Housing Act 1988: Primary legislation governing residential tenancies in England and Wales, particularly Section 21 which provides the framework for no-fault evictions
Housing Act 1996: Supplementary legislation that amended the 1988 Act and introduced additional requirements for assured shorthold tenancies
Deregulation Act 2015: Introduced additional requirements for Section 21 notices including prescribed form requirements and restrictions on retaliatory evictions
Tenant Fees Act 2019: Legislation that impacts the validity of Section 21 notices in relation to prohibited payments and tenant fees
AST Notices and Prescribed Requirements (England) Regulations 2015: Specifies the precise form and content requirements for valid Section 21 notices
AST Notices and Prescribed Requirements (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2015: Updates to the original 2015 regulations regarding notice requirements
Notice Period Requirement: Minimum two months' notice must be given to the tenant under standard circumstances
Deposit Protection Requirement: Landlord must have protected any tenant deposit in an approved scheme and provided prescribed information to the tenant
EPC Requirement: Valid Energy Performance Certificate must have been provided to the tenant before service of notice
Gas Safety Requirement: Valid Gas Safety Certificate must have been provided to tenant (where property has gas installations)
How to Rent Guide: Current version of the government's How to Rent guide must have been provided to the tenant
HMO Licensing: Property must have necessary HMO (House in Multiple Occupation) licensing if applicable
Retaliatory Eviction Protection: Notice cannot be served in response to tenant complaints about property conditions (retaliatory eviction)
Timing Restriction: Notice cannot be served within the first 4 months of the original tenancy
