Section 26 Notice

A Section 26 Notice is a legal document used by a Tenant of business premises in cases where he wishes to enforce his rights under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 and renew the tenancy on the same and/or similar terms at the end of a tenancy.

This Notice may only be used for business tenancies and in cases where the Landlord and the Tenant have not specifically excluded the Tenant's right to security of tenure in terms of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. Also, this Notice may not be used in cases where the Landlord has already served a Section 25 Notice on the Tenant.

The Tenant must give the Landlord between 6 to 12 months notice and the day on which the Notice expires must not be before the last day of the tenancy. For example, if the end of the tenancy is 31 January 2012 then the Notice must be served between 6 to 12 months before 1 February 2012, i.e. served between 1 February 2011 and 31 July 2011. It is crucial that the Landlord be given the correct notice. Incorrect notice periods will result in the Notice becoming invalid.

The Landlord may oppose and/or challenge the Tenant's request for renewal of the tenancy. In order to be successful, the Landlord must raise and prove one or more of the grounds listed in the Table contained in the Notes section of the Schedule to the Notice. The Landlord has 2 months within which to respond to the Notice.

It is important that the Tenant's proposed terms for the new tenancy are attached and/or included in the Schedule in order for the Notice to be valid. The Schedule to the Notice provides further details of the proceedings involved in agreeing the terms of the new tenancy, as well as the procedures for when these terms cannot be agreed upon by the parties.