District of Columbia Eviction Notice

District of Columbia notice periods

Each period is the one LeaseCraft's record of the statute holds. Read it with the conditions under it: some periods are minimums and some apply unless the lease sets another. "Lease controls" means the record holds no statutory period for that situation, and "No pre-suit notice" means it holds no notice before filing. The source column shows the law and the date LeaseCraft read it on the official site (most recently 2026-09-27).

What the District of Columbia statute says

Unpaid rent: 10 days

• Housing provider must give the tenant written notice of intent to file a claim for possession for nonpayment at least 10 days before filing (§ 42-3505.01(a-1)(1)).
• No notice (and no filing) if the unpaid rent is less than $600 (§ 42-3505.01(a-1)(1)).
• Notice must state the total rent owed with an attached ledger, that the tenant has the right to remain if the full balance is paid, and give the Office of the Tenant Advocate (202-719-6560) and Landlord Tenant Legal Assistance Network (202-780-2575) contacts (§ 42-3505.01(a-1)(2)).
• Served BOTH by certified mail/tracked delivery with return receipt AND by hand delivery to the unit or posting on the front door (§ 42-3505.01(a-1)(3)).
• If the landlord knows the tenant's primary language is not English or Spanish and is covered by § 2-1933, the notice must be provided in that language (§ 42-3505.01(a)(3)).

Lease violation: 30 days

• Tenant violating an obligation of tenancy other than nonpayment must fail to correct the violation within 30 days after receiving notice before the housing provider may recover possession (§ 42-3505.01(b)).
• Notices for all reasons other than nonpayment must be served on both the tenant and the Rent Administrator (§ 42-3505.01(a)(1)).

Ending the tenancy without a chance to cure: 30 days

• Illegal act within the rental unit or housing accommodation: after the required court determination the housing provider serves a 30-day notice to vacate (§ 42-3505.01(c)(1)).
• Cases filed after 2025-12-31 where the alleged illegal act would constitute a dangerous crime or crime of violence: 10-day notice to vacate, after considering in good faith reasonable means to preserve the housing of non-offending occupants (§ 42-3505.01(c)(2)(A)).

Ending a month-to-month tenancy: 90 days

• No no-cause termination exists: no tenant may be evicted notwithstanding expiration of the lease so long as the tenant continues to pay rent (§ 42-3505.01(a)(1)).
• Shortest no-fault notice is 90 days — owner's personal use and occupancy (d) or sale to a purchaser for personal use (e); alterations/renovation (f) and substantial rehabilitation (h) require 120 days; demolition (g) and discontinuance of housing use (i) require 180 days.
• Non-nonpayment notices are served on the tenant and the Rent Administrator (§ 42-3505.01(a)(1)).

Tenant staying after the lease ends: Lease controls

• Lease expiration is not a ground: a tenant who keeps paying rent may not be evicted notwithstanding expiration of the lease (§ 42-3505.01(a)(1)); the tenancy continues on the same terms.

Delivery, form and other District of Columbia rules

How the notice may be delivered

Nonpayment notice: BOTH (A) certified mail or a delivery service with tracking, return receipt requested, AND (B) hand delivery to the rental unit or posting on its front door (§ 42-3505.01(a-1)(3)). Notices for all other grounds must be served on the tenant and on the Rent Administrator (§ 42-3505.01(a)(1)); the method for those (D.C. Code § 42-3206) was not read.

D.C. Code § 42-3505.01(a)(1), (a-1)(3) · read 2026-09-27

Required form or contents

Mandatory statutory contents for the nonpayment notice (§ 42-3505.01(a-1)(2)): the total rent owed, an attached ledger of charges and payments for the delinquency period, the statement 'You have the right to remain in the rental unit if the total balance of unpaid rent is paid in full', and the Office of the Tenant Advocate / Landlord Tenant Legal Assistance Network phone numbers; language requirement in (a)(3). No statutory form for other notices; the Rent Administrator (DHCD) notice-to-vacate forms were not researched.

D.C. Code § 42-3505.01(a)(3), (a-1)(2) · read 2026-09-27

Statewide just-cause rule

Yes: a statewide law requires a stated legal reason to end some tenancies

• Covered housing: rental units under the Rental Housing Act; eviction only for the grounds in § 42-3505.01 (nonpayment (a-1), uncorrected violation of tenancy obligation (b), court-determined illegal act (c), owner personal use (d), sale for personal use (e), alterations (f), demolition (g), substantial rehabilitation (h), discontinuance of housing use (i)).
• Every eviction requires a written notice meeting the section's requirements ('No tenant shall be evicted from a rental unit for any reason unless the tenant has been served with a written notice which meets the requirements of this section' — § 42-3505.01(a)(1)).

D.C. Code § 42-3505.01 · read 2026-09-27

Preparing the notice

The form asks for the tenancy, the kind of notice and the dates, and the notice ends with a Certificate of Service to record how you delivered it. Beside the finished notice you get a District of Columbia checklist of the period, form and delivery rules LeaseCraft recorded. The period in the notice is the one you choose; where LeaseCraft has verified the District of Columbia period and your deadline is too soon, the document is not prepared until you move it.

Create a District of Columbia eviction notice

A notice is not a court order and does not by itself remove a tenant. Cities and counties can add rules. LeaseCraft is not a law firm and this is not legal advice.