Examples of Serving Notice in 2026
Examples of Giving Notice
PLEASE READ: Your notice must be at least two months long. In Law, a 'Notice to Quit' has a very specific meaning and is linked to the last day of a rental period. The term at least two months' notice gives further weight that the examples given are correct in their interpretation. There is some debate on whether the notice you give will be tied to a tenancy period or to the date the notice is deemed served, however most legal interpretations so far are leaning towards the link to a rental period.
Practically though it is always worth stating in your notice the date you think it should take effect and to ask your landlord to contact you if that is not correct.
1. You have a fixed-term tenancy agreement that says your tenancy will expire on 30 June 2026.
You pay rent monthly, on the first day of each month.
Your tenancy will convert from a fixed term tenancy to a monthly periodic tenancy on 1 May 2026.
If your notice was posted on 1 May 2026 (a Friday before a bank holiday), it is deemed to be served the 2nd business day after posting – which is 6 May 2026. The 2 months’ notice period, which excludes the day of service, will expire on 6 July 2026. However, that is not the last day of a period of the tenancy, which in our example is the last day of the month. In this example, the earliest date notice to quit can take effect is 31 July 2026.
If you wished for your notice to be taken as served on the 1st May you should've done this electronically. Email would be ideal. This should then be sufficient notice to leave your tenancy on 30th June. It is always advisable when giving notice to set out the date you intend to leave, if your landlord has any questions they can then contact you to discuss.
2. You have a fixed-term tenancy agreement for the period 15 August 2025 to 14 August 2026.
You agreed to pay rent in 3 instalments, to coincide with student loan payments.
Your tenancy will convert from a fixed term tenancy to a monthly periodic tenancy on 1 May 2026.
Unless the government makes new regulations, you cannot give notice to quit before 1 May 2026.
Because you have not been paying rent monthly, each monthly period of your tenancy will start on the same day of the month as your tenancy started. In most cases, this will be the date you were entitled to move into the property. In our example, this was 15 August 2025. The periods of your tenancy therefore run from the 15th of one month to the 14th day of the following month.
If your notice is posted on 1 May 2026 (a Friday before a bank holiday), it is deemed to be served the 2nd business day after posting – which is 6 May 2026. The 2 months’ notice period, which excludes the day of service, will expire on 6 July 2026. However, that is not the last day of a period of the tenancy, which in our example is the 14th day of the month. In this example, the earliest date notice to quit can take effect is 14th July 2026.