How much notice must a landlord give a tenant to leave in Trinidad and Tobago?

The notice for each kind of tenancy

The tenancy agreement can set its own notice period. If it does not, these rules apply:

• Fixed term (such as a one-year lease): it ends on its end date, and no notice is needed. If the tenant stays on paying monthly rent that the landlord accepts, a monthly tenancy usually arises (Aaron Knights Enterprises Ltd v Hove's Court Ltd).
• Weekly or monthly: at least a full week or month, expiring at the end of a complete period of the tenancy (Aaron Knights). For a monthly tenancy running from the 1st, a notice served on 10 March should end on 30 April, not 10 April.
• Yearly: at least half a year, expiring at the end of a year of the tenancy.
• Tenancy at will (no set term or rental period): it ends when the landlord demands possession.

Getting the notice right

For most lettings the landlord does not need a reason. Tenancies of agricultural land have their own rules under the Agricultural Small Holdings Tenure Act (Chapter 59:53), which this page does not cover, and house spots are dealt with below.

The landlord has to prove the notice, so put it in writing, name every tenant and keep proof of delivery. In Stanneveld v Nelson possession was refused because service was not proved, so the tenancy continued. A notice ending on the wrong day may be invalid.

When the tenant will not leave

The notice ends the tenancy, but the landlord should not then put out a tenant who stays by force, threats or intimidation, or by changing the locks. The safe course is a possession order, enforced by a court bailiff.

• Petty Civil Court: if neither the yearly value of the premises nor the rent exceeds TT$50,000 a year, about $4,166 a month (Petty Civil Courts Act (Chapter 4:21), s 10(1)). If the tenant still does not leave, the court can issue a warrant of possession, which a court bailiff executes (Petty Civil Courts Rules, rr 60–61). The Civil Division Act 2026 will replace this court with Small Claims Courts, but it is not yet in force as at 22 September 2026.
• High Court: above those limits, or where an injunction is needed, which the Petty Civil Court cannot grant (s 15(2)(a)).

A landlord who uses force or threats, or changes the locks, risks a damages claim and, in some cases, prosecution.

Ending a lease early for a breach

A notice to quit cannot end a fixed-term lease early unless the lease allows it. A forfeiture clause (right of re-entry) can end it for arrears or another breach, but:

• For most breaches, the landlord must first give the tenant notice of the breach and a chance to put it right, and the tenant can ask the court for relief against forfeiture. Some breaches and situations are treated differently, so take advice (Conveyancing and Law of Property Act (Chapter 56:01), s 70).

House spots let before 1 June 1981

The Land Tenants (Security of Tenure) Act (Chapter 59:54) protects a tenant of land on which, immediately before 1 June 1981, the tenant's house stood and was used as a home, or was being built for use as one (ss 3(1), 4(1)). The tenancy became a 30-year statutory lease, which runs to 2041 if the tenant served a written renewal notice on or before the end of the first term in 2011; without that notice it ended in 2011 (s 4(2)–(4)). While it lasts, a notice to quit does not end it. If rent is 6 months in arrears, the landlord may apply to the High Court, acting as the Act's "Land Commission". Depending on the kind of house, the court may end the statutory lease and give the landlord possession on paying the tenant compensation for the house, or order the tenant to leave and remove the house. The order is cancelled if the tenant pays all the arrears within 30 days of it (ss 2, 5(4), 7). Agricultural land, State land, land of certain public bodies, and land let on 1 June 1981 for a term with more than 30 years still to run are excluded (s 3(2)–(3)).