notices fail. The date must be at least two months after service and at least 52 weeks after the last increase, and it must be the first day of a period of the tenancy. If your tenancy runs monthly from the 15th, the new rent starts on a 15th.

A worked example

Your tenancy began on 1 February 2026, rent is due on the 1st of each month, and you have never raised it. The 52-week point is 31 January 2027. The new rent has to start on the first day of a rent period, so the earliest start date is 1 February 2027. Counting back two months, the notice must be served by 1 December 2026. If you are posting it, send it in mid-November so late delivery can't push you past that date.

The next year works the same way from the date the increase took effect: an increase that started on 1 February 2027 means the next one can start no earlier than 1 February 2028. If your tenant agrees in writing to a smaller rise than your notice proposed, count the 52 weeks from the date the agreed rent took effect. Agreeing a cut or a freeze doesn't restart the 52 weeks.

Date and sign it. Undated notices create exactly the ambiguity a tribunal challenge feeds on.

Serving the notice: where increases actually fail

A perfectly completed Form 4A is worthless if you can't show the tenant received it. The two months run from the date the tenant receives it, so “I put it in the post at some point in March” is not a date a tribunal can work with. Serve it in a way that creates evidence: follow whatever service method your tenancy agreement specifies, and keep a dated record of what was sent, to whom, and when it arrived.

Email is only valid if your tenancy agreement allows it. GOV.UK lists three methods: in person, by post, or by email where the tenancy agreement permits it. If your agreement says nothing about email, hand it over or post it.

This is the same discipline the rest of your compliance paperwork needs, and it has the same failure mode. If you can't prove service, the safest legal assumption is that it never happened. Our guide to proving you served a notice covers the options in detail.

After service: the three outcomes

The tenant accepts, usually by simply paying the new rent from the start date. Nothing more is needed.

The tenant negotiates. You can agree a lower figure than the notice proposed. Put the agreed rent in writing and keep it with the tenancy file, then count the 52 weeks for your next increase from the date the agreed rent took effect. The agreed figure has to be lower than the one in your notice, because a rise can only come through the notice.

The tenant refers it to the First-tier Tribunal before the start date. The Tribunal determines the open-market rent, and the tenant pays whichever is lower: that figure or the rent you proposed. Until it decides, the existing rent continues. Your best protection is the homework you did before serving: comparable listings, condition of the property, what similar lets in the area actually achieve. A letting agent's written appraisal or published rental index figures can back it up.

What happens after a tribunal decision

The new rent starts from the first rent period that begins on or after the Tribunal's decision, or from the date in your notice if that is later. It is not backdated to the start date on your notice, so a challenge costs you the increase for however long the case takes. If starting it then would cause the tenant undue hardship, the Tribunal can set a later date, within two months of its decision. The government announced on 9 September 2026 that the Valuation Office Agency will take over first-stage rent decisions in future; for now, challenges still go to the First-tier Tribunal.

Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

Form 4A is England only. The other nations have their own rules:

Wales: private lets are standard occupation contracts under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016. Use Form RHW12 (Notice of Variation of Rent), give at least two months' notice, and the new rent can't start within a year of the last change.
Scotland: for a private residential tenancy, use the prescribed rent increase notice and give at least three months' notice, no more than once in 12 months. A tenant who thinks it is too high can apply to Rent Service Scotland within 21 days of getting the notice.
Northern Ireland: since 1 April 2025 rent can only go up once in 12 months. It can't go up within 12 months of the tenancy starting, and the landlord must give three months' written notice.

The mistakes that void a Form 4A notice

Using an out-of-date version of the form, or the old Form 4. Serving so the new rent starts within 52 weeks of the last increase. Giving less than two months' notice. A start date that isn't the first day of a tenancy period. Getting the names or address wrong, or leaving the notice undated or unsigned. The most common mistake is having no evidence of service. Each one sends you back to the start of the process, which, with a two-month notice period, means a failed notice costs you a minimum of two months' worth of the increase.

Before you serve, run your dates through our rent increase calculator. It works out the earliest date the new rent can take effect and the latest date you can serve to hit it. The Act's other rent rules, the ban on rental bidding and the cap on rent in advance, are in what landlords must do now.

Keep the completed form with the date you served it, how you served it and your evidence that the tenant received it, the comparables you relied on, and any reply from the tenant or tribunal referral, all in the property's file. If the increase is ever challenged, whether next month or in three years, that paper trail is what you will need to show the tribunal.

This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice.