How to serve notice

When you ‘serve’ or give notice to another person, it can be:

• hand-delivered to the other person. This can be done in person, by placing it in the letterbox or by attaching it clearly to the door of the property.
• sent to the address for service listed on the tenancy agreement.

You can also send the notice to a PO Box, email address or fax number if it is listed on the tenancy agreement as an additional address for service.

The other person hasn’t been notified until they receive the notice, so you must allow extra time for the notice to be delivered. This period is sometimes called ‘service time’.

Service time

Tenancy law gives timeframes for when notices are considered to have been received. These times depend on how the notice was delivered.

For all notices – except notices for family violence withdrawals – if the notice is:

• handed over in person, it's classed as received immediately
• left in the premises' letter box or clearly attached to the door, it's classed as received 2 working days after the delivery date
• posted to the address or post office box, it's classed as received on the fourth working day after the date it was posted
• sent to the email address or fax number after 5pm, it's classed as received on the next working day
• sent to the email or fax number before 5pm, it's classed as received on that same day.

These timeframes apply unless the person being served notice can show they don’t. For example, if the person receiving the notice has received it earlier, or can prove that the post was delayed or not received.

If you are withdrawing from a tenancy following family violence

The notice period for withdrawing from a tenancy following family violence is different to other notices. The notice is considered to have been received by the landlord at the time it is posted or otherwise delivered. The notice period will start the following day. The withdrawing tenant should keep a copy of the notice for their records, and the contact details of anyone who provided evidence supporting the notice.

Notice should be given to the landlord in writing. This can either be:

• sent to an email address, PO Box, or fax number if it is listed on the tenancy agreement as an additional address for service
• sent by post or delivered to the physical address for service listed on the tenancy agreement
• hand-delivered (by anyone).

We encourage tenants to let their landlord know about the withdrawal by multiple methods if possible.

Tenants can also contact their landlord, for example by phone, to let them know they have sent notice of their withdrawal from the tenancy and to discuss any other tenancy related matters, such as the bond.

The notice must include at least one form of qualifying evidence that the tenant has experienced family violence during the tenancy.

Find out more about withdrawing from a tenancy following family violence

When the notice period starts

The notice period starts the day after the notice was received (this applies to any of the service times listed above). This means that if the notice is received on a Thursday, the next day (Friday) will be the first day of the notice period.

For example, if a tenant wants to end their periodic tenancy and posts their 28 days’ notice on Monday 1 August (in a week with no public holidays), it would be classed as received on Friday 5 August. This applies unless the landlord receiving the notice can prove otherwise. The notice takes effect from the next day, Saturday 6 August. 28 days from Saturday 6 August would be Saturday 3 September. This means the tenant should say in their notice that the last day of their tenancy will be Saturday 3 September.

If the notice was posted in a week with public holidays, the calculation would be different. For example, if a tenant wants to end their periodic tenancy and posts their 28 days’ notice on Wednesday 21 December, it would be classed as received on Thursday 5 January (due to working day rules over Christmas/New Year). This applies unless the landlord receiving the notice can prove otherwise. The notice takes effect from the next day, Friday 6 January. 28 days from Friday 6 January would be Friday 3 February. This means the tenant should say in their notice that the last day of the tenancy will be Friday 3 February.

Difference between a calendar day and a working day

Some timeframes are counted in calendar days (Monday to Sunday). Others are counted in working days (Monday to Friday).

Examples of timeframes counted in calendar days are:

• notices to terminate a tenancy
• notices to remedy a breach
• notice of a rent increase

Examples of timeframes counted in working days are:

• service times
• the time a landlord has to lodge a bond
• notifying a change of address or other details

Some public holidays and provincial holidays are not counted as working days.

The Residential Tenancies Act(external link) defines what isn’t counted as a “working day”.