Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 · Part II
Understand your rights. Check your dates. Analyse your documents.
Business lease renewal under Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 — notices, deadlines, grounds of opposition, rent and compensation — for tenants, landlords and their advisers.
Built around Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 for England and Wales. General information — not legal advice.
The 1954 Act is under review
The Law Commission published its second consultation paper on 16 June 2026. The consultation closes on 16 September 2026. These are proposals — consultation, not law.
Explore the proposed reforms- 17
- Part II provisions, summarised
- 15
- Plain-English guides
- 20+
- Leading authorities
- 4
- Free renewal tools
Start with a tool
Four things you can do in a couple of minutes — each one grounded in the provision it applies.
Ask the AI assistant
Describe your renewal in your own words. Every answer cites the section of the Act it relies on, so you can check it.
Open the assistantSection 25 analyser
Paste or upload a landlord's notice and get a plain-English summary plus a date check.
Check a noticeLease analyser
Upload a lease and get a synopsis with the renewal risk points flagged.
Upload a leaseNotice deadline calculator
Work out the section 25 and 26 cut-off dates from your term end date.
Work out datesRead the guides
Plain-English explanations of the provisions that decide a renewal, each linked back to the section it comes from.
Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 explained
Plain-English guide to Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954: who is protected, how a business tenancy is renewed or ended, and the key deadlines.
Read guideSecurity of tenure for business tenants
What security of tenure means under the 1954 Act: which tenancies qualify under section 23, how the continuation tenancy works, and how protection is lost.
Read guideSection 25 notice explained
What a section 25 notice does, the prescribed forms, the 6–12 month window, how to check validity and what a tenant must do to keep the right to a new lease.
Read guideSection 26 request explained
How a tenant uses a section 26 request to start lease renewal: the 6–12 month window, the landlord's two-month counter-notice, and when to serve first.
Read guideCommercial lease renewal under the 1954 Act
A step-by-step timeline of business lease renewal under the 1954 Act: notices, negotiation, court applications, interim rent and the new lease.
Read guideGrounds for opposing a lease renewal
The seven section 30(1)(a)–(g) grounds a landlord can use to oppose a new business tenancy: what each requires and which trigger compensation.
Read guideContracting out of the 1954 Act
The section 38A procedure for excluding security of tenure: the warning notice, simple or statutory declaration, the 14-day rule and common mistakes.
Read guideHow the rent is decided on lease renewal
How section 34 fixes the rent on a renewed business tenancy: the open-market test, the four statutory disregards and tenant's improvements.
Read guideInterim rent explained
Who can apply for interim rent, from what date it runs, how it is calculated under sections 24C and 24D, and when applying helps a landlord or a tenant.
Read guideCompensation when a business tenancy ends
When a business tenant gets compensation under section 37 of the 1954 Act, how the one-times and two-times rateable value multipliers work, and exclusions.
Read guideWhat happens when a commercial lease expires?
What happens at the end of a protected business lease: how section 24 continues the tenancy, the rent payable while holding over, and contracted-out leases.
Read guideWho is the competent landlord?
How to identify the competent landlord for a 1954 Act renewal with intermediate leases, why it matters for sections 25 and 26, and section 40 notices.
Read guide1954 Act notice deadlines
Every deadline on a business lease renewal: the 6–12 month notice window, the two-month counter-notice, the court cut-off and the section 64 three-month tail.
Read guideApplying to court for a new tenancy
How and when to issue a 1954 Act renewal claim: who can apply, unopposed and opposed claims, which court to use, and what section 64 means for the old tenancy.
Read guideTerms of the new lease
How the court fixes renewal lease terms under sections 32 to 35: the holding, the length of term, and the O'May principle on carrying over existing terms.
Read guide17 provisions
Part II applies where premises are occupied by the tenant for the purposes of a business carried on by the tenant (or partly so). Occupation plus business use is the test — not what the lease label says.
For the tenant
If you actually occupy and trade from the premises, you are likely protected even if the lease has expired.
For the landlord
Tenancies at will, licences, leases of six months or less, and premises the tenant no longer occupies fall outside protection.
Key case law
Graysim Holdings Ltd v P&O Property Holdings Ltd [1996] AC 329
House of Lords · 1996
Issue: Can a landlord of a market hall who has sub-let every unit still be 'in occupation' for business purposes?
Held: No. Where sub-tenants occupy the units, the intermediate landlord does not occupy them; occupation cannot generally be shared for the same space.
If you have sub-let the whole premises, expect to lose protection over the sub-let parts — the sub-tenants, not you, hold the renewal rights.
Ask how this applies to meBacchiocchi v Academic Agency Ltd [1998] 1 WLR 1313
Court of Appeal · 1998
Issue: Does a short period of non-trading before expiry destroy business occupation?
Held: No. A tenant who vacates shortly before the term end for a reason connected with the business (fitting out, moving) can still be treated as in occupation.
Brief closure for refurbishment or a move does not automatically forfeit protection or compensation — but keep evidence of the business reason.
Ask how this applies to meCardiothoracic Institute v Shrewdcrest Ltd [1986] 1 WLR 368
High Court · 1986
Issue: When is occupation pending negotiation a tenancy at will rather than a protected tenancy?
Held: Where the parties genuinely intend occupation only while terms are negotiated, a tenancy at will arises and Part II does not apply.
Letting someone in 'while we agree the lease' is risky for both sides: document the intention, or a protected periodic tenancy may arise.
Ask how this applies to meLee-Verhulst (Investments) Ltd v Harwood Trust [1973] QB 204
Court of Appeal · 1972
Issue: Can a landlord who provides substantial services to residential occupiers still occupy for business purposes?
Held: Yes. Where the degree of services and control is substantial, the tenant may still be in business occupation of the whole building despite others living there.
Serviced or managed occupation can preserve protection — record the services actually supplied and the control retained.
Ask how this applies to meBagettes Ltd v GP Estates Co Ltd [1956] Ch 290
Court of Appeal · 1956
Issue: Can a tenant claim renewal of the whole where only a small part is occupied for business?
Held: No. Where the business element is merely incidental to a wider letting, the tenancy is not one to which Part II applies.
Test whether the business use is a real and significant purpose of the occupation, not an afterthought.
Ask how this applies to meCricket Ltd v Shaftesbury plc [1999] 3 All ER 283
High Court · 1999
Issue: Does occupation through a management arrangement count as the tenant's own occupation?
Held: It can. Occupation by a manager or agent on the tenant's behalf, under the tenant's control, is occupation by the tenant.
If a concession, franchisee or manager runs the site, document who controls trading — control usually decides who occupies.
Ask how this applies to meSight & Sound Education Ltd v Books Etc Ltd [1999] 3 EGLR 45
High Court · 1999
Issue: Does a tenant who has sub-let and left retain protection?
Held: No. Once the tenant is neither in occupation nor carrying on a business at the premises, the statutory protection is lost.
Before any sub-letting of the whole, take advice: you may be giving away your own renewal rights.
Ask how this applies to meCornish v Brook Green Laundry Ltd [1959] 1 QB 394
Court of Appeal · 1959
Issue: Does an agreement for lease, before grant, attract Part II protection?
Held: Not by itself. Protection depends on a tenancy; a mere agreement plus possession may create only an equitable or precarious interest.
Get the lease completed. Trading under an unexecuted agreement is a weak platform for renewal rights.
Ask how this applies to meFlairline Properties Ltd v Hassan [1999] 1 EGLR 138
High Court · 1998
Issue: Does closure for repair after a fire end business occupation?
Held: No, where the tenant intends to return and keeps the thread of continuity — occupation can survive a period of physical absence.
If you are shut for works, evidence the intention to resume: contractors, insurance, correspondence, plans.
Ask how this applies to me
Lease renewal questions, answered
What does the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 do?
Part II gives most business tenants in England and Wales security of tenure. The tenancy does not end on its contractual expiry date: it continues under section 24 until it is ended by one of the statutory routes, and the tenant is entitled to a new lease unless the landlord proves a ground of opposition under section 30.
How much notice does a section 25 notice need to give?
Between six and twelve months. The date specified in the notice cannot be earlier than the date the tenancy could have been ended at common law, and the notice must state whether the landlord opposes a new tenancy and, if so, on which section 30 grounds.
What is the difference between a section 25 notice and a section 26 request?
A section 25 notice is served by the landlord to end the current tenancy, either offering or opposing a renewal. A section 26 request is made by the tenant to request a new tenancy on proposed terms. Either route starts the statutory timetable, and only one of them can be running at a time.
What happens if the deadline to apply to court is missed?
Security of tenure is lost. Unless the parties have agreed a written extension under section 29B before the deadline, a tenant who does not apply to court in time loses the right to a new tenancy and the tenancy ends on the date specified in the notice or request.
Can a business tenancy be taken outside the Act?
Yes. The parties can contract out under section 38A, but only if the statutory health warning is given to the tenant before the tenancy is entered into and the tenant makes the required declaration or statutory declaration. Get the procedure wrong and the tenancy remains protected.
Is the guidance on this site legal advice?
No. It is general information on the law of England and Wales, published by mcgarrigle & co. Renewal outcomes turn on the wording of your lease and the dates in your notices, so take advice on your own facts before acting.
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