Scotland Private Residential Tenancy — Set It Up Right First Time

You Downloaded the Template. Then the Questions Started.

You found the Scottish Government's model tenancy agreement on mygov.scot. You filled in the names, the address, and the rent. Then you hit the notes question — do you issue the Easy Read Notes or the Statutory Terms Supporting Notes? You chose one. You might have chosen wrong.

If you used the government's Model PRT but issued the Statutory Terms Supporting Notes instead of the Easy Read Notes, the tenant can apply to the First-tier Tribunal — and the Tribunal can award them up to three months' rent. If you skipped the notes entirely and forgot to issue written terms before the tenancy started, the award goes up to six months' rent. That is not a theoretical risk. Section 16 of the Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016 spells it out, and the Housing and Property Chamber enforces it.

Meanwhile, the mygov.scot tool generates the agreement in a single session with no way to save, return, or edit. It omits practical clauses for garden maintenance, parking, utility transfers, and inventory sign-offs. It produces no delivery receipt and no audit trail. And now, with the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025 changes taking effect from October 2026 — Awaab's Law damp and mould deadlines, a new pet request response framework, reduced succession thresholds, and wrongful-termination damages of up to 36 months' rent — the gap between what the template gives you and what the law requires has never been wider.

The Tenancy Setup Compliance System

This guide replaces the scattered government portals, forum posts, and outdated English-law advice with a single dated reference covering every step of setting up a private residential tenancy in Scotland — from choosing your agreement format to securing tenant sign-off on the complete move-in paperwork.

It is not a government publication, not legal advice, and not a letting agent's service. It is a structured compliance guide for self-managing landlords who need to get the setup right without paying £300–£600+ for an agent's tenant-find service or £90–£98 per year for an association membership they will use once.

What's Inside

• The notes-matching decision matrix — a clear visual map: Model PRT requires Easy Read Notes, custom or solicitor-drafted PRT requires Statutory Terms Supporting Notes. Use the wrong set and you are exposed to Section 16 penalties. The matrix eliminates the guesswork
• Mandatory and discretionary terms explained — every bold-text statutory clause the law requires, followed by the practical Clause 37 add-ons the government model omits: garden and exterior maintenance, parking allocations, utility account transfer obligations, and structured check-in inventory sign-offs
• Tenant Document Delivery Log — a dated record covering the tenancy agreement, statutory notes, EPC, EICR, Gas Safety certificate, and interlinked alarm confirmation, with a tenant sign-off section that creates the audit trail the Tribunal expects when a landlord needs to prove timely delivery
• Pet request processing log — the Section 64A framework from the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025: receive a written request, respond within 30 days with consent, conditions, or a reasoned refusal. Blanket bans are prohibited. The log tracks dates and reasons so you have a paper trail if the tenant appeals within the 42-day Tribunal window
• October 2026 statutory compliance checklist — Awaab's Law damp and mould investigation timelines (10 working days to investigate, 3 to provide a summary, 5 to start repairs), the succession threshold reduced from 12 months to 6 months, and wrongful-termination damages increased to 3–36 months' rent
• Older tenancy review protocol — a step-by-step audit for existing tenancies: check whether written terms and notes were issued, identify gaps, and deliver updated documentation within the 28-day deadline before a tenant has grounds to go to the Tribunal
• Deposit protection summary — the two-month deposit cap, the 30-working-day lodging deadline with an approved scheme, and the statutory information you must give the tenant
• Email communication consent clause — serving legal notices by email requires explicit written agreement in the tenancy terms. The guide includes the consent wording and explains why emailing a notice without it is unenforceable
• 7 standalone printable worksheets — the notes-matching matrix, Tenant Document Delivery Log, pet request processing log, deposit protection tracker, pre-letting compliance timeline, Awaab's Law response tracker, and legacy tenancy audit checklist, each designed to be printed and filled in on the day you need it

Who This Guide Is For

• First-time landlords in Scotland setting up a PRT for a new property and facing the notes-matching rule for the first time
• Accidental landlords who inherited a property or moved in with a partner and need to let their former home lawfully
• Self-managing landlords who want to handle the tenancy setup themselves without paying a letting agent's setup fee
• Existing landlords reviewing older tenancies after the October 2026 Housing (Scotland) Act changes
• Landlords who received a pet request and need to respond within the 30-day statutory window

Why the Free Government Pages Are Not Enough

The mygov.scot creation tool generates the Model PRT with Easy Read Notes. That part works. But it operates as a single-session wizard with no save-and-return — if you close the tab, you start again. It contains only standard statutory terms and basic discretionary options. It produces no delivery receipt, no audit trail, and no record of what was issued or when.

Shelter Scotland and Citizens Advice Scotland publish accurate statutory guides, but their mandate is tenant representation. Their pages explain how tenants can claim against a landlord who missed a deadline, not how a landlord can meet one.

Commercial alternatives either lock you into annual memberships (the Scottish Association of Landlords charges £90–£98 per year), charge per-document fees with upsells (Landlord Heaven's base pack is £14.99, the court pack is £69.99), or sell generic UK templates on Etsy and Gumroad that mix English AST rules with Scottish PRT law. A tenant who receives an English-format agreement in Scotland has an immediate basis for a Tribunal claim.

Your Purchase Is Risk-Free

If the guide does not help you, email [email protected] for a full refund, no time limit. Every message is read and answered.

Get the Compliance Pack

Download the free Scotland PRT Checklist to see the setup process at a glance — every step, form, fee, and deadline on one page. When you are ready for the full guide — with the notes-matching matrix, Clause 37 add-on library, Tenant Document Delivery Log, pet request processing log, 7 standalone printable worksheets, and the complete October 2026 compliance checklist — get the full guide for .