Private Residential Tenancy (Scotland)

A PRT in Scotland is an open-ended tenancy: no fixed term, no Section 21-style route out. The tenant can leave on 28 days' notice, and you can only recover possession if you prove one of 18 statutory grounds to the Tribunal.

"This guide provides general information about UK landlord tax obligations. It is not financial or legal advice. Tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances and may change. Consider consulting a qualified accountant or solicitor for advice specific to your situation."

1. What a PRT is and how it ends

Law:

Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016 created the Private Residential Tenancy (PRT) from 1 December 2017. All new private tenancies since then are PRTs unless they fall into a specific excluded category.

Key features

• No fixed term: tenancy is open-ended and continues until:
• The tenant gives at least 28 days' notice in writing (longer if they want, but 28 days is the minimum), or
• The landlord obtains an eviction order from the First-tier Tribunal on one or more of the 18 grounds.
• You cannot end a PRT "at the end of 6 or 12 months" just because the fixed term is over. That concept is gone.

Written terms

• You must give the tenant a written tenancy agreement and the appropriate statutory notes.
• You can use the Scottish Government Model PRT or your own agreement that includes all mandatory clauses and statutory terms.

2. The 18 eviction grounds: mandatory vs discretionary

The 18 grounds are set out in Schedule 3 of the 2016 Act.

"Landlord / property" grounds - generally stronger

1. Landlord intends to sell - you plan to put the property on the market within 3 months of the tenant leaving.
2. Property to be sold by lender - property is being repossessed / sold by lender.
3. Landlord intends to refurbish - you need the property empty to carry out significant disruptive works.
4. Landlord intends to live in the property as their only or principal home.
5. Family member intends to live there as only or principal home.
6. Landlord intends to use for non-residential purpose - eg business use.
7. Property required for religious worker - needed for someone performing religious duties.

Tenant status / conduct grounds

1. Tenant no longer occupying - they have moved out and are not using as their home.
2. Tenant has breached tenancy - serious breach of tenancy terms other than rent arrears.
3. Rent arrears - tenant has been in arrears for 3 or more consecutive months; the Tribunal looks at whether some or all of the arrears are still outstanding and whether it is reasonable to evict.
4. Relevant criminal conviction - tenant convicted of a relevant offence in or near the property.
5. Antisocial behaviour - tenant engaged in ASB or conduct causing nuisance or annoyance.
6. Associating with a person who has relevant conviction / engaged in ASB - for example repeatedly allowing a known offender to act from the property.

Regulatory / licensing grounds

1. Landlord's registration refused or revoked - you are not a registered landlord.
2. HMO licence revoked - you cannot legally run the property as an HMO.
3. Overcrowding statutory notice - council has served an overcrowding statutory notice and you need to reduce numbers.
4. Landlord is not registered - similar to 14; failure to be on the register triggers grounds to end the tenancy.

Employee ground

1. Tenant is no longer an employee - the tenancy was tied to a job (service tenancy) and the employment has ended.

Mandatory vs discretionary (as originally structured)

• Eight grounds were designed as mandatory (Tribunal "must" grant if ground proved - mainly selling, moving in, lender sale, certain conduct).
• Ten were discretionary, or had both mandatory and discretionary strands.

In practice after the Coronavirus emergency legislation and follow-on reforms, Scottish Government guidance and Tribunal practice now emphasise that reasonableness must always be considered, and eviction is not automatic just because a ground technically applies.

For you, that means:

• You must evidence the ground (eg home report and solicitor letter for intention to sell, planning/works quotes for refurbishment, proper arrears schedule for rent arrears).
• You must expect the Tribunal to look at tenant circumstances (vulnerability, children, arrears cause) before granting an order, even on "mandatory" style grounds.

3. The First-tier Tribunal process

The First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Housing and Property Chamber) replaced the Sheriff Court for most private tenancy disputes.

Key features

• It is a civil tribunal, not a criminal court; hearings are more informal and often virtual.
• There are no court fees for most landlord applications under the PRT regime.

You apply online with

• Completed application form for the relevant ground(s).
• Notice to leave and proof of service.
• Evidence supporting your ground (rent schedule, notices, correspondence, documents for intention to sell/move in etc).

Notice periods for "notice to leave" (pre-Tribunal)

28 days' notice if:

• Tenant has been in the property for less than 6 months, or
• You are using one of the six "behaviour" grounds (ASB, criminality, arrears etc - the "conduct" grounds).

84 days' notice if:

• Tenant has been in the property for 6 months or more, and
• You are not relying on a conduct/behaviour ground.

After the notice period expires you can apply to the Tribunal. Timescales vary, but 2-6 months from application to decision is common; defended or complex cases can take longer.

4. Rent increases, rent pressure zones and the Model PRT

Rent increases under a PRT

• You can only increase rent once every 12 months.
• You must give at least 3 months' written notice of the increase using the official Scottish Government rent increase notice form.
• You cannot increase rent during the first 12 months of a PRT.

Tenant challenge

• If the tenant thinks the increase is too high, they can apply to a rent officer within 21 days of getting your notice.
• The rent officer then sets a rent based on open market comparables, and can move the rent up or down.
• Decision usually within about 40 days, and can be appealed to the First-tier Tribunal.

Rent pressure zones (RPZs)

• Councils can ask Scottish Ministers to designate RPZs where rents are rising too fast.
• In an RPZ, there is a cap on rent increases for existing tenants (for example CPI + a %).
• To date, very few RPZs have been implemented; the mechanism exists but is rarely used.

Model PRT agreement

• The Scottish Government publishes a Model Private Residential Tenancy Agreement.
• It is not mandatory, but:
• Its core clauses reflect statutory rights and obligations and must effectively appear in any PRT.
• If you use your own style of lease, you must give tenants the Supporting Notes instead of the easy-read notes that accompany the model.
• Using the model reduces risk of missing a statutory term and makes Tribunal scrutiny easier if things go wrong.

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