Ending or breaking your lease

You may use a notice of intention to vacate to end your lease (officially called a rental agreement) if:

• Your fixed-term lease is about to come to an end, and you want to leave. Note: In Victoria, when a fixed-term lease is about to expire it will automatically turn into a periodic (month-by-month) lease once the fixed term ends. You do not have to move out just because your fixed-term lease is about to expire
• You want to end your periodic (month-by-month) lease and can give the correct amount of notice (advanced warning)
• You need to leave the rental property because you need a different type of property – such as special accommodation due to disability, or temporary crisis accommodation. See the information on this page about needing a different type of property, in the section on advanced warning. Note: If you have a disability and need modifications to the property to make it more accessible, see our page on modifications. If the modifications cannot be made, you may be able to remain a community housing renter and seek a transfer to a different community housing property that meets your needs. See the information on this page about how to request a property transfer
• You have received a certain type of ‘notice to vacate’ from your community housing provider and you want to leave. See the information on this page about these notice types in the section on advanced warning
• Your community housing provider has repeatedly failed to carry out certain duties it has under the law or failed to follow a VCAT compensation or compliance order. See the information on this page about when your community housing provider ignores breach of duty notices or a VCAT order
• The property is unfit or unsafe to live in. See the information on this page about what to do if the property is unfit or unsafe to live in. Note: If you are thinking about leaving because your community housing provider is not meeting its duties or the property is unfit or unsafe to live in, it is often better to get advice first. In many situations, you may be able to take action to get the problem fixed instead of giving up your community housing. If the issue is serious or urgent, you may even be able to negotiate a temporary relocation while repairs or issues are being addressed. Tenants Victoria and other organisations can give advice. See the information on this page about how you can get help
• You need to leave before the end of a fixed-term lease without a legally valid reason (known as ‘breaking’ your lease). Note: Before you consider leaving early and paying costs, it is best to see whether you can get consent from your community housing provider to leave early, or whether there are particular circumstances that allow you to do so without paying costs. See also the information on this page about leaving early and paying costs

The notice of intention to vacate needs to:

• Be in writing
• Be signed by you
• Include the required minimum notice period (the minimum amount of advanced warning the law says you must give)
• Include the date you will be moving out and returning the keys

We recommend that you use the official Consumer Affairs Victoria form: Notice of intention to vacate rented premises [Word].

Using official forms helps you to include all of the information that the rules require.

We also recommend that you give your community housing provider your new address and contact details in case there are any issues to follow up, such as final bills, mail, or bond matters.

Note: It is best if all renters on the lease (officially called a rental agreement) sign the notice. If you move out but other renters stay, you may still be legally responsible for what happens in the property until the lease is changed, either by transferring the lease or by getting an order from VCAT to remove you from it.

How much advanced warning you need to give your community housing provider depends on why you are leaving. The minimum amount of warning (called a notice period) is usually 28 days but can sometimes be 14 days, or even immediately (although this rarely happens).

You can give more advanced warning than is required but not less. You can also move out before the end of the minimum notice period, but you will still be responsible for the rent for the entire time, or until the property is relet, whichever happens first. For example, if 28 days notice is required, and you leave at day 20, you will likely still have to pay the other 8 days of rent.

When 28 days is required

In most cases, the required minimum notice period is 28 days.

This includes if:

• Your fixed-term lease (officially called a rental agreement) is coming to an end, and you do not want it to continue past the end-date. Your vacate date can be the last day of the fixed-term lease or a later date
• You want your periodic (month-by-month) lease to end

When 14 days is allowed

There are some circumstances where you can give a notice period of 14 days, whether you have a fixed-term or periodic (month-by-month) lease.

Your community housing provider ignores breach of duty notices or a VCAT order

You can give a notice period of 14 days if your community housing provider has repeatedly failed to carry out certain duties under the law or failed to follow a VCAT compliance or compensation order. See the information on this page about when your community housing provider ignores breach of duty notices or a VCAT order.

You need a different type of property

If any of these situations apply to you, you can give your notice of intention to vacate with a minimum of 14 days notice:

• You need special or personal care and must leave to get care. You will need to include evidence of this with your notice of intention to vacate
• You need to move to temporary crisis accommodation. You will need to include evidence of this with your notice of intention to vacate
• You have a disability and have asked to make reasonable modifications (custom-built changes to your home), but your community housing provider has refused. You may be able to get the modifications done and avoid having to move out – see our page on modifications. In case you can move to a more suitable community housing property, see the information on this page about how to request a property transfer

You are given a notice to vacate and want to leave

You can also give 14 days notice if your community housing provider has given you a notice to vacate for any of these reasons:

• Repairs, renovations or reconstruction
• Demolition
• The property is to be used as a business
• The property is required for a public purpose
• Your fixed-term lease is ending
• You are no longer eligible for community housing

Note: Just because you receive a notice to vacate from your community housing provider, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have to move out. If you have received a notice to vacate but don’t want to move out, check if your community housing provider has followed the rules and what to do if it has not. For more information, see our page on notices to vacate and eviction.

When no minimum notice period is required

You can give an immediate notice to vacate if your property is, or becomes, unfit or unsafe to live in. See the information on this page about what to do when a property is unfit or unsafe to live in.

If you end your lease (officially called a rental agreement) for one of the legally valid reasons outlined on this page and give a valid notice of intention to vacate, with the correct amount of advanced warning, you cannot be asked to pay any additional rent beyond your move-out date or be asked to pay additional costs.

If your community housing provider asks you to pay any additional costs for not giving the correct amount of notice, or leaving before the end of a fixed term, do not pay anything straight away unless you think it is reasonable. Your community housing provider will need to apply to Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria (RDRV) to resolve the issue.

RDRV is a free service that helps resolve rental disputes without needing to go to a formal hearing at VCAT. You can negotiate at RDRV and agree to pay an amount you consider reasonable (if any). But if you believe your community housing provider’s claim is unreasonable, you can let the dispute progress to VCAT. Your community housing provider will then need to prove to VCAT that it is entitled to the amount it is claiming, and VCAT will make a decision that everyone must follow.

Find out more on our pages about going to RDRV and going to VCAT.

If you need support or advice about going to RDRV or VCAT, this page has information on how to get help.

You do not have to wait until your rent is due before you give a notice of intention to vacate.

If you want to leave in the middle of a rent cycle, you can. You will be responsible for paying the rent up to, and including, the vacate date in your notice.

Example of calculating final rent payment

Your lease (officially called a rental agreement) says rent is due on the first of each month. You pay your usual monthly rent on 1 August, but later decide you want to move out.

You give 28 days notice that says you will move out on 14 September.

This means on 1 September, you only need to pay up until and including 14 September, not a whole month’s rent.

To work out how much rent you need to pay to cover the period from 1 to 14 September:

1. Multiply your monthly rent by 12.
2. Divide that figure by 365 – this is the daily rent amount.
3. Multiply the daily rent amount by 14 – this is how much rent you need to pay.

You can also calculate your daily rent amount using Consumer Affairs Victoria’s rent calculator.

If you are unsure how much to pay, contact your community housing provider to ask how much to pay. This is also a good opportunity to confirm that it has received your notice of intention to vacate.

You should also cancel any automatic deductions that you set up for rent payments. Accidental overpayments are refundable. Make a written request for any overpayment to your community housing provider, and it should be refunded in a reasonable time.

Note: Your community housing provider cannot apply overpayments to any amounts you owe for damage or cleaning.

If you have a periodic (month-by-month) lease (officially called a rental agreement), and you need to leave without giving the full amount of notice (usually 28 days), give as much notice as you can. This is to reduce any costs you may need to pay for leaving early.

To clearly show that you have ended the lease, return the keys to your community housing provider. You can ask your community housing provider for a receipt or written confirmation that the keys were returned.

If you have a fixed-term lease (officially called a rental agreement) and you leave before the end of the fixed term without one of the legally valid reasons outlined on this page, this is known as ‘lease breaking’. As soon as you know you will be breaking your lease, you should send a notice of intention to vacate to your community housing provider. This will help to reduce the additional costs you may have to pay your community housing provider for leaving early.

See the information on this page about how to send your community housing provider a notice of intention to vacate.

You may have to pay costs to your community housing provider for leaving early. At worst, this could be 28 days of rent or until a new renter moves in, whichever happens earlier.

However, the amount you may need to pay can be adjusted depending on the amount of notice you do give. For example, if the rules required you to give 28 days notice but you only gave 7 days, your costs for leaving early would likely be 21 days rent, or rent until the next renter moves in, whichever is earlier.

Your community housing provider may also consider your reasons for leaving, especially if there are compassionate grounds. It may also consider whether any planned repairs or maintenance would delay re-letting the property. If so, it may decide not to charge you for that period because it would not get any rent during that time anyway.

There are usually no reletting or advertising fees for you to pay when you leave community housing because there is a long waiting list for homes. Your community housing provider also does not pay agents to find new renters, so it cannot claim anything back from you.

VCAT will look at whether:

• You, or your children, would suffer severe hardship if the lease (officially called a rental agreement) is not ended
• This hardship would be more than any hardship that your community housing provider would suffer if the order was made
• It is reasonable to make the order, given the interests of any other renters, except any person excluded from the property under an intervention order
• The other renters on the lease, if any, support your application

If you are also seeking to create a new lease, you will need to show that:

• You are able to pay the rent on your own. For people eligible for community housing, rent is usually affordable because it is rebated
• You can be reasonably relied upon to follow your duties under the lease, such as keeping the property reasonably clean and not causing damage
• Your hardship if the new lease is not created would be greater than the hardship of your community housing provider (including the disadvantage to people on the waiting list)

To apply, fill out VCAT’s form for family or personal violence applications.

You can complete the form online or download a PDF and fill it in electronically or print it and complete it by hand. If you want a hard copy form posted to you, call VCAT on 1300 018 228.

VCAT’s family violence support team can also help you to complete the application in person or over the phone.

When you get to the section ‘What orders do you want VCAT to make?’, write section 91V.

If you want to end the lease (officially called a rental agreement) but you don’t want to move out, you can ask VCAT to make an order that a new lease is created with only your name on it (and the name of any co-renters) but not the name of the person using violence.

For more information, see our page on going to VCAT.

VCAT will let you know the time, date and place of the hearing.

At VCAT the person who hears and decides a case is called a member. The member listens to each side, reviews any evidence and resolves the dispute, either at the end of the hearing or in writing later.

It is best that you go to the hearing to tell your side of the story. If you don’t go, you run the risk of your application being dismissed by VCAT. While you may feel stressed about the hearing, VCAT is less formal than a court and Tenants Victoria and other organisations can help. If you need advice or support, this page has information on how you can get help. VCAT also has a family violence support team, which can assist you during the hearing, including helping you to attend via phone or videoconference, if required.

In making an order to reduce the fixed term or to end the lease (officially called a rental agreement), VCAT will need to agree that:

• There has been an unforeseen (unexpected) change in your circumstances –for example, you need to move to care for a sick relative, and
• You would suffer severe hardship if your lease continues, and
• The hardship you would likely suffer if your fixed term was not reduced, or your lease was not ended, would be greater than the hardship your community housing provider would suffer if the order was made

In deciding whether to end the lease, VCAT must consider any severe hardship you would suffer, such as financial and non-financial hardship, or a risk to your safety and that of your children.

To apply, fill out VCAT’s general application form. If the hardship relates to personal violence, fill out VCAT’s form for family or personal violence applications.

You can complete the form online or download a PDF and fill it in electronically or print it and complete it by hand. If you want a hard copy form posted to you, call VCAT on 1300 018 228.

When you get to the section ‘What orders do you want VCAT to make?’, write section 91U.

For more information, see our page on going to VCAT.

VCAT will let you know the time, date and place of the hearing.

At VCAT the people who hear and decide cases are called members. A VCAT member listens to each side, reviews any evidence and resolves the dispute, either at the end of the hearing or in writing later.

It is best that you go to the hearing to tell your side of the story. If you don’t go, you run the risk of your application being dismissed by VCAT. While you may feel stressed about the hearing, VCAT is less formal than a court and Tenants Victoria and other organisations can help. If you need advice or support, this page has information on how you can get help. VCAT also has a family (and personal) violence support team, which can assist you during the hearing, including helping you to attend via phone or videoconference, if required.

If you discover that the rental property is unfit or unsafe to live in before you move in, you can give an immediate notice of intention to vacate. No minimum notice period is required.

This applies if the property:

• Is not in good repair
• Is unfit for human habitation
• Is destroyed or unsafe
• Is not vacant
• Does not meet one or more of the rental ‘minimum standards’. See our page on minimum standards

Under the law, ‘before moving in’ is called before ‘entering into possession’, which means you haven’t started sleeping at the property yet, but you may have already moved in your belongings.

Your options

If the property you are offered is not in a fit and safe condition, you can:

• Accept the offer, move in and request urgent repairs
• Accept the offer but ask for repairs to be done before you move in
• Refuse the offer and wait for another one (keeping in mind that this could be counted as a ‘deemed refusal’)

Note: If you’re on the community housing waiting list, you may have waited a long time for an offer. If you are offered a property and turn it down, this may count as a ‘deemed refusal’. A deemed refusal is when your community housing provider determines that you have declined or not accepted a valid housing offer. You generally only have a limited number of offers before you risk being removed from the waiting list.

If the property offered is in poor condition, unsafe, or doesn’t meet the special needs outlined in your application, you may be able to challenge whether this should count as a refusal. If you are removed from the waiting list or your community housing provider treats your decision as a refusal, you may be able to appeal through your community housing provider internal appeals process. For more information, see our page on community housing.

If you are unsure, it is important to carefully consider your options and seek advice. In most cases, if you refuse to accept an offer, your community housing provider will offer the property to someone else. If you need advice, Tenants Victoria and other organisations can help. See the information on this page about how you can get help.

Evidence and costs

If you believe the property is unsafe or unliveable, you should collect strong evidence, such as photos or videos that show the condition of the property and that you haven’t moved in or started living there yet.

If you are asked to pay any costs for ending the lease before moving in, do not pay anything and seek advice. See the information on this page about how you can get help.

If the property becomes unliveable or is destroyed after you have moved in, you can give immediate notice that you intend to leave. See the information on this page about how to send your community housing provider a notice of intention to vacate.

However, it is important to get advice first about whether you want to permanently give up your community housing, or whether you should try to make temporary arrangements with your community housing provider so that you can remain a renter with them. If you need advice, Tenants Victoria and other organisations can help. See the information on this page about how you can get help.

For information on what to do if the property becomes unfit or unsafe to live in due to damage from a disaster, see our page on disasters.

If your community housing provider breaches the same duty 3 times, and you have already given it 2 breach of duty notices and it hasn’t fixed the problem in the required time, you have 2 options:

• You can give a notice of intention to vacate, provided you outline the third breach of duty in that notice, or
• You can issue a third breach of duty notice, and wait the required time, before giving a notice of intention to vacate

You can end your lease (officially called a rental agreement) by giving 14 days notice if:

• You gave your community housing provider one or more breach of duty notices
• You then applied to VCAT, which issued a compliance order
• Then your community housing provider didn’t follow the order

If you want to move out of the property because it is unsafe or unfit to live in, your community housing provider should work with you to arrange temporary alternative accommodation, where possible. If there is disagreement about whether the home is safe and habitable, it is usually best to apply for urgent repairs – see our page on repairs and maintenance. Try to get a clear written agreement from your community housing provider about what it will do and when.

In some situations, you may be offered another property, either on a temporary or permanent basis. However, there is no guarantee that this property will be in the same area.

To learn more, you can download the information on offers of housing from the public housing allocations operational guidelines on the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH) website.

To succeed in having a lease (officially called a rental agreement) created in your name, you must show:

• You are able to pay the rent on your own. For people eligible for community housing, rent is usually affordable because it is rebated
• You can be reasonably relied upon to comply with the duties of the lease, such as keeping the property reasonably clean and not causing damage
• Your hardship if the new lease is not created would be greater than the hardship of your community housing provider (including the disadvantage to people on the waiting list)

When assessing hardship for your community housing provider, VCAT will also consider whether the property is being underused. For example, if you are the sole remaining occupant in a 4-bedroom home and are applying to have the lease transferred into your name, your application is unlikely to succeed due to the size of the property relative to your household.

In such matters, it is important to negotiate with your community housing provider about what a more suitable housing option would be. This may include a one-bedroom property in an appropriate location, or a 2-bedroom property if you require space for a carer or arrangements for children.

To apply, fill out VCAT’s general application form.

You can complete the form online or download a PDF and fill it in electronically or print it and complete it by hand. If you want a hard copy form posted to you, call VCAT on 1300 018 228.

When you get to the section ‘What orders do you want VCAT to make?’, write section 91S.

For more information, see our page on going to VCAT.

VCAT will let you know the time, date and place of the hearing.

At VCAT the people who hear and decide cases are called members. A VCAT member listens to each side, reviews any evidence and resolves the dispute, either at the end of the hearing or in writing later.

It is best that you go to the hearing to tell your side of the story. If you don’t go, you run the risk of your application being dismissed by VCAT. While you may feel stressed about the hearing, VCAT is less formal than a court and Tenants Victoria and other organisations can help. If you need advice or support, this page has information on how you can get help.

If you need support to end your lease, help is available.

There are resources to assist you with understanding more about ending or breaking your lease.

The Residential Tenancies Act 1997 is Victoria’s main law for renting. It describes the rights and duties of renters and rental providers (such as community housing providers) in numbered sections.

The sections in this list relate to ending or breaking your lease (officially called a rental agreement). Click on a link to see more about the section.

• Section 81 – Assignment and sub-letting by a renter
• Section 82 – Renter may apply to VCAT
• Section 84 – Rental provider cannot ask for fee for giving consent
• Section 91C – Termination by agreement
• Section 91D – Termination by consent
• Section 91L – Termination by renter before possession
• Section 91N – Termination after death of a sole renter
• Section 91Q – Creation of periodic rental agreement
• Section 91S – Application to VCAT for creation of residential tenancy agreement
• Section 91U – Reduction or termination because of hardship
• Section 91V – Termination or creation because of family or personal violence
• Section 91W – VCAT termination or creation orders
• Section 91X – VCAT may determine parties’ liability under terminated rental agreement
• Section 91Z – Notice of intention to vacate
• Section 91ZB – Reduced period of notice of intention to vacate in certain circumstances
• Section 91ZC – Rental agreement of more than 5 years does not comply with standard form
• Section 91ZD – Premises destroyed or unfit for habitation
• Section 91ZE – Failure of rental provider to comply with VCAT order
• Section 91ZF – Successive breaches by rental provider
• Section 91ZZN – Form of notice of intention to vacate
• Section 91ZZQ – How can a notice be withdrawn
• Section 208 – Breach of duty notice
• Section 209 – Application for compensation or compliance for breach of duty
• Section 211A – Matters to be considered by VCAT in a compensation matter
• Section 322 – Application for possession order by rental provider
• Section 506 – Service of documents

The Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021 provide more detail and definitions, and specify updates to the Residential Tenancies Act.

Your community housing provider policies

Your community housing provider also has policies (rules) that set out its obligations to assess issues and communicate respectfully with you to try to resolve them. It must follow these policies.

Your community housing provider should have guidelines, policy documents and practice manuals relating to ending or breaking your lease and assessing applications to create new tenancies.

Your community housing provider’s policies should be published online or made available upon request. It is beneficial to request a copy of any relevant policy as soon as practicable, as this can assist in negotiations and resolve matters sooner.