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Free tool · England

Section 13 notice generator: the prescribed Form 4A, filled in and date-checked

Raising the rent on an assured tenancy in England means a section 13 notice on Form 4A, served two months ahead, no more than once a year, starting on the first day of a tenancy period. Fill in the tenancy below and the tool works out the earliest lawful date, checks yours, and fills the government's form for you to sign and serve.

1. The tenancy and the rent

This is the tenancy period. It must be a month or less.

The date the tenant first moved in under this tenancy, not the last renewal.

2. When the new rent starts

Today, unless you are posting it — then the day it will arrive.

Fill in the tenancy start and notice date first.

3. Who and where

Every joint tenant, in full.

Property address
Landlord's contact address

If given, the tenant and the tribunal may serve documents on it.

4. Signing

The signature box is left for you: sign the PDF by hand or with your own e-signature before serving it. Joint landlords either each sign in the additional boxes on page 5 or agree that one signs for all.

The button lights up when the rent, the dates, both addresses and the signatory are filled in and the three date checks pass.

Nothing you type here is stored. The details go into the PDF and come straight back to you.

The three rules the date has to meet

From Note A of the form itself, which restates section 13(2) of the Housing Act 1988 as amended by the 2003 Order and the Renters' Rights Act 2025.

Two months' notice

The new rent cannot start until at least two months after the notice is served. Serve it by a method your tenancy agreement names; if it names none, by hand, by leaving it at the property, or by registered post — and keep the proof.

52 weeks — sometimes 53

No increase in the first 52 weeks of a tenancy, and 52 weeks between increases. If 52 weeks would land more than six days before the anniversary of your first increase, it is 53, so the date never creeps earlier. The tool checks both.

The first day of a period

The new rent starts on the first day of a tenancy period — the same day of the month the tenancy began on, or the same weekday for a weekly tenancy. A notice that names any other day is defective.

What to do with the PDF

  1. Read it through. Every box is filled from what you typed; the tribunal reads what the tenant was given, not what you meant.
  2. Sign and date it. The signature box on page 5 is left for you. Joint landlords either each sign in the additional boxes or agree one signs for all.
  3. Serve it on the date you told the tool. The two months run from the day the tenant receives it. Use a method the tenancy agreement names; keep a copy and a note of how and when.
  4. Diary the start date and the tribunal window. If the tenant refers the rent to the tribunal before the start date, the old rent continues until it decides.
  5. Record the increase — the date and the new figure — so next year's notice has its 52-week answer to hand.

Where it sits

This fills the prescribed form and checks the three date rules in its Note A. It does not tell you what rent to propose, whether it is a market rent, or how a tribunal would see it — those turn on the property and the area. If the tenancy is not an assured tenancy in England (a company let, a lodger, a Rent Act tenancy, an agricultural occupancy), section 13 and this form do not apply; check with a solicitor.

Nothing you type is stored. The details go into the PDF and come straight back; there is no account and no copy kept. The blank form is Crown copyright, reproduced under the Open Government Licence.

LetBuddy records the rent against the tenancy and the increase as a dated entry on the tenancy's record, so next year's 52-week question has an answer without a search through emails. That is where it sits: beside the notice, not inside the law.

Common questions

What is a section 13 notice?

A landlord's notice proposing a new rent under section 13(2) of the Housing Act 1988, on the prescribed form — Form 4A for private tenancies in England since the Renters' Rights Act. It is the only lawful way to increase the rent on an assured periodic tenancy: not a letter, not a clause in the agreement, not a text.

How much notice does a section 13 notice give?

At least two months. The date the new rent starts must be at least two months after the day the notice is served on the tenant, and it must be the first day of a tenancy period — the 20th for a monthly tenancy that began on the 20th, a Monday for a weekly tenancy that began on a Monday.

How often can I increase the rent with section 13?

Once a year. The first increase cannot start until 52 weeks after the tenancy began, and each later increase must be at least 52 weeks after the previous one. Because 52 weeks is a day or two short of a calendar year, the date would drift earlier every year — so if the 52-week date falls more than six days before the anniversary of your first increase, you must wait 53 weeks instead. The tool works this out.

Can the tenant refuse a section 13 rent increase?

They can refer it to the First-tier Tribunal before the start date, on the ground that the proposed rent is above the market rate or that the notice is defective. The tribunal decides what the property would let for on the open market — which can be lower or higher than proposed, but the tenant will not have to pay more than you proposed. Until the tribunal decides, the tenant keeps paying the old rent. The government has said this role will move to HMRC's Valuation Office in time.

Do I still need a section 13 notice if my tenancy agreement has a rent review clause?

Yes. Since the Renters' Rights Act, rent review clauses in assured tenancies in England no longer take effect; section 13 is the route for every increase. Check with a solicitor if your agreement predates the Act and you are unsure what still applies.

Is this the official form?

It is the government's Form 4A as published on GOV.UK, fetched and embedded unchanged — this page fills the boxes and returns the same PDF. The date, source and hash of the copy in use are printed at the foot of the page. It is for England only; Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own procedures.

Keep the rent and the record together

Your first property is free, permanently. The tenancy holds the rent, the ledger shows what arrived, and the increase sits on the record with its date — so the next notice starts from a fact, not a memory.

Start free — first property includedSection 8 evidence checklist →

Your first property is free forever. No card required.

Form 4A as published on GOV.UK's assured tenancy forms page, fetched 2026-09-15 (version 05.26, SHA-256 0c608875048d…). The rules above are quoted from its Note A. If GOV.UK re-issues the form, this page is updated; the PRS database will in time ask for the rent this notice sets.

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