Ground 1A Re-Letting Restriction: When the 12-Month Ban Starts

Ground 1A gives landlords in England a mandatory route to possession when they intend to sell the property. The court must grant the order if the statutory facts are proved. But the ground comes with a restriction that catches landlords off guard: the 12-month re-letting and marketing restriction runs from the earliest date on the Form 3A after which court proceedings could be issued.

This isn't optional. It isn't guidance. It's a statutory prohibition under Sections 16E and 16K of the Housing Act 1988, as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025, and local councils have the power to fine landlords who breach it.

How the Restriction Works

The 12-month re-letting and marketing ban starts from the earliest date specified on the Form 3A notice after which court proceedings could be issued — not from the date the tenant actually leaves.

So if you serve a Ground 1A notice on 1 June 2026 with a 4-month notice period, and the earliest court application date is 1 October 2026, the restriction runs from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027. During those 12 months, you cannot:

• Advertise the property for rent on any platform (Rightmove, OpenRent, Zoopla, social media)
• Instruct a letting agent to find tenants
• Enter into a new tenancy agreement for the property
• Accept a new tenant into occupation

The ban applies regardless of whether you actually file a possession claim, regardless of whether the tenant leaves voluntarily, and regardless of whether the sale falls through.

The Same Restriction Applies to Ground 1

Ground 1 (landlord or close family member moving back in) carries the identical 12-month restriction. The policy rationale is the same: Parliament wanted to prevent landlords from using these grounds to remove a tenant and then immediately re-letting to a new one at a higher rent.

What Happens If You Breach It

Local Housing Authorities can investigate and issue civil penalties:

• Up to £7,000 for illegal re-letting or marketing during the restricted period
• Up to £40,000 for severe, fraudulent, or persistent non-compliance

A landlord who serves a Ground 1A notice, regains possession, then lists the property on Rightmove three months later is in clear breach. The Local Housing Authority can investigate and impose a civil penalty.

Tenants who were displaced by a Ground 1A notice can also report the breach to the council. Housing charities and advice services routinely inform tenants of this right.

What If the Sale Falls Through?

This is where the restriction creates genuine difficulty. You serve the notice intending to sell. The tenant leaves. The buyer pulls out. The property is empty and you're paying the mortgage, insurance, and council tax on a vacant home.

The restriction still applies. You cannot re-let the property to cover your costs during the remaining months of the ban. You can sell to a different buyer (the restriction covers re-letting and marketing for rent, not sale), but finding a new buyer takes time.

This is a risk to factor in before you serve the notice. If the sale is uncertain — the buyer hasn't committed, the chain is fragile, or the market is slow — the 12-month restriction is part of the downside scenario.

How to Track the Restriction Period

The restriction period is tied to a specific date on the Form 3A, so it's straightforward to calculate — but you need to record it and track it.

Log the following:

• The date the Form 3A was served
• The deemed service date
• The earliest court application date (Section 4 of Form 3A)
• The restriction end date (12 months after the earliest court application date)

If you serve the notice by post and the deemed service date shifts, the earliest court application date shifts with it — and so does the restriction period. Getting the deemed service calculation right matters here too.

Can You Use Ground 1A and Then Decide Not to Sell?

Technically, the restriction runs whether or not you proceed with the sale. But if a council investigates and finds evidence that the landlord never genuinely intended to sell — no estate agent instruction, no marketing, no conveyancer — the enforcement consequences are more severe. Severe, fraudulent, or persistent non-compliance can draw a penalty of up to £40,000.

Ground 1A requires a genuine intention to sell at the time the notice is served. Using it as a pretext to remove a tenant without actually selling the property is not just a breach of the restriction — it's a misuse of the ground itself, and the court could refuse to grant the order if the tenant's solicitor presents evidence that the intention isn't genuine.

The Section 8 Notice Guide includes a Re-Letting Restriction Log that tracks the restriction dates for Ground 1 and Ground 1A notices, so you have a clear record of when the ban starts, when it ends, and what you can and cannot do in between.

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