A joint tenancy is an arrangement where two or more people hold the same tenancy together. In England, the vast majority of joint tenancies are Assured Shorthold Tenancies, and from 1 May 2026, they automatically convert to Assured Periodic Tenancies under the Renters' Rights Act 2025. Understanding how joint tenancies work is essential for landlords: the rules on liability, serving notices, and deposit protection are all distinct from sole tenancies. If you let rooms individually in a shared house instead, the right document is an HMO tenancy agreement template, not one joint agreement.
Each joint tenant is individually liable for the full rent, not just their share. If one tenant stops paying, the others (and you as landlord) can pursue the defaulting tenant, but you can also pursue any one of the remaining joint tenants for the full arrears.
What is a joint tenancy?
- Two or more tenants sign the same tenancy agreement and all have equal rights to occupy the whole property
- All joint tenants are equally responsible for the full rent (joint and several liability)
- The tenancy cannot be split, one tenant leaving does not divide the agreement
- All joint tenants must agree to make changes to the tenancy (e.g. adding a new tenant)
- From 1 May 2026: all joint tenancies are Periodic Assured Tenancies, no fixed-term ASTs are permitted for new lettings
Joint and several liability explained
Joint and several liability is the cornerstone of joint tenancy law. It means:
- Full liability for each tenant: If the rent is £1,200/month and one of four tenants stops paying, each remaining tenant is still liable for their share, but you as landlord can sue any one of them for the full £1,200
- Chasing arrears: You can pursue any joint tenant for all arrears, including those accrued after one tenant has left (if the tenancy continues and you have not released that tenant)
- Releasing a joint tenant: If a joint tenant wants to leave and you agree to release them, get a deed of surrender or a new tenancy agreement, informally agreeing they have 'left' does not release them from liability
- Guarantors for joint tenancies: Each joint tenant's guarantor is typically liable only for that tenant's share, check the guarantor agreement wording carefully
Deposit protection for joint tenancies
Deposit protection rules apply equally to joint tenancies, but there are important practical points:
- Protect the full deposit in an authorised scheme within 30 days of receipt
- Prescribed Information must be served on all joint tenants, not just the lead tenant
- If one joint tenant is replaced mid-tenancy, you may need to re-protect and re-serve Prescribed Information
- At the end of the tenancy, the deposit is released to the lead tenant (or as jointly agreed), all joint tenants must agree to any deductions
- Failure to protect the deposit (or serve Prescribed Information on all joint tenants) means you cannot serve a valid notice and face a penalty of 1 to 3× the deposit amount
Serving notices on joint tenants
A Section 8 notice (or any possession notice) must be served on all joint tenants individually. Serving only the lead tenant or one tenant is defective and will be rejected by the court.
- Section 8 notice: serve Form 3A on every joint tenant at their last known address
- Section 13 rent increase: Form 4A must be served on all joint tenants, any tenant can refer the proposed increase to the First-tier Tribunal
- Information Sheet (existing tenants, deadline 31 May 2026): serve on all joint tenants
- Pet request: each joint tenant can make a pet request, you must respond to each within 28 days
When a joint tenant wants to leave
Under the Renters' Rights Act 2025, individual joint tenants can end their interest in a Periodic Assured Tenancy, but this ends the tenancy for all joint tenants, it is not possible for one tenant to leave while the others continue on the same agreement (unless a new agreement is formed).
- From 1 May 2026, a single joint tenant can give notice to quit, this ends the entire joint tenancy for all occupants
- The remaining tenants must either renegotiate a new tenancy with the landlord or vacate
- Landlords should consider including a clause in the tenancy agreement setting out the process for tenant changes, though under APT law this cannot override the statutory right to end the tenancy
- If you want to allow one tenant to leave and be replaced, you will need to create a new tenancy agreement with the remaining and incoming tenants
- Get legal advice before signing a deed of surrender or release, it must be properly executed to be effective
Renters' Rights Act 2025: key changes for joint tenancies
- All new joint tenancies must be Periodic Assured Tenancies from 1 May 2026, no fixed-term ASTs permitted
- Existing joint ASTs auto-converted to Periodic ATs on 1 May 2026
- Section 21 no-fault eviction is abolished, you must rely on Section 8 grounds (served on all joint tenants)
- Rent increases via Section 13 (Form 4A), all joint tenants can refer to the First-tier Tribunal
- Pet requests, each joint tenant has an individual right to make a pet request