Virginia Eviction Notice

Virginia 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 Virginia statute says

Unpaid rent: 14 days

• Written notice must notify the tenant of the nonpayment and of the landlord's intention to terminate if rent is not paid within the 14-day period; clock runs from service of the notice (Va. Code 55.1-1245 F).
• 'Notice' under the VRLTA means written notice by regular mail or hand delivery with the sender retaining a certificate of service (55.1-1200); electronic notice only if the rental agreement so provides and the tenant has not elected paper (55.1-1202 A).
• Delayed provisions (per version headings on the official page): from 2027-07-01 landlords owning more than four rental dwelling units must also offer a payment plan in the notice (new subsection G); from 2027-07-01 nonpayment notices must include a written statement of charges and payments (55.1-1202 E).

Lease violation: 21 days

• Notice must specify the acts and omissions constituting the breach and state that the rental agreement will terminate on a date not less than 30 days after receipt of the notice if the breach is not remedied in 21 days (55.1-1245 A) — i.e. 21-day cure inside a 30-day termination notice.
• Clock runs from RECEIPT of the notice.

Ending the tenancy without a chance to cure: 30 days

• Repeat breach: if the tenant remedied a breach after notice and then 'intentionally commits a subsequent breach of a like nature', landlord may serve a notice terminating on a date not less than 30 days after receipt, with no cure opportunity (55.1-1245 E).
• Criminal or willful act that is not remediable and poses a threat to health or safety: landlord 'may terminate the rental agreement immediately and proceed to obtain possession' (55.1-1245 C) — 0 days.

Ending a month-to-month tenancy: 30 days

• Written notice given at least 30 days prior to the next rent due date, 'unless the rental agreement provides for a different notice period' (55.1-1253 A).
• Multifamily premises: an owner not renewing 20 or more (or 50%+) month-to-month tenancies within 30 days must give each such tenant at least 60 days' written notice, except for nonpayment (55.1-1253 B).

Tenant staying after the lease ends: Lease controls

• 55.1-1253 C: a tenant remaining without consent after termination/expiration is a holdover; landlord may bring an action for possession and recover actual damages, attorney fees and costs (plus lease liquidated damages up to 150% per diem). No separate holdover notice period stated.

Delivery, form and other Virginia rules

How the notice may be delivered

Va. Code 55.1-1200 defines 'notice' as written notice 'by either regular mail or hand delivery, with the sender retaining sufficient proof ... in the form of a certificate of service'; served on the tenant at the tenant's last known place of residence, which may be the dwelling unit (55.1-1202 B); electronic notice permitted only if the rental agreement so provides and the tenant has not elected paper (55.1-1202 A).

Va. Code 55.1-1200; 55.1-1202 A, B · read 2026-09-27

Required form or contents

None found for the pay-or-quit notice itself; required contents are statutory (nonpayment notice must state the nonpayment and the landlord's intention to terminate if not paid within 14 days; breach notice must specify acts/omissions and the termination date). Upcoming: from 2027-07-01, 55.1-1202 E requires a nonpayment notice to include 'a written statement of charges and payments over the course of the tenancy or the past 12 months', and 55.1-1245 G requires landlords with more than four units to offer a payment plan.

Va. Code 55.1-1245 A, F; 55.1-1202 E (delayed effective date shown on page as 2027-07-01) · read 2026-09-27

Statewide just-cause rule

No statewide just-cause requirement

• No statewide just-cause requirement found in the VRLTA (Va. Code Title 55.1, Chapter 12); periodic tenancies end on notice under 55.1-1253 A.

Va. Code 55.1-1253 A · 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 Virginia 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 Virginia period and your deadline is too soon, the document is not prepared until you move it.

Create a Virginia 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.

Eviction Notice rules in nearby states

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