The Renter’s Rights Act 2025 and its implications for Yorkshire farmers explained

The Renter’s Rights Act 2025 (the Act) has now become law, but most changes will not be implemented until 1 May 2026, with further stages set to follow.

The changes to tenancies are largely universal however there are some key differences for farmers who want to rent their properties to agricultural workers.

Key changes

Some of the main changes include:

• The abolition of fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies (AST), to be replaced with periodic assured tenancies
• The abolition of no-fault evictions under Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988
• Amendments and expansions to grounds for eviction
• Amendments to the statutory procedures for proposing rent increases and challenging the amount or increase of rent
• A right for tenants to ask to keep pets
• A duty on landlords to provide tenants with a written statement of terms and information before the tenancy is entered into
• A ban on discriminating against prospective tenants who have children or who receive benefits

Phase one of the changes will begin on 1 May 2026 with the abolition of section 21 evictions, the introduction of assured tenancies and changes to the grounds for eviction.

Housing agricultural workers

The Act introduces new mandatory and discretionary grounds for section 8 notices.

Crucially, amongst these is a new mandatory ground, which specifically provides agricultural landlords with the right to end a tenancy of their property, in order provide accommodation for an agricultural worker.

Assured agricultural occupants

Currently, where a tenant is also a landlord’s full-time agricultural worker, then the tenant will be an Assured Agricultural Occupant (AAO) unless the landlord gave notice to the tenant before the tenancy started that the tenancy would be an AST.

From 1 May 2026, a tenant who is also a landlord’s full-time agricultural worker will be an AAO unless the landlord opts out and chooses the tenancy to be an assured tenancy.

A prescribed form of words will need to be given which states that the tenant is not to be an AAO.

If the tenant is an existing AAO or it is not opted out of, then some of the possession grounds, such as requiring the property for an incoming worker, will not be available for a landlord to use.

Landlords of existing AAOs will be required to provide their tenant with a written statement as detailed above within a month of 1 May 2026.

For new AAOs, starting after 1 May 2026, the landlord must provide the written statement before the start of the tenancy.

If you are a landlord preparing for the transition, our dedicated landlord and tenant team is here to guide you through the changes.

For more information, please email Tom Hickingbottom [email protected].