Assured Periodic Tenancy (APT)
Quick answer
The single tenancy type that replaced the assured shorthold tenancy (AST) in England under the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. From 1 May 2026 every existing AST automatically converted to a periodic assured tenancy — no fixed term, rolling from period to period — and no new fixed-term ASTs can be granted. The tenant can leave on two months’ notice; the landlord can only regain possession using a Section 8 ground.
At a glance
- Replaced
- AST (abolished 1 May 2026)
- Structure
- Periodic, no fixed term
- Tenant notice
- 2 months
- Landlord possession
- Section 8 ground only
Full guide
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Open full guideWhy Assured Periodic Tenancy (APT) matters for landlords
The conversion was automatic and needed no paperwork, but it quietly voided a lot of standard AST wording: fixed-term clauses, break clauses and "rent increases at the landlord’s discretion" no longer bite, and issuing a fresh fixed-term AST after 1 May 2026 is simply non-compliant. The bigger shift is the loss of the fixed-term "safety net" — a landlord can no longer count on a tenant being locked in for twelve months, so void planning, rent-review timing (via Section 13) and possession strategy all have to be rebuilt around a rolling tenancy.
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Related terms
Fixed-Term Tenancy
A tenancy granted for a set period, such as 6 or 12 months, historically the standard form of assured shorthold tenancy. The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 abolished fixed terms for most residential tenancies from 1 May 2026: new tenancies are periodic from the start and a tenant can end them with two months’ notice at any time.
Statutory Periodic Tenancy
Historically, the rolling tenancy that arose automatically when a fixed-term assured shorthold tenancy ended and the tenant stayed on. Since the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 abolished fixed terms from 1 May 2026, all assured tenancies are periodic from the outset (an assured periodic tenancy), so the "statutory periodic" step no longer applies to new tenancies.
AST (Assured Shorthold Tenancy)
The most common form of private tenancy in England. From 1 May 2026 all existing ASTs converted to assured periodic tenancies under the Renters Rights Act 2025, and new fixed-term ASTs can no longer be created for most residential lets.
Company Let
A tenancy where the tenant is a limited company rather than an individual, often so the company can house an employee. Because the tenant is not an individual occupying as their only or principal home, a company let is not an assured tenancy and falls outside the Renters’ Rights Act — it is governed by the contract and common law instead.
How to Rent Guide
A government checklist that landlords in England had to give tenants at the start of a new assured shorthold tenancy. GOV.UK withdrew it on 1 May 2026; it is retained only as evidence for Section 21 notices served before that date. It is no longer a document to serve on a new tenant. New tenancies instead require a written statement of terms, given before the tenancy is entered into (penalty up to £7,000).
Landlord Ombudsman (Private Rented Sector)
A new, mandatory redress scheme for private landlords created by the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. Every private landlord in England letting to assured tenants must join, giving tenants a free, independent route to complain about a landlord without going to court. The ombudsman can order an apology, corrective action and compensation, and its decisions bind the landlord.