Ground 8 rent arrears checker: is the new 3-month threshold met?

Since 1 May 2026, Section 21 has gone and a landlord who wants a tenant to leave for rent arrears uses Section 8. The main arrears ground, Ground 8, changed at the same time: the threshold went up and the notice period got longer. The checker below applies the new rule.

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Ground 8 rent arrears checker

Rent (£ per rental period) Rent is paidMonthlyWeeklyFortnightly Rent owed today (£) Date you would give notice Is it owed only because Universal Credit has not been received?NoYes

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The Ground 8 rule now

From the government's guidance for landlords and letting agents, Ground 8 can be used when the tenant owes:

• at least 3 months' rent, if rent is paid monthly; or
• at least 13 weeks' rent, if rent is paid weekly or fortnightly.

That amount has to be owed on the day notice is given and on the date of the court hearing. The notice period is 4 weeks before you can apply to court.

Ground 8 is mandatory: if the conditions are met at the hearing, the court must make a possession order. That is why the threshold matters so much.

What changed from before

Before 1 May 2026 the threshold was two months' rent, and the notice was two weeks. On a £1,250-a-month tenancy:

A tenant who owes £3,200 would have met the old test comfortably. Under the new rule they are £550 short, and Ground 8 is not available yet.

The Universal Credit exception

The guidance is explicit: if the tenant owes 3 months' or 13 weeks' rent only because they have not received their Universal Credit, the landlord cannot evict them on Ground 8. Check the payment history before serving. If the arrears are a mix of late Universal Credit and missed payments, take advice.

When Ground 8 is not met

Two other rent grounds still exist, and both are discretionary, so the court decides whether eviction is reasonable:

• Ground 10: some rent is unpaid when notice is given and when proceedings begin.
• Ground 11: the tenant has persistently delayed paying rent, even if nothing is owed on the day.

Both also carry 4 weeks' notice. They are often served alongside Ground 8, so that if the tenant pays down below the threshold before the hearing, the claim can continue on the other grounds.

Weekly and fortnightly rent

For weekly and fortnightly tenancies the threshold is 13 weeks' rent, not three months. At £290 a week that is £3,770. A fortnightly rent of £580 gives the same figure: 6.5 fortnights is 13 weeks. The common slip is treating a month as four weeks. £290 × 4 is £1,160, and three of those is £3,480: £290 short of the real threshold, so a notice served at £3,500 owed would fail. Count in weeks.

Count what is actually owed

Arrears are rent that has fallen due and not been paid. Rent due tomorrow does not count today, so serve after a payment date has passed, not before. Part payments reduce the total. A tenant who owes £3,800 and pays £100 on the morning of the hearing has taken a £1,250-a-month tenancy below the £3,750 line, and Ground 8 then fails at the hearing. That is the reason agents serve Grounds 10 and 11 alongside it. Keep a rent statement that shows each due date, each payment and the running balance, and bring an updated copy to court.

Before you serve

Arrears are easiest to recover early. Send a clear sequence of letters, starting within days of a missed payment. Our rent arrears letter maker produces the three standard letters with the figures filled in, including a final letter that sets out the Section 8 position.

For the full list of grounds and notice periods, including selling and moving in, see our guide to Section 8 notices after the Renters' Rights Act.

Check the paperwork from the start of the tenancy before you rely on it in court: the deposit protection certificate and prescribed information (due within 30 days of receiving the deposit; the deposit calculator gives the date), the gas and electrical safety records, and the government information sheet.

This is general information for England, not legal advice. Possession claims are technical, and a mistake on the notice can mean starting again.