The Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Act – Changes from 1 April 2024

Sun 24 Mar 2024

The temporary rent cap and evictions protections brought in by the Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Act will no longer apply from 1st April 2024.

To support the transition away from the emergency measures, the Scottish Government will introduce some important changes to the existing rent adjudication system.

From 1 April, tenants can ask for a proposed rent increase to be adjudicated by Rent Service Scotland (or the First-tier Tribunal, where applicable), where they think it is too high. Rent will be set with reference to the lowest of:

- the open market rent
- the rent requested by the landlord
- and a comparator based on the difference between the market rate and current rent.

A landlord can only increase rent once in a 12-month period and for a private residential tenancy must give a tenant at least 3 months’ notice.

The applicable notice period for an assured or short assured tenancy will depend on the tenancy type.

You can find more information on these changes here.