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 works in a similar way to England's old Section 21 notice, but under different legislation, with different timings and different restrictions — the two aren't interchangeable, and Section 21 stopped applying to new lettings in Wales when the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 came into force on 1 December 2022.

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 does not create a second notice — it sets how much notice that same notice must give: at least six months. If you've seen this process described as needing "a Section 173 notice and a Section 174 notice", that's worth correcting: there's one notice, with Section 173 as its legal basis and Section 174 fixing 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?

Four conditions have to be met before a Section 173 notice is valid, and missing any one of them can undo months of process:

• 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 contract holder took occupation.
• 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.

What if the contract is still fixed-term?

Section 173 has no legal effect on a fixed-term standard contract. Instead: at the end of the fixed term, landlords use Form RHW22 (section 186, Schedule 9B) to end the contract. For fixed terms of two years or more, a break clause can sometimes be exercised early using Form RHW24 (6 months' notice) or RHW25 (2 months' notice) — neither is usable in the first 18 months of the contract. Many fixed-term contracts run on as periodic automatically once the fixed term ends if nothing else is agreed, at which point Section 173 becomes available (gov.wales renting homes forms for landlords, accessed 10/07/2026). 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 contract began
• You have valid contact details for the contract holder
• The property is in Wales
• You have complied with deposit protection, prescribed information and licensing requirements

Step 2: Prepare the Notice Document

The safest approach is to use the official prescribed notice form (Form RHW16) rather than compile your own document — 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).

Using the Welsh Government's prescribed Form RHW16, or a template from a qualified letting agent or solicitor, significantly reduces the risk of procedural errors.

Step 3: Serve the Notice Correctly

This is where many landlords make costly mistakes. You must serve the notice using one of these approved methods:

• Personal delivery: hand it directly to the contract holder and obtain evidence they received it (ideally a signed receipt)
• Registered post: send via Royal Mail's Special Delivery with proof of receipt
• Email: only if the contract holder has agreed to accept notices by email and you have written confirmation of this agreement
• Leaving at the property: leave it in a prominent place if you cannot serve personally, but this is riskier and requires additional follow-up confirmation

Keep comprehensive evidence of service. 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 has the right to occupy the property for the full 6-month notice period. You cannot change the locks, remove their possessions, or take any possession action before the notice period expires.

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 typically can't serve a fresh no-fault notice for a further 6 months (section 177). Diarise the date and act promptly once 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 contract began on 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 when occupation began.

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 — you need Form RHW22 at the end of the term, or a break clause (Form RHW24/RHW25, for two-year-plus terms) instead. 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. Use the prescribed Form RHW16 rather than 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 prescribed 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 unlicensed HMO licence was outstanding (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 what makes it a genuine no-fault mechanism.

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 must also ensure:

• 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 prescribed 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 7 days of occupation. 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 evictions fail not because the notice is wrong, but because the landlord hasn't complied with these foundational requirements. 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, it's worth getting the eligibility and paperwork checked before you serve it, not after.

We help Welsh landlords get this right — checking eligibility against the periodic/fixed-term distinction and the full restriction stack above, preparing compliant paperwork, and making sure the wider compliance requirements (Rent Smart Wales, deposit protection, safety certificates) won't unexpectedly block a valid claim. If it does go to court, we make sure your documentation and evidence are in order, working alongside your solicitor.

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

For landlords managing multiple properties, our full property management service handles compliance matters day-to-day, including Section 173 notices, rent collection, and maintenance coordination.