Law Current to: October 12, 2025

End of Fixed Term Evictions

Residential tenancies in Queensland can only be ended in one of the ways outlined in the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008 (the RTRAA).

Providing a valid Notice to Leave (Form 12) is one of the allowed ways to end a tenancy agreement. Landlords may give a renter a Notice to Leave in various circumstances, including if the tenancy is due to end (for example, the 12-month fixed term is coming to an end) or they believe the renter has failed to remedy a breach of the rental agreement. In some circumstances, a rental provider can give a renter a Notice to Leave without first giving them a Notice to Remedy Breach.

This resource discusses the process a landlord must follow when seeking to end an agreement for end of fixed term tenancy.

Section 291 RTRAA permits a lessor to give a tenant a Notice to Leave if the residential tenancy agreement is a fixed term agreement and the notice relates to the end of the fixed term. Section 326 outlines the requirements for a Notice to Leave. These provisions provide ‘a means by which a lessor may enforce a fixed term agreement in circumstances where the issue of the notice to leave is not retaliatory in nature‘: Vanilla Rentals v Tenant [2023] QCAT 519.

If a tenant does not leave within the specified time, the lessor can apply to the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal for a termination order and a warrant of possession. The application for a termination would likely be made under s 293 RTRAA.

Under s 340 RTRAA, the Tribunal may to make a termination order if it is satisfied the lessor has established the ground of the application and Notice to Leave.

In Vanilla Rentals v Tenant, Adjudicator Gaffney summarised the effect of these sections:

The effect of these provisions is that a tenant may, at the discretion of the Tribunal (Stringer v ILOOKProperty & Anor [2023] QCATA 135 [13].), be forcibly removed from the rental premises after the expiry of a fixed term residential tenancy agreement provided that the lessor has given a valid notice to leave, the tenant has failed to leave the premises by the handover day, and the lessor applies to the Tribunal within 2 weeks after the handover day.

Was the notice properly served

To be effective, a Notice to Leave must be served on the renter. The minimum notice period runs from the date of service. Where the notice is posted, a reasonable time should be included in the calculations (usually 3-4 days).

In practice, the notice is usually emailed to renters and is not contentious. However, you should confirm with your client when the notice was received.

Was enough notice provided?

The RTRAA requires a “minimum notice period” of two months for a notice to leave for end of fixed term agreement and the handover date must not be before the end of the agreement: s 326 and Schedule 1 Part 1 Division 1 of the RTRAA.

In practice, most notices will give sufficient notice before requiring the renter to leave. It is also possible that QCAT would correct an error in the notice under s 349 of the RTRAA, which allows QCAT to make an order for the tenant to leave even though the notice to leave itself contains a defect. However, it is still worthwhile to calculate if sufficient notice was given.

The minimum notice period starts running once the notice is received, or deemed to be received, by the tenant. Although this point has not been definitively decided, see for example the reasoning in: Marsellos Pike Real Estate v Bate [2014] QCATA 316 at [5]; and Lindenberg v Kalwun Development Corporation [2012] QCAT 259 at [54].

The handover date on the Notice to Leave must not fall on a Saturday or Sunday. Section 38(2) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1954 requires that if the handover day falls on an excluded day (that is, a Saturday or Sunday, the time for doing the act or events falls on the next day which is not an excluded day. As a result of s 38(2), if the handover day is a Saturday or Sunday the actual end time for compliance is midnight the following Monday. This is important to consider, as it may lead to invalidity of a subsequent document or process issued on the basis of failure to leave.

Was an application to QCAT commenced within two weeks?

An application to the Tribunal for a termination order for failure to leave is an urgent application under s 415 RTRAA. Urgent applications can be made directly to the Tribunal, without first applying to the Residential Tenancy Authority for dispute resolution.

However, the Tribunal proceedings must be commenced within the two-week period prescribed by s 293 RTRAA. This provision is mandatory and no relaxation is permissible: Symes v Kahler [2022] QCATA 35, [11]. The Tribunal does not have power to extend this time: Edenborough v Mt Isa Properties and Auctioneers [2011] QCATA 231; Symes v Kahler [2022] QCATA 35, [13]).

The requirements of s 293 RTRAA were discussed in detail in Essam & Miles v Elvin [2023] QCATA 128, where the Hon Peter Murphy SC confirmed that these requirements where ‘not a “technical issue” and nor is it a procedural irregularity which can be waived. Rather, compliance with the sequential steps envisaged in sections 280, 281 and 293 of the RTRA[13] is the precondition to the Tribunal having jurisdiction to make the orders sought:

The requirements are not merely a matter of form; they are preconditions to QCAT’s jurisdiction to grant relief under the RTRA. The path that the agent took to proceedings in QCAT in this case required a series of steps to be taken in order. Each stood like one in a line of dominos. If one fell it brought the others down with it: Lowe v Aspley [2010] QCATA 59, at [11] per Kingham DCJ, Deputy President.

An application is not filed until it is recorded and stamped by the Tribunal, which occurs after delivery. See Pearce v Rummery [2022] QCATA 16, citing rule 13(1) QCAT Rules.

The Tribunal’s discretion to order termination

Section s 340(2) of the RTRAA stats that the Tribunal “may make the order if it is satisfied the lessor has established the ground of the application and notice to leave”.

The use of ‘may’ in this section gives the Tribunal a discretion: Betts v Department of Housing and Public Works [2019] QCATA 180. However, the discretion is not unconfined: Vanilla Rentals v Tenant [2023] QCAT 519, [75].

When considering whether it ought to order a termination, the Tribunal must exercise the discretion reasonably, which is ascertained by reference to the scope and purpose of the statute: Minister for Immigration and Citizenship v Li (2013) 249 CLR 332 [63]-[76] (Hayne, Kiefel and Bell JJ). The fact that there is a discretion as to how and when the tenancy is terminated suggests that the ‘legislature did not intend that termination should be as of right, and that the circumstances of both lessor and tenant should be considered’: Vanilla Rentals v Tenant [2023] QCAT 519, [76].

When making an order the Tribunal must make orders that it considers fair and equitable: Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009 (Qld), s 13(1).

In exercising its discretion, the Tribunal may consider:

• that the parties’ agreement that the tenancy is for a fixed term
• the reason the lessor has chosen not to continue the tenancy, and the urgency of the need for vacant possession
• whether the lessor is likely to suffer detriment if the tenancy is not terminated or termination is deferred, for example:
  • whether there are existing rental arrears;
  • whether the tenant is complying with his or her obligations under the RTRAA in relation to the condition of the premises; and
  • whether the tenant is allowing entry to the premises which is authorised under the RTRAA;
• whether any likely detriment to the lessor may be ameliorated by means other than immediate termination
• the length of time the tenant has been aware that the tenant will need to vacate the premises at the end of the fixed term agreement
• how long the tenant has lived in the property
• whether and how long the tenant wishes to stay in the property, and for what reason
• the detriment to the tenant if the agreement is terminated or termination is not deferred for a significant period
• whether the tenant has taken reasonable steps to search for or arrange alternative accommodation
• the nature and extent of the tenant’s human right to choose where to live
• other relevant factors in a particular case
• that the effect of terminating a tenancy is a serious matter and one which cannot be taken lightly or in circumstances where strict compliance with the law has not been followed

There is only limited guidance in the published decisions to the matters the Tribunal will consider or the weight it will give to each matter.

If a client has been given a Notice to Leave, you should consider the arguments they may be able to raise to defend against a termination order.