Section 173 Notice Wales: The Landlord's Complete Guide

What Is a Section 173 Notice?

A Section 173 notice is a "no-fault" notice a landlord can serve to end a periodic standard contract in Wales, without needing to prove any breach or misconduct by the contract holder (tenant). It's like England's old Section 21 notice, but the law, the timings and the restrictions are different. The two aren't interchangeable. Section 21 stopped applying to all lets in Wales, including existing tenancies, on 1 December 2022, when the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 came into force.

The legal basis sits in two sections of the Act that are often confused with each other. Section 173 gives the landlord the power to end the contract by notice. Section 174 doesn't create a second notice. It sets the minimum length of the same notice: six months. Some sites say you need "a Section 173 notice and a Section 174 notice". That's wrong. There is one notice. Section 173 is its legal basis and Section 174 fixes its minimum length (legislation.gov.uk, s.173 and s.174, accessed 10/07/2026).

Section 173 only applies to a periodic standard contract. If the contract holder is still within a fixed term, this notice isn't available yet: see "What if the contract is still fixed-term?" below. Serving a Section 173 notice on a fixed-term contract by mistake is one of the more common, and entirely avoidable, errors we see.

When Can You Serve a Section 173 Notice?

Three conditions have to be met before a Section 173 notice is valid. Miss any one and it can wipe out months of work:

• The contract must be periodic, not fixed-term: the Act is explicit that Section 173 applies to "the landlord under a periodic standard contract" (section 173(1)). A fixed-term contract needs a different ending route entirely.
• Minimum 6 months' occupation (section 175): you cannot serve a Section 173 notice until at least 6 months have passed since the occupation date of the contract.
• Minimum 6 months' notice (section 174): once validly served, the contract holder must be given at least 6 months before the date they must leave.

The 6-month notice period runs from the date the notice is properly served, not from an earlier conversation or a verbal warning.

Worked example: the occupation date is 1 March. The earliest you can serve the notice is 1 September. Served on 1 September, the earliest date it can give for the contract holder to leave is 1 March the following year.

What if the contract is still fixed-term?

Section 173 has no legal effect on a fixed-term standard contract. For an ordinary private let, no notice ends the contract at the end of the fixed term. Form RHW22 only applies to the special contracts listed in Schedule 9B to the Act, such as supported housing and service occupancies (section 186). If the contract-holder stays on after the fixed term, the law treats it as a new periodic contract from the next day (section 184). You can then serve RHW16. The first-6-months rule counts from the start of the original contract, not the new periodic one (section 175(2)), so you can usually serve RHW16 as soon as the fixed term ends. If the contract is for two years or more and has a landlord's break clause, you can end it early on Form RHW24 with at least 6 months' notice, but not in the first 18 months of occupation (sections 194 to 196). Our RHW forms guide shows which form fits (gov.wales renting homes forms for landlords, accessed 10/10/2026). If you're not sure which route applies to your contract, get advice before serving anything.

The full Section 173 restriction stack, at a glance

Beyond the basic timing rules, a Section 173 notice can be blocked or invalidated by several other legal bars. This is the full picture:

Source: Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 (legislation.gov.uk, accessed 10/07/2026).

Step-by-Step Process for Serving a Section 173 Notice

Step 1: Check Your Eligibility

Before doing anything else, confirm that:

• The contract is currently periodic, not still within a fixed term (see the table above)
• At least 6 months have passed since the occupation date
• You have valid contact details for the contract holder
• The property is in Wales
• You have complied with deposit protection, required information and licensing requirements

Step 2: Prepare the Notice Document

Use the official prescribed form, Form RHW16. A notice that isn't in the prescribed form can be of no effect (section 236(3)), so a homemade letter risks being worthless. Using the wrong wording or an outdated template is a common way notices get invalidated. At minimum it will need your name and address, the contract holder's name, the property address, the date of service, and the date the contract holder must give up possession (at least 6 months from service).

Step 3: Serve the Notice Correctly

The Act allows three ways to give a notice (section 237):

• By hand: hand it to the contract holder.
• Left or posted: leave it at, or post it to, the dwelling (or another address they've given you for notices).
• Electronically: only if they've told you they'll accept notices that way.

Whichever you use, keep proof: a signed receipt, a certificate of posting, or a photo of the notice at the door with the date. Courts are strict about this: if you cannot prove the contract holder received the notice, service may be found invalid even if the notice itself is correct.

Step 4: Wait the Full Notice Period

The contract holder can stay for the full 6-month notice period. Even after it ends, you can't change the locks, remove their belongings or force them out. Only a court order, enforced by bailiffs, gets you possession.

Step 5: Proceed to Court if Necessary

If the contract holder hasn't vacated by the date specified in the notice, you'll need to apply to court for a possession order, and you need to do that within 2 months of the date specified in the notice (section 179). Miss that window and the notice lapses. You'd have to start again, and usually can't serve a fresh no-fault notice for a further 6 months (section 177). Put the date in your diary and act as soon as it passes.

Common Mistakes That Invalidate Section 173 Notices

These are the errors we see most frequently that undermine otherwise reasonable evictions:

Serving Before 6 Months Have Passed

If the occupation date was 1 March, you cannot serve a valid notice until 1 September at the earliest (section 175). Courts will dismiss possession proceedings if this requirement hasn't been met. Many landlords miscount the months or serve based on when they first contacted the contract holder rather than from the occupation date.

Serving It on a Fixed-Term Contract

Section 173 only works on a periodic standard contract. If the contract-holder is still within a fixed term, a Section 173 notice has no legal effect. Wait until the fixed term ends and the contract rolls on as periodic, then serve RHW16. The only no-fault way to end an ordinary fixed term early is a landlord's break clause on Form RHW24, and only in a contract of two years or more, after the first 18 months. RHW22 isn't the form for an ordinary private let. This is one of the most common, and most avoidable, mistakes we see.

Inadequate Notice Content

Missing required information, even seemingly minor details like the correct dates, can be fatal to your case. A notice not in the prescribed form can be of no effect (section 236(3)), so use Form RHW16, not a homemade document.

Not Allowing the Full 6-Month Period

If you specify an end date that's less than 6 months away, the notice is defective (section 174). For example, a notice served on 15 January specifying an end date of 15 June (5 months later) would be invalid; you'd need to specify 15 July at the earliest.

Failing to Comply with Other Legal Requirements

If you haven't protected the contract holder's deposit, provided the required information, or complied with Rent Smart Wales registration and licensing requirements, you may be unable to obtain a possession order even if the notice itself is technically correct (section 176, Schedule 9A).

Section 173 Notices and Challenging Grounds

A contract holder can't challenge a validly-served Section 173 notice simply by disagreeing with the decision to end the contract, but the notice can be successfully challenged if:

• The notice wasn't properly served
• The 6-month occupation period hadn't elapsed (section 175)
• The 6-month notice period wasn't given in full (section 174)
• The contract was still fixed-term, so Section 173 didn't apply
• You (or your agent) weren't licensed or registered with Rent Smart Wales as required (Housing (Wales) Act 2014, s.44), or an HMO that needs a licence wasn't licensed (Housing Act 2004, s.75)
• Deposit protection or other compliance requirements weren't met (section 176, Schedule 9A)
• The notice looks retaliatory: for example, given shortly after the contract holder made a legitimate complaint about the property's condition (section 217/177A)

None of these grounds require a court to weigh up whether ending the contract is "fair": a validly-served Section 173 notice, clear of the bars above, is a mandatory ground for possession. That's why it's a no-fault route.

Timeline: From Service to Possession

The realistic shape of the process:

• Serve the notice once eligible: periodic contract, 6+ months' occupation, compliance requirements met.
• The contract holder can stay for the full notice period: at least 6 months from service (section 174).
• If they haven't left once the period ends, you have up to 2 months to apply to court for a possession order (section 179); don't let this deadline slip, or the notice lapses.
• If granted, the order is enforced by county court bailiffs (or High Court enforcement officers, if the case is transferred up).

Court timescales vary by workload and whether the claim is contested, so we haven't put a fixed figure on this stage; check current processing times with HM Courts & Tribunals Service or your solicitor before relying on any estimate.

Frequently Asked Questions About Section 173 Notices

Compliance Requirements Beyond Section 173

Serving a valid Section 173 notice is just one part of a legal eviction. You also need:

• Rent Smart Wales registration and licensing: you (or your managing agent) must be registered, and if you self-manage, you need a landlord licence too. Being unlicensed where required is itself one of the legal bars to a valid Section 173 notice (Housing (Wales) Act 2014, s.44). Using a Rent Smart Wales-licensed agent for all your letting and management activity means you only need the basic registration yourself, not the full landlord licence: see our Rent Smart Wales guide.
• Deposit protection: any deposit must be protected in an authorised scheme, with required information given to the contract holder within 30 days (section 45, Schedule 5). Wales has no cap on the size of a security deposit itself (that's a different figure from the capped holding deposit), but the protection deadline isn't negotiable. See our deposit protection guide.
• Electrical safety (EICR): a report no more than 5 years old, given to the contract holder within 14 days of the occupation date. Gas safety: an annual check wherever there's a gas appliance. Missing either can be a defence for the contract holder in possession proceedings.
• Energy Performance Certificate: must be provided, and the property should currently be rated E or above: the minimum standard in force since 2020. EPC C by 2030 is confirmed government policy, but not yet law.
• Written statement: given to the contract holder within 14 days of the occupation date (section 31/32); missing this is a common, avoidable compliance gap.

Many possession claims fail because the landlord missed one of these basics, even when the notice itself is right. A court won't grant possession if fundamental legal protections for the contract holder have been breached.

Next Steps: Getting Professional Help

Section 173 notices are technical legal documents, and small errors can cost you months in the process. If you're planning to serve one, have the eligibility and paperwork checked before you serve, not after.

If we manage your property, we check eligibility against the periodic/fixed-term rules and the full restriction stack above, prepare the notice on the right form, and keep the wider compliance (Rent Smart Wales, deposit, safety certificates) in order so it doesn't block a claim. If it goes to court, we make sure your documents and evidence are ready for your solicitor.

See our full landlord compliance hub, or read our detailed eviction process guide for Wales.

Our full property management service handles compliance day to day, including notices, rent collection and repairs. It's 10% + VAT, with the first 3 months free, no setup fee and no exit fee. Call us on 01792 651311.