So you are well versed in serving 14 day notice to remedy a breach and 90 day notice to terminate but when do you start counting down the 14 or 90 days?
S136 of the Residential Tenancies Act is instructive but getting your head around each of the wordy sub-sections is quite another matter. Follow
this quick and easy guide so that you can continue managing your tenancies without unnecessary delays*.
Rule of thumb: The countdown of the notice period starts the day after the notice is legally considered as received
Note s136 prescribes delivery periods (i.e. service times) for each types of service. Unless the receiver of the notice can prove otherwise, the
law will presume that the notice is received at the expiry of the delivery period.
So, when do you start counting? Well it all depends on how the notice is served. Here are the four main ones:
| Personal service (i.e. hand delivery to your tenant) | Start counting 1 working day after |
| Delivery to a physical address for service (i.e. affixed to the front door or left in the on-site letterbox) | Start counting 2 working days after |
| By ordinary mail to letterbox (before 5pm on a working day) | Start counting 4 working days after |
| Fax or email (before 5pm on a working day) | Start counting 1 working day after |
Avoid the calendar day vs working day slip!
A simple mistake that can easily be overlooked is to confuse calendar days with working days. A calendar day is any day of the year whereas a working
day is any day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or statutory holiday. Depending on the type of notice you will be countdown in either calendar
days or working days. Here are the common ones you need to know about:
| Service time for notices | Countdown in working days |
| Notice to remedy a breach | Countdown in calendar days |
| Notification of change of address or other landlord details | Countdown in working days |
| Notice for rent increase | Countdown in calendar days |
| Notice to terminate | Countdown in calendar days |
* This guide relates to service of notices captured by s136 of the Residential Tenancies Act and does not cover services relating to Tenancy Tribunal Application.
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