What Is Notice of Intention to Leave in Queensland Real Estate? Definition and Agent Guide

A Notice of Intention to Leave is the formal written notice a tenant in Queensland must issue to a property manager or lessor when they intend to vacate a rental property. It is used when tenant/s are giving notice to the lessor or agent that they wish to vacate the premises by a certain date. It is not optional, and an informal text or verbal conversation does not satisfy the requirement. The Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008 (RTRA Act) section 277 outlines the ways a residential tenancy agreement can end — and a valid Notice of Intention to Leave is one of the primary pathways. For general tenancies, the prescribed form is Form 13. For rooming accommodation, the equivalent is Form R13. Both are issued by the Residential Tenancies Authority (RTA).

How Notice of Intention to Leave Works in Queensland Real Estate

The mechanics of a valid Form 13

A tenancy agreement is a legally binding contract that can only be ended in certain ways, and notice to end a tenancy must be in writing. A verbal indication that the tenant plans to leave — however clear — does not start the clock on any notice period and does not create a valid handover obligation. The Form 13 must be given directly to the property manager or owner; it is not filed with the RTA.

The notice must state the date the tenant intends to end the agreement (the handover day) and whether they are ending the agreement with grounds or without grounds. If they have grounds for ending the agreement — a reason set out in the Act — the notice should state this and be given “with grounds.” Otherwise, the notice is “without grounds.” This distinction is critical because it determines both the minimum notice period that applies and whether the tenant may face liability for reletting costs.

When calculating dates for notices, where the notice period is in days, weeks or months, the day the notice is given is not counted. If the time period allowed under the legislation for a party to do anything ends on a weekend or public holiday, the end of the time period will be on the next business day. In practice, this means agents need to count carefully — the handover day written on the form must reflect an accurate calculation from the day of receipt, not the day the tenant wrote or emailed the notice.

Notice periods: what the Act requires

The required notice period varies depending on the agreement type and the grounds stated.

A periodic tenancy can be terminated by the tenant without giving reasons by giving a Notice of Intention to Leave (Form 13) to the lessor with two weeks’ notice. For a fixed-term agreement, the situation is different: a tenant must give at least 14 days’ notice unless the property manager or owner has breached the agreement, and the tenancy ends on the end date of the agreement or the end date of the notice period, whichever is longer. That final point is significant — a tenant cannot use a Form 13 to cut a fixed-term short simply by nominating an earlier handover date, unless they have valid grounds to do so.

Even fixed-term agreements must be formally ended by giving written notice, otherwise they continue as a periodic agreement. This is a compliance issue that property managers encounter repeatedly: a fixed-term expires, the tenant stays on, and nobody has issued any notice. If you want to end the tenancy at the fixed-term end date, the Form 13 must be issued before that date with the correct notice period observed.

For rooming accommodation, the resident must give at least 7 days’ notice to end the agreement. This shorter period reflects the more informal nature of rooming accommodation arrangements under the Act.

Serving notice correctly

When serving notices by post, parties must allow time for the mail to arrive when working out when a notice period ends. Time periods for serving notices are expressed as clear days between the day of serving the notice and the day for taking the next action. This means that when calculating dates on notices to allow the correct time, the day the notice is served at the address must not be counted, and the next action must not be taken until the day after the last day. Email is a common and accepted method, but agents should ensure their property management systems record the time and method of receipt, not just the date the tenant claims to have sent it.

Why Notice of Intention to Leave Matters for Queensland Agents

Triggering the reletting workflow

The moment a valid Form 13 lands in your hands, the property management clock starts. You have a defined window in which to inspect, advertise, qualify applicants, and secure a new tenancy — all while managing the outgoing tenant’s obligations and the owner’s expectations. An experienced property manager does not wait for the handover day to begin that process. Marketing should commence as early as legally permissible.

Once a tenant gives a Notice of Intention to Leave (Form 13), the property manager or owner cannot enter the property more than twice in a seven-day period while the notice is in effect. This is a legislative constraint that directly affects your ability to conduct open homes and private inspections. Two entries per seven-day period is the limit, subject to exceptions. Plan your inspection strategy around this from the start — back-to-back open homes and private viewings on the same day count toward the weekly total, so scheduling becomes a legitimate workflow consideration.

Break lease versus end of fixed term

There is a meaningful legal and commercial difference between a tenant giving notice at the end of a periodic agreement, a tenant giving notice to exit at the end of a fixed term, and a tenant who wants to leave mid-lease. Although the RTRA Act does not specifically refer to “break lease,” the lease is broken when a fixed-term agreement is ended before the end date without grounds — compensation may need to be paid.

If a tenant terminates their tenancy and leaves before the end of the fixed-term agreement without a reason allowed under the Act, they may be liable to pay compensation to the lessor for breach of contract. The size of that liability changed materially from 30 September 2024. Since the 30 September 2024 changes to Queensland’s break lease laws, break leases have increased. While the legislative change was intended to simplify the process for tenants, it has had a significant side effect — ending a lease early is now far less financially painful for tenants, which is leading to more tenants choosing to exit fixed-term agreements.

Reletting costs under the new framework

Reletting costs for fixed-term tenancy agreements entered into on or after 30 September 2024 are calculated based on how much of the tenancy agreement has expired, or rent payable until a new tenant moves into the property, whichever is the lesser amount. No additional reletting costs can be requested from a tenant.

For new leases from 1 October 2024, compensation is now capped based on the expired lease term, ranging from a maximum of four weeks’ rent to just one week’s rent, with tenants no longer liable for additional re-letting costs. For a 12-month fixed-term tenancy with a weekly rent of $600, this means a tenant breaking lease in the first quarter would be liable for a maximum of four weeks’ rent ($2,400), not the open-ended “reasonable costs” framework that previously applied.

For tenancy agreements entered into before 30 September 2024, the lessor can still claim the reasonable costs of reletting the premises. Which framework applies to a given tenancy is therefore entirely determined by the agreement commencement date — not the date the Form 13 is served. Agents managing tenancies that pre-date September 2024 are still operating under the old reletting cost provisions for those specific agreements until the agreement is renewed.

Legal Requirements, Common Mistakes, and Agent Obligations

Requirements the Form 13 must satisfy

To end a tenancy lawfully, tenants and property managers or owners must provide a valid reason under the RTRA Act, and the correct amount of notice must also be given. Notice should be given using the appropriate form with a valid reason, and the correct notice period for ending the tenancy must be followed.

An invalid Form 13 — one that uses the wrong form, states insufficient notice, or fails to identify a handover day — does not end the tenancy. It is important that a tenant complies with the notice period requirements to ensure any notice given to a lessor is validly given. If a notice is not validly given, the tenant will need to validly issue the notice again and start the notice period again. For property managers, this means you need to scrutinise each Form 13 on receipt. Do not assume compliance — check the dates, check the grounds, check the form version.

Grounds that allow early exit

A tenant on a fixed-term agreement does not have an automatic right to leave early without consequence. However, the Act provides specific grounds under which a tenant can issue a Form 13 with grounds and seek an early exit. On a general tenancy agreement, a tenant can give a Form 13 Notice of Intention to Leave because the premises is not fit to live in, the premises or inclusions are not in good repair, the lessor is in breach of health and safety laws, or the premises or inclusions do not comply with minimum housing standards.

The tenant may give a Notice of Intention to Leave (Form 13) within the first seven days of occupying the property if the managing party is in breach of a law dealing with issues about the health and safety of persons using or entering the property, or the property or its inclusions do not comply with the prescribed minimum housing standards — minimum housing standards came into effect for new tenancies from 1 September 2023 and for all remaining tenancies from 1 September 2024. This “first seven days” window is a narrow but important ground that property managers must be aware of, particularly on properties where condition reporting at the start of a tenancy may not have been thorough.

The tenant may not give a Notice of Intention to Leave (Form 13) under this ground if the circumstances mentioned above were caused by an action or failure of the tenant. This is a relevant defence where, for example, a tenant has caused damage and then attempts to invoke a condition-of-premises ground.

Separately, if the tenant is giving notice because of an unremedied breach by the property manager or owner, it does not guarantee they will be released from the tenancy agreement early. A Form 13 with grounds based on an unremedied breach is not automatically a valid exit mechanism — the breach process under the Act must have been correctly followed first, and in some cases QCAT involvement may still be required.

The domestic violence pathway is different

Property managers must understand that tenants experiencing domestic and family violence are not required to follow the standard Form 13 pathway. Tenants who believe they can no longer safely occupy the premises due to experiencing domestic and family violence can end their interest in a tenancy quickly and safely by completing a Notice Ending Tenancy Interest (Domestic and Family Violence) (Form 20) and providing it to the property owner or manager with relevant evidence. Using the wrong form in this situation, or requesting that the tenant use Form 13 instead, creates a serious welfare and compliance risk. Ensure your team knows the distinction.

What if the tenant doesn’t leave?

If the tenant does not withdraw the notice but does not move out on the handover day, the lessor or agent can apply to the Tribunal to terminate the tenancy due to the tenant’s failure to leave as intended. If the tenant wants to stay, they should attend the hearing to explain their situation and ask the Tribunal to allow them to continue with the tenancy. This is a situation property managers encounter more often than they expect — the tenant’s circumstances change, the Form 13 is served in good faith, and the handover day comes and goes. Do not treat the Form 13 as an informal indication; treat it as a binding legal commitment that opens the QCAT pathway if the tenant remains in occupation.

Mutual agreement versus Form 13

A property manager or owner and tenant may mutually agree in writing to end a tenancy on a specific date. There is no RTA form that can be used to end a tenancy by mutual agreement. It is recommended that the written agreement is signed by all parties. In some break-lease situations — particularly where the tenant is cooperative and both parties want a clean resolution — a written mutual agreement may be more appropriate than a formal Form 13. However, the Form 13 is still the correct instrument when the tenant is the party initiating the end of tenancy through the prescribed process.

What Queensland Agents Need to Know About Notice of Intention to Leave

Validate every Form 13 on receipt

Your first obligation when receiving a Form 13 is to verify it is valid. Check that: the correct current RTA form version is used; the handover day is specified clearly; the minimum notice period has been observed from the expected day of receipt; and if grounds are stated, those grounds are actually available under the Act for the type of agreement in question. When calculating dates for notices, where the notice period is in days, weeks or months, the day the notice is given must not be counted. If the notice is defective, notify the tenant promptly and in writing — a defective notice does not end the tenancy, and acting on an invalid notice creates its own risk.

Start the owner conversation immediately

The RTA strongly encourages parties to communicate their intention of ending the agreement as early as practicable for the best outcome. The same principle applies to your obligation to the owner. The moment you receive a Form 13, that owner needs to know — not at the end of the week, not after you’ve confirmed the dates. They need to begin thinking about their next steps: whether to sell, re-let, or renovate. Your authority to manage ends when the tenancy ends, and your handling of the transition is highly visible to the client.

Manage the reletting cost conversation carefully

When looking to replace a tenant who has ended an agreement early, property managers and owners must take all reasonable steps to mitigate the loss or expense to the tenant as per section 362 of the Act. This duty to mitigate is not optional. If an owner refuses to allow reasonable marketing or inspection access in order to inflate the reletting cost liability, that resistance will be relevant in any QCAT compensation assessment. Your job is to advise the owner clearly and ensure the marketing effort is documented.

Reletting costs do not include any outstanding amounts such as unpaid rent in arrears, service charges such as water or gas, or damage to the property where a tenant is still accountable. These are separate claims that proceed through the bond and QCAT processes. Conflating reletting costs with other claims is a common error that creates disputes and slows resolution.

Rooming accommodation: different rules apply

If you manage rooming accommodation, do not apply the general tenancy notice framework. The applicable form is Form R13, the governing sections of the RTRA Act are different (sections 379–381, 384 and 387A), and the minimum notice period is shorter. A resident must give at least 7 days’ notice unless the rooming accommodation manager or provider has breached the agreement. The residency ends on the end date of the agreement or the end date of the notice period, whichever is longer.

Keep documentation that supports a timeline

Every Form 13 should be date-stamped on receipt, filed in your property management system against the tenancy record, and acknowledged to the tenant in writing. If the matter ever proceeds to QCAT — whether for compensation, bond claims, or failure to vacate — your documented timeline will be the foundation of your evidence. An agent who can produce a clear record of when notice was received, what action was taken, and when marketing commenced is in a far stronger position than one who is reconstructing events from memory or email threads.

What This Means for Queensland Agents

The Notice of Intention to Leave is one of the most procedurally consequential documents in Queensland residential property management. It initiates a chain of obligations — legal, commercial, and relational — that property managers must manage with precision.

Since 30 September 2024, the context has become more complex. Break leases have increased since the 30 September 2024 changes to Queensland’s break lease laws, and the legislative change that was intended to simplify the process for tenants has had a significant side effect — ending a lease early is now far less financially painful, which is leading to more tenants choosing to exit fixed-term agreements. That trend creates more Form 13 traffic across Queensland property management rolls, more frequent reletting events, and more conversations with owners about costs that can no longer be fully recovered.

The fundamentals remain unchanged: use the right form, observe the correct notice period, validate the grounds, start the reletting process promptly, document everything, and keep the owner informed. Tenancy agreements can only be ended in accordance with the RTRA Act 2008, and there are processes that must be followed to correctly end an agreement, including using the approved form and allowing the right amount of time for the notice period. Every shortcut in this process creates a liability — for the agent, for the owner, and sometimes for the tenant. The Form 13 is not paperwork. It is the legal trigger for everything that follows.