How to End a Tenancy in NZ: Notice Periods, Rules, and What Goes Wrong

Ending a tenancy in New Zealand is more procedurally demanding than most landlords expect. The Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (as amended in 2024) sets strict rules around notice periods, grounds, and documentation. Get them wrong and your notice is invalid - the tenancy continues, and you have to start again. The Tenancy Tribunal sees a steady flow of cases where perfectly legitimate tenancy terminations failed on procedural grounds.

This guide covers the main scenarios: tenants ending their own tenancy, landlords ending a periodic tenancy, landlords ending a fixed-term tenancy, and what happens when there is a problem with the tenancy itself.

When the Tenant Leaves: Their Notice Periods

Tenants on a periodic tenancy can end their tenancy by giving 28 days written notice. This is unchanged by the 2024 amendments. The notice must specify the date on which the tenancy ends, and that date must be at least 28 days after the notice is given.

Tenants on a fixed-term tenancy cannot generally leave before the end of the fixed term without the landlord's agreement or without paying compensation for the landlord's reasonable re-letting costs. If both parties agree, the tenancy can end earlier. If they don't agree, the tenant is liable for rent until a replacement tenant is found (up to the end of the fixed term).

If a tenant abandons the property without notice, that is a different process - you need to apply to the Tribunal for a termination order, and document the abandonment carefully.

When the Landlord Can End a Periodic Tenancy

This is where the 2024 amendments made the most significant changes. The grounds for landlords to end a periodic tenancy are now significantly restricted.

A landlord can only end a periodic tenancy for the following reasons:

• Owner-occupation: The landlord (or a family member) requires the property as their primary home. 90 days notice required. Must be genuine - the landlord must actually move in, not use this as a pretext for removing a tenant.
• Sale requiring vacant possession: The property is sold and the sale agreement requires vacant possession. 90 days notice required. Not available simply because a sale is contemplated - there must be an executed sale and purchase agreement with a vacant possession clause.
• Major renovations or demolition: The landlord intends to carry out renovations that require the property to be vacant, or to demolish the property. 90 days notice required. The intended work must be genuine and substantial.
• Change of use: The landlord intends to use the property for non-residential purposes. 90 days notice required.
• Employer-provided accommodation: Where the tenancy is tied to employment and the employment has ended. 28 days notice, or longer if specified in the tenancy agreement.

Note what is not on this list: general dissatisfaction with the tenant, wanting to achieve a higher rent with a new tenant, or simply wanting the property back. These are no longer grounds for ending a periodic tenancy under the 2024 amendments. This was a deliberate policy choice to increase security of tenure for tenants.

If the property is sold but the sale does not require vacant possession, the buyer takes the property subject to the existing tenancy. The tenant stays.

Ending a Fixed-Term Tenancy

At the end of a fixed term, the tenancy does not automatically end. Without any notice, it converts to a periodic tenancy on the same terms. To prevent this:

• The tenant can give 28 days notice of their intention not to continue, before or after the fixed term ends (but must give it at least 28 days before the end date).
• The landlord can give notice that the tenancy will not continue, subject to the same grounds as ending a periodic tenancy (owner-occupation, sale, renovation, change of use). This notice must be given at least 90 days before the end of the fixed term.

A common mistake: landlords assume that a fixed-term tenancy simply ends on the last day and the tenant must leave. This is wrong. If neither party has given proper notice, the tenant has a legal right to remain on a periodic basis.

Ending a Tenancy for Cause: Breach Notices

When a tenant is not meeting their obligations - rent arrears, property damage, antisocial behaviour, unauthorised occupants - the process is different from ending a tenancy for the landlord's own reasons.

Rent arrears: If the tenant is at least 21 days in arrears and has been given a 14-day notice (s.56) to pay, and they have not paid, you can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal for a termination order. Alternatively, if the tenant has been persistently late with rent (habitually late, even if not in arrears), you can apply on that basis after a series of warnings.

Breach of tenancy agreement: For other breaches (damage, unauthorised pets, subletting without consent, etc.), you serve a 14-day breach notice (s.56) specifying the breach and what the tenant must do to remedy it. If they do not remedy it within 14 days, you can apply to the Tribunal for a termination order.

Antisocial behaviour: For serious antisocial behaviour - threatening, assaulting, or intimidating the landlord or neighbours, or causing serious damage - you can apply to the Tribunal for termination after a series of three antisocial behaviour notices (s.55A) within a 90-day period, or in a single serious case.

Abandonment: If you reasonably believe the tenant has abandoned the property, you need to apply to the Tribunal for a formal abandonment order. Do not just re-enter and re-let - without an order, you are liable for unlawful entry even if the tenant has genuinely gone.

In all breach cases, the Tribunal can order termination, or give the tenant another chance to fix the problem (particularly for first-time breaches). The Tribunal has discretion and does not automatically terminate even where a breach is established.

The Notice Process: What Can Go Wrong

The most common reasons valid terminations fail at the Tribunal:

Wrong notice period. Giving 60 days when 90 days is required, or giving notice that is a day short of the required period. The Tribunal checks dates carefully.

Invalid grounds. Claiming "I want to renovate" when no renovation is planned, or claiming owner-occupation when the intention is to rent to a different tenant at a higher rate. These are not just procedurally invalid - they expose the landlord to liability for exemplary damages.

Notice not in writing. Verbal notice does not count for any reason.

Incorrect delivery. Notice sent to an old address, or sent by a method the tenant has not agreed to. If you cannot prove the tenant received it, the notice period may not have started.

Using s.51 when only cause-based termination is available. If you are trying to remove a periodic tenant for reasons not listed under s.51, no amount of paperwork will make it stick. The 2024 amendments closed this off.

What Happens After Notice is Given

Once valid notice is given and the tenancy ends, the landlord and tenant need to:

• Carry out a final inspection and complete the property inspection report
• Reconcile the bond - the tenant applies to Tenancy Services for bond refund, and you can claim against the bond for damage or unpaid rent
• Settle any outstanding rent and provide a final receipt
• Return keys and any other property

If there is a dispute about bond deductions, the tenant can apply to the Tribunal and so can you. Keep inspection reports, photos, and invoices for any repairs - these are your evidence.

A Note on Fixed-Term Tenancies and the "No Grounds" Provision

The 2024 amendments also changed the rules for fixed-term tenancies and the "no grounds" termination that used to be available at the end of a fixed term. Previously, landlords could simply decline to renew a fixed-term tenancy without giving a reason. This is no longer available in the same way - the grounds for not continuing a fixed-term tenancy are now the same as for ending a periodic tenancy.

What this means in practice: if you want the property back at the end of a fixed term for any reason other than owner-occupation, sale with vacant possession, major renovation, or change of use, you cannot simply not renew. The tenancy converts to periodic and continues.

This is one of the most significant changes from the 2024 amendments and still catches landlords who have not updated their understanding of the law.

Documenting Everything

Whatever the reason for ending the tenancy, document it. Photograph the property condition at the start and end. Keep copies of all notices with delivery evidence. Keep the tenancy agreement, inspection reports, rent ledger, and all correspondence.

If the matter ends up at the Tribunal - whether for bond deductions, unpaid rent, or a disputed termination - the landlord who has documentation almost always does better than the one who does not. The Tribunal can only work with what is in front of it.