Section 8 Grounds for Possession: Every Ground Explained (2026)

Since 1 May 2026, Section 8 of the Housing Act 1988 is the only route to possession of an assured tenancy in England. Section 21 no-fault eviction is abolished, and all tenancies are now periodic — fixed-term ASTs no longer exist. To evict, a landlord must serve Form 3A citing one or more of the grounds in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988, as rewritten by the Renters' Rights Act 2025, and prove that ground in court if the tenant does not leave.

Choosing the wrong ground, or the wrong combination, is the single biggest reason possession claims fail or get delayed. This guide sets out every ground, what it requires, how long notice you must give, and which grounds work together.

Key takeaways

• There is no longer a no-fault eviction route. Every possession claim under Section 8 must fit one of the statutory grounds in Schedule 2, Housing Act 1988 — this guide covers the grounds private landlords use in practice.
• Mandatory grounds (the court must grant possession once proven) include Grounds 1, 1A, 2, 6, 6B, 7, 7A and 8. Discretionary grounds (the court decides if it's reasonable) include Grounds 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 17.
• Only Grounds 1 and 1A carry the 12-month protected period — a notice on those grounds can't expire in the tenancy's first year. Every other ground is available from day one.
• Ground 8 (serious rent arrears) needs at least three months' arrears, both at service and at the hearing — arrears that drop below the threshold before the hearing defeat the mandatory claim.
• Citing a ground the landlord doesn't reasonably believe applies is now a specific offence, with civil penalties up to £40,000 and rent repayment orders up to two years' rent if the tenant leaves without a court order and the ground turns out to be false.

Section 8 after the Renters' Rights Act

Before 1 May 2026, most landlords used Section 21 because it didn't require a reason. That option is gone. Every possession claim now stands or falls on the ground cited, so understanding which ground fits the facts — and gathering the evidence to prove it — is the first job, not an afterthought.

The notice itself also changed. Private landlords must use Form 3A, the prescribed notice for assured tenancies from 1 May 2026. Form 3 still exists but is now reserved for social landlords; using it in the private rented sector is the wrong form. For how to complete and serve Form 3A correctly, see How to Serve a Section 8 Notice.

Mandatory grounds

If a landlord proves a mandatory ground applies, the court has no discretion — it must order possession. That makes these grounds powerful, but the evidence bar is correspondingly strict.

Ground 1: landlord or close family moving in

This ground applies where the landlord, their spouse or civil partner, or specified close family members need the property as a home. The defined family members are parents, grandparents, siblings, children and grandchildren, including half-blood relatives. Cousins, nieces, nephews and more distant relatives are not covered. Corporate landlords cannot use Ground 1 at all — it depends on an individual needing to live there.

Notice period: 4 months. The 12-month protected period applies: the notice cannot expire before the tenancy has run for a full year.

Ground 1A: landlord selling

Ground 1A lets a landlord recover possession where they have a genuine intention to sell the property. "Genuine intention" means real evidence of an intended sale, not a pretext to remove a tenant.

Notice period: 4 months, and the same 12-month protected period as Ground 1 — the notice cannot expire in the tenancy's first year.

Ground 1A carries a serious restriction after possession is granted: a 12-month re-letting ban. The landlord cannot re-let or re-market the property within 12 months of relying on this ground. Breaching the ban is a criminal offence, separate from the civil penalties described below under "Choosing your grounds."

Ground 4A: student HMO

Ground 4A is aimed at landlords letting to full-time students in a house in multiple occupation (HMO), where the property needs to be recovered for the next academic year's intake. Three conditions must all be met: the property is an HMO let entirely to students; the landlord gave a written statement to that effect at the start of the tenancy; and the tenancy was agreed within 6 months of the tenant moving in.

Notice period: 4 months, and the notice must expire between 1 June and 30 September — aligned to the academic changeover.

Ground 7A: serious anti-social behaviour

Ground 7A is a mandatory ground for the most serious anti-social behaviour cases: where the tenant (or a person living with or visiting them) has a relevant conviction, is subject to a closure order affecting the property, or has breached an anti-social behaviour injunction or criminal behaviour order connected to the property.

There is no notice period: proceedings can be issued immediately after the notice is served, although the court cannot make a possession order until 14 days after the notice was given. Ground 7A is also treated as exempt from the deposit-protection precondition described below, reflecting the urgency Parliament attached to this ground.

Ground 8: serious rent arrears

Ground 8 is the mandatory arrears ground and the one most private landlords will use most often. It requires the tenant to be at least three months in arrears (13 weeks if rent is paid weekly or fortnightly) — and critically, that threshold must be met both when the notice is served and at the court hearing. If the tenant pays enough to drop below the threshold before the hearing, Ground 8 fails as a mandatory ground, even if arrears were well above three months when the notice went out.

One exclusion matters for arrears caused by benefit delays: arrears that arise solely because Universal Credit the tenant was entitled to has not yet been paid do not count toward the Ground 8 threshold.

Notice period: 4 weeks — doubled from the previous 2-week minimum.

Other mandatory grounds, briefly

• Ground 2 — mortgagee repossession. Available where a lender is enforcing a mortgage granted before the tenancy and needs vacant possession to sell. Notice period: 4 months.
• Ground 6 — redevelopment. The landlord intends significant redevelopment that can't be carried out with the tenant in occupation. The landlord must usually have held their interest in the property since before the tenancy started, and the ground is not normally available in the first six months of the tenancy — the exact requirements vary with the circumstances. Notice period: 4 months.
• Ground 6B — enforcement action against the landlord. Applies where a relevant enforcement authority has taken action against the landlord that requires the property to be vacated. Notice period: 4 months.
• Ground 7 — death of the tenant. Lets a landlord recover possession from a periodic tenancy after the sole tenant has died, provided proceedings begin within 12 months of the death. Notice period: 2 months.
• Ground 7B — no right to rent. Applies where the Home Office has confirmed that one or more (not necessarily all) occupiers have no right to rent in the UK. Notice period: 2 weeks.

Discretionary grounds

On a discretionary ground, proving the facts isn't enough — the court also has to decide it's reasonable to grant possession. That means the tenant's circumstances, conduct, and any mitigating factors are relevant, and the outcome is less predictable than a mandatory ground.

Ground 10: some rent arrears

Ground 10 covers any arrears that exist both when the notice is served and at the hearing — there's no minimum threshold, unlike Ground 8. Because it doesn't need to hit three months, it's commonly pleaded alongside Ground 8 as a fallback: if the tenant pays down arrears just enough to defeat Ground 8, Ground 10 can still support a discretionary order. Notice period: 4 weeks.

Ground 11: persistent late payment

This ground targets a pattern of persistently paying rent late, even where the tenant isn't in arrears at the time of the hearing. It's evidence-heavy — a payment history showing repeated lateness is the core of the case. Notice period: 4 weeks.

Ground 12: breach of tenancy terms

Covers breach of any tenancy obligation other than rent payment — for example, unauthorised subletting, keeping a pet in breach of the agreement, or unauthorised alterations. Notice period: 2 weeks.

Ground 13: deterioration of the property

Applies where the condition of the property or common parts has deteriorated because of the tenant's (or a lodger's or subtenant's) neglect or default. Ordinary fair wear and tear doesn't count. Notice period: 2 weeks.

Ground 14: nuisance or annoyance

Covers conduct causing nuisance or annoyance to neighbours, or (as amended) conduct connected with a criminal offence. This is the most flexible discretionary ground and has no minimum notice period — proceedings can start immediately, reflecting how disruptive this conduct can be to other residents.

Ground 15: deterioration of furniture

The furnished-tenancy equivalent of Ground 13 — deterioration of furniture provided under the tenancy, caused by the tenant's ill-treatment. Notice period: 2 weeks.

Ground 17: false statement inducing the tenancy

Applies where the landlord was induced to grant the tenancy by a false statement made knowingly or recklessly by the tenant or someone acting on their behalf — for example, false information on a reference or application.

Grounds at a glance

Ground	Type	Threshold / condition	Notice period	Key restriction
1	Mandatory	Landlord or close family moving in	4 months	12-month protected period
1A	Mandatory	Genuine intention to sell	4 months	12-month protected period; 12-month re-letting ban
2	Mandatory	Mortgagee repossession	4 months	—
4A	Mandatory	Student HMO, written statement given	4 months	Must expire 1 Jun–30 Sep
6	Mandatory	Redevelopment; interest acquired before tenancy	4 months	—
6B	Mandatory	Enforcement action against landlord	4 months	—
7	Mandatory	Death of tenant	2 months	Proceedings within 12 months of death
7A	Mandatory	Serious anti-social behaviour (conviction/closure/breach)	None — apply immediately	Court cannot order possession until 14 days after notice
7B	Mandatory	No right to rent (Home Office notice)	2 weeks	—
8	Mandatory	3 months'/13 weeks' arrears at service AND hearing	4 weeks	UC-only arrears excluded
10	Discretionary	Any arrears at service and hearing	4 weeks	—
11	Discretionary	Persistent late payment	4 weeks	—
12	Discretionary	Breach of tenancy terms	2 weeks	—
13	Discretionary	Deterioration of property	2 weeks	—
14	Discretionary	Nuisance or annoyance	Immediate	No minimum notice
15	Discretionary	Deterioration of furniture	2 weeks	—
17	Discretionary	False statement inducing tenancy	2 weeks	—

Choosing your grounds

Grounds can be pleaded together on the same notice and the same claim. The standard approach for rent arrears is Ground 8 with Grounds 10 and 11 — Ground 8 as the mandatory route, with 10 and 11 as discretionary backups if arrears fall under the three-month threshold before the hearing. Combining grounds means one weak ground doesn't sink the whole claim.

There is now a real cost to citing a ground carelessly. It's an offence to give a notice citing a ground without a reasonable belief that possession would actually be granted on it — the civil penalty is up to £7,000. If a landlord relies on a ground knowingly or recklessly, the tenant leaves within four months without a court order having been made, and the ground turns out to be unfounded, the penalty rises to up to £40,000 (as an alternative to prosecution), and the tenant can seek a rent repayment order of up to two years' rent. Only cite a ground you can actually evidence.

One more precondition applies across most grounds: a late-protected deposit no longer automatically bars a Section 8 order, unlike the old Section 21 regime — provided the deposit protection requirements are met before the notice is served. Grounds 7A and 14 are treated as exempt from this requirement, given their urgency.

Serving the notice: Form 3A

The prescribed notice for a private-landlord Section 8 claim is Form 3A, in force from 1 May 2026. It must state the ground(s) relied on and give the correct notice period for each — where more than one ground is cited with different notice periods, the longest applies. Getting the form, the grounds, and the notice period right is a process in its own right — see How to Serve a Section 8 Notice for the step-by-step.

Common mistakes

• Getting the arrears threshold wrong. Ground 8 needs three full months' (or 13 weeks') arrears at both service and the hearing — not "roughly three months," and not just at the point the notice was served.
• Letting arrears drop below threshold before the hearing. A Ground 8 claim pleaded alone can collapse if the tenant pays down arrears. Always plead Grounds 10 and 11 alongside it.
• Miscounting the 12-month protected period on Grounds 1 and 1A. The notice must not expire before the tenancy has run for a full 12 months — check the tenancy start date, not the notice date.
• Using Form 3 instead of Form 3A. Form 3 is for social landlords only from 1 May 2026; a private landlord using the wrong form risks the notice being defective.
• No documentary evidence. Discretionary grounds especially depend on evidence — arrears statements, a payment history for Ground 11, correspondence for Ground 12, photographs for Grounds 13 and 15. Assemble the evidence before serving, not after.

If the tenant doesn't leave once the notice expires, the next step is a standard possession claim: Form N5 with Form N119 particulars of claim at the County Court, with a court fee of £404 (rising to £415 from 13 July 2026). A hearing is typically listed 4–8 weeks after the claim is issued. For background on when Section 8 is the right route and how it compares with the possession process generally, see When Should a Landlord Use a Section 8 Notice and the Guide to Evicting a Tenant. For rent arrears specifically, see How to Evict a Tenant for Not Paying the Rent.

Related guides

For the full background on the reform itself, read Renters' Rights Act 2025 and Section 21 Abolition and Section 8. Once you've identified the right ground, How to Serve a Section 8 Notice covers the serving process in detail, and the Section 8 Notice to Quit template is ready to complete. If the claim proceeds to court, Form N5, Form N119 and Form N215 are the forms you'll need next.