Notice of intention to vacate: how much notice a tenant gives in each State

To move out of a rental in Australia, you give your landlord or agent written notice with the date you will leave. How much notice depends on your State and on whether you are on a periodic agreement or leaving at the end of a fixed term, and is usually between 14 and 30 days. Leaving before a fixed term ends, without a reason the law allows, is breaking the lease, which has its own rules and costs.

Claim Done drafts a tenant’s notice of intention to vacate from your answers for a flat A$49, with your State’s notice period shown before you pay. This guide covers the notice periods, what the notice must say, how to give it, and what happens with rent, the bond and the final inspection.

How much notice you must give, by State

These are the minimum periods the official State and Territory sources publish, as at November 2026. Each State name links to its source. NSW notes that tenants can choose to give more notice than the minimum.

In Queensland the Residential Tenancies Authority says the tenant gives notice using the Notice of intention to leave (Form 13), so use that form. Claim Done does not sell this notice for Queensland rentals.

Periodic agreement or end of a fixed term

A periodic agreement has no end date. You end it by giving the notice above. In NSW, South Australia and the Northern Territory the official pages say no reason is needed.

A fixed term does not simply stop on its end date. In Victoria it moves to a month-to-month agreement if you do not give notice, and in Western Australia it becomes periodic once the end date passes without a new fixed-term agreement or a notice from the landlord. If you plan to leave when your lease ends, give notice in time.

Breaking a fixed-term lease early

This notice is not for leaving before your end date; Claim Done has a separate Break Lease Notice for that. What the official pages say about costs:

• NSW: for fixed terms of 3 years or less signed after 23 March 2020, a set break fee may apply, from 4 weeks’ rent early in the term down to 1 week’s rent once 75 per cent has passed.
• Victoria: costs can include remaining rent, advertising and re-letting fees, but no rent once the property is re-let.
• Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania: costs can include rent until a new tenant or the end date, whichever comes first, and advertising (in South Australia, all or part of the advertising costs and the re-letting fee).
• ACT: compensation or a break lease fee if the landlord does not agree, and the landlord must look for a replacement tenant.
• Northern Territory: you may have to pay for the loss of rent.

Family violence, hardship and shorter notice

• NSW: a tenant can end the tenancy immediately, without penalty, if they or their dependent child are in circumstances of domestic violence. A fixed-term tenant can apply to the Tribunal on hardship grounds if there are special circumstances.
• Victoria: renters experiencing family violence or severe hardship can apply to VCAT. Moving into social housing, needing crisis accommodation or needing special and personal care allows 14 days’ notice, with evidence.
• Queensland: domestic and family violence uses Form 20 with evidence: 7 days, but you can leave immediately.
• Western Australia: at least 7 days’ notice on Form 2 with evidence, and you can move out immediately.
• South Australia: a tenant can apply to SACAT on undue hardship grounds, and SACAT may end a tenancy for reasons relating to domestic violence.
• ACT: a family violence termination notice with one supporting document can name the day it is given as the vacate date, with no break lease fee.
• Northern Territory: no penalty for breaking a lease if you are experiencing domestic violence, and in some circumstances you can apply to the tribunal on hardship grounds.

In Tasmania, ask Consumer Affairs Tasmania.

What your notice must say

The NSW Government says a tenant’s notice must be in writing, signed and dated, give the address and state the day the tenancy will end. The ACT adds a reason and a statement that the tenancy ends on that date. Include:

• every tenant’s name, and each tenant’s signature and date
• the rental address
• the landlord or agent it is going to
• the date you will move out and hand back the keys
• for a fixed term, the end date of the agreement
• a reason, if you live in the ACT

The structure of the notice

1. From and to: every tenant and the rental address; the landlord or agent and their address or email for notices.
2. Subject: notice of intention to vacate, with the address. In South Australia the wording follows Form 16 or Form 17.
3. The notice: one sentence ending the tenancy, with the move-out date, and the fixed-term end date where relevant.
4. Reason: optional, except in the ACT.
5. Forwarding details: an address or email for the bond.
6. Next steps: a request to arrange the final inspection and keys, and to confirm receipt in writing.
7. Signatures: each tenant signs and dates it.

How to give the notice and keep proof

Use the address or email for notices on your lease. In NSW, email goes to the email address the landlord or agent has given for notices. Victoria accepts post, email or hand delivery.

In NSW the days are calendar days, the day you give the notice is not counted, and a posted notice needs an extra 7 working days. Victoria and Queensland both say to allow time for the mail.

Keep a copy of the signed notice and proof of how and when you sent it, such as the sent email or a postage receipt. The NT Consumer Affairs fact sheet also says to keep a copy.

Rent, the bond and the final inspection

Not giving notice can cost you. In South Australia a periodic tenant who gives no notice may be liable for 3 weeks’ rent in place of the 21 days’ notice. In Western Australia the agreement ends when you have removed your belongings and returned the keys.

• Final inspection: in NSW you must be given a reasonable opportunity to attend, and the report may be done without you if you do not. In the ACT the landlord and tenant must do it together.
• Exit report: in Victoria it must be done within 10 days, with you present or given a reasonable opportunity to be there.
• Bond: in Victoria the rental provider must give you evidence at least 3 business days before lodging a claim. In the NT the bond must be returned within 7 business days if the place is clean and undamaged, and any claim must come in writing with receipts or quotes. In the ACT a disputed claim goes to ACAT.

The NSW moving out page also says to return all keys and security devices.

Mistakes to avoid

• Counting the day you give the notice (NSW does not count it), or forgetting extra time for post.
• Choosing a date before your fixed-term end date.
• Leaving a tenant’s name or signature off.
• Giving notice by phone only. Put it in writing.
• Not keeping proof of when it was sent.

Ready to give notice? Answer a few plain questions and Claim Done drafts your notice of intention to vacate for A$49. You check the draft before anything is sent. With one tenant it is emailed on your behalf once you approve it; with two or more, each of you signs it and you give it yourself.