Emergency tenant protections to remain until March 2024

Scottish ministers are to ask the Parliament to extend the emergency protections for private sector housing tenants, brought in due to the cost of living crisis, until 31 March 2024.

Tenants’ Rights Minister Patrick Harvie has laid before Holyrood regulations that would keep the Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) Act measures in place for a further six months after the current period expires at the end of September. This is the final extension permitted by the Act, which initially came into force for six months from October 2022 and was extended in March until September 2023.

While the Act remains in force:

• most in-tenancy private rent increases are capped at 3%;
• private landlords can apply for increases of up to 6% to help cover certain increases in costs in a specified time period, such as increased mortgage, insurance or service costs, where these can be evidenced;
• enforcement of evictions is paused for six months for most tenants, except in a number of specified circumstances;
• increased damages for unlawful evictions, of up to 36 months’ worth of rent, continue to apply.

Social rented sector tenants are protected by the voluntary agreement reached with social landlords on below-inflation rent increases for the current financial year.

Mr Harvie commented: "The final date of 31 March 2024 would be as long as the rent cap and eviction protections could run if approved by Parliament. The necessity of these measures is being kept under review and we will continue to assess whether they remain justified, balanced and proportionate based on the financial pressures rented households and landlords are facing.

"We are also looking at how to transition out of the emergency measures, and we continue to listen to and work hard with stakeholders to develop and deliver rental sector reform."