How Victoria regulates renting: 90 days' notice, bonds and valid reasons

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A rented home in Victoria changes hands under a vocabulary of its own. The landlord is a rental provider, the tenant is a renter, the lease is a rental agreement, and the body that decides their disputes is the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, known as VCAT. Behind the words sits one statute, the Residential Tenancies Act 1997, which the state has amended in stages since 25 November 2025.

This guide describes the position as read in October 2026, on the pages of the state's regulator, Consumer Affairs Victoria, in its Renters Guide dated July 2026, and on the site of Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria. It follows a tenancy in order: the application, the rent and its increases, the bond, the condition of the home, pets, and the two ways an agreement ends. Each rule is given with the page it comes from and the date that page carries. Where the pages are silent, or do not agree with each other, the guide says so.

Consumer Affairs Victoria, rent increases page (26 February 2026), rent assessment page (30 March 2026) and Renters Guide (July 2026).

One Act, amended in stages

The regulator's page on new rental laws, last updated on 27 September 2026, names the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 as the statute and the Consumer and Planning Legislation Amendment (Housing Statement Reform) Act 2025 as the main source of the recent changes. It sets them out by start date.

The date that matters most for this guide is 25 November 2025. On that day, according to the page, three things changed together: rental providers lost the ability to end an agreement without a valid reason, the notice for a rent increase and for certain notices to vacate became 90 days, and the rules against rental bidding were widened. Later dates added a standard application form and a ban on third-party fees on 31 March 2026 and direct payment of the bond by the renter on 9 September 2026; a portable bond scheme, announced by the regulator on 1 July 2026, began that day.

Applying: no bidding, limited rent in advance

Victoria already prohibited rental providers and agents from soliciting or encouraging offers above the advertised rent. Since 25 November 2025 the ban reaches further, Consumer Affairs Victoria says: agents and providers are banned from accepting an offer in which a renter proposes to pay more rent than the advertised amount, or to pay more than one month's rent in advance.

The regulator's page does not describe how the ban is enforced and gives no penalty amount.

The Renters Guide of July 2026 sets the ordinary limits on rent in advance. Where rent is paid weekly, the most that can be requested in advance is two weeks' rent. Where it is paid monthly and the weekly rent is A$900 or less, the most is one month's rent. The guide states that monthly limit for weekly rents of A$900 or less.

Two rules from 31 March 2026 complete the application stage, according to the new rental laws page. Providers and agents must use the prescribed form for rental applications. And third-party fees for rental applications and for rent payments are banned.

How rent can rise, and how seldom

Consumer Affairs Victoria's rent increases page, last updated on 26 February 2026, begins with what the law does not do. It sets no maximum. In the regulator's words, the law does not say exactly how much a rental provider can put the rent up by. What it controls is the frequency of an increase, the notice, the form and the explanation.

On frequency, the page says that in most cases rent cannot be increased more than once every 12 months, even where the agreement itself specifies an earlier increase. The exceptions are older agreements, and the dividing line is 19 June 2019.

A fixed-term agreement adds a condition of its own. Rent cannot go up during the term unless the agreement contains a clause allowing it, and that clause must state how the increase is calculated. For a periodic agreement, which the regulator also calls month-by-month, the page was re-read for this guide on 10 October 2026 and says only that there are still rules on how frequently the rent can rise; it does not say whether a clause is needed.

The notice is at least 90 days, up from 60 days before 25 November 2025, and it must be given on the prescribed form, the Notice of proposed rent increase to renter of rented premises. The page is blunt about the form: if the rental provider does not use the right one, the notice is not valid. It must state three things: how much the rent will increase, how the increase was calculated, and what the renter can do if they think the increase is too high.

The calculation is where the page spends most of its words. The four most common methods it names are the consumer price index, the metropolitan or regional rent index, a fixed percentage and a fixed dollar amount. A notice must give a specific amount that matches the stated method. A bare reference is not enough: the regulator lists "CPI" alone and "based on the rental market valuation" among its examples of invalid wording.

The consequence falls on the provider. If the rules are not followed the increase may be invalid, and the renter only has to pay it if proper notice was received. For property managers the page adds a professional point: an estate agent who prepares an incorrect notice may breach the agent's professional conduct obligations.

A worked example, with assumed dates, shows how the two clocks fit. Take a periodic agreement whose rent last rose on 1 June 2025. Under the twelve-month limit the next increase cannot start before 1 June 2026. Counting 90 days back from that date gives 3 March 2026: 28 days remain in March after the 3rd, April adds 30, May adds 31, and the first day of June makes 90. The pages read do not explain how days are counted when a notice travels by post, so the example assumes the notice reaches the renter on the day it is dated.

The page cites section 44 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 for rent increases under a residential rental agreement.

Challenging an increase

With no cap on the amount, the check on a large increase is an assessment. Consumer Affairs Victoria's page on challenging rent increases, last updated on 30 March 2026, describes a free service: a renter who believes an increase is above the market range can ask the regulator to investigate and report. The page suggests negotiating with the provider first, and it states that a renter cannot be forced to leave a property for asking.

The page lists the factors the regulator weighs: the rent for comparable premises in the same locality, the proposed rent against the current one, the rate of increase compared with Melbourne's consumer price index, the number, amount and timing of increases in the preceding 24 months, the state of repair and general condition of the home, and any valuation. One more factor looks at conduct: whether an infringement notice was issued, or a tribunal or court order made, for a relevant breach of the rental laws.

The list has grown. The new rental laws page says that from 31 March 2026 the Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria and VCAT, including Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria, can consider additional factors when deciding whether a proposed increase is excessive. It does not name which ones were added.

The bond: amount, lodgement and the portable bond

A bond in Victoria is not kept by the provider or the agent. It is lodged with the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority, the RTBA.

The Renters Guide of July 2026 gives the limit: the maximum bond is one month's rent, unless the weekly rent is more than A$900, and VCAT may increase the limit in some cases. Where the renter pays the bond to the provider or the agent, it must be lodged with the RTBA within 10 business days of being received. The RTBA emails a receipt, and the guide says a renter who has none within 15 business days of paying can raise it with the authority.

Since 9 September 2026 there is a second route. According to the new rental laws page, a renter can choose to pay the bond directly to the RTBA, after giving the rental provider written notice before the lodgement starts.

The Portable Rental Bond Scheme began on 1 July 2026. The Victorian Government's page on the scheme, dated the same day, describes it in one line: renters can transfer an existing bond to a new rental property through the RTBA's platform. It is optional and costs A$25 to use.

Consumer Affairs Victoria's announcement of 1 July 2026 gives the sequence. The renter tells the provider or agent at the new property that the bond will be paid directly to the RTBA. Once the provider lodges the bond request, the RTBA emails the renter to review and complete the lodgement. A renter who is eligible opts in, accepts the terms and conditions and pays the fee. If the new bond is higher than the current one, the renter pays the difference.

A worked example, with illustrative figures: a renter holds a bond of A$2,000 on a first home and moves to a second let at A$2,400 a calendar month, a weekly rent well under A$900. The maximum bond on the second home is one month's rent, A$2,400. Without the scheme the renter finds A$2,400 while the first bond is still held. With it, the renter pays the difference of A$400 and the A$25 fee, A$425 in all.

The first home does not lose its security. The regulator's page on bond disputes, last updated on 30 June 2026, says the provider of the first property can still make a claim. If that provider is owed money, the government pays it on the renter's behalf, up to the total bond amount, and the sum becomes a repayment the renter owes to the State of Victoria. The pages read do not list who is eligible or how long the renter has to repay.

Getting the bond back

Where both sides agree on how the bond is divided, the bond disputes page says the provider should start the claim within 14 days of the agreement ending. The Renters Guide adds that once all parties have accepted, the RTBA usually repays within one business day.

Where they do not agree, the renter can claim alone. The RTBA notifies the provider in writing, and the provider has 14 days to agree or to dispute the claim. If the provider does nothing, the RTBA pays the bond to the renter after the 14 days. On where the provider applies, the page gives two answers: one passage says the claim is disputed by applying to VCAT, another says the provider applies to Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria and tells the RTBA. The dispute service's own site reconciles them in part, since it states that an application to it is also an application to VCAT.

According to the bond disputes page, as re-read on 10 October 2026, the dispute service will ask the provider for evidence for any claim made on the bond. If VCAT ends up making an order, the bond is repaid within one business day of the RTBA validating it. Among the sections of the Act the page cites are 411 and 411AD.

Minimum standards and repairs

Consumer Affairs Victoria's minimum standards page, last updated on 14 May 2026, lists 15 categories that every covered property must meet, set out in Schedule 4 of the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021. They apply to agreements that began on or after 29 March 2021, and to older ones that became periodic on or after that date. An agreement that became periodic before then is outside them.

The minimum standards page says providers and agents must make sure a property meets the standards at the time they advertise it or offer to let it, and the new rental laws page says that since 25 November 2025 advertising a property that does not comply is an offence. The minimum standards page, re-read on 10 October 2026, cites sections 65A and 65B of the Act for occupying and advertising premises that do not comply.

A renter has two remedies in the pages read. Before taking possession, a renter who finds that the premises do not meet the standards can give notice, and the agreement ends immediately, according to the regulator's page on renters giving notice. After moving in, a failure to meet the standards is treated as an urgent repair.

For an urgent repair, the Renters Guide says the renter can pay for the work, as long as it costs no more than A$2,500, and the provider must reimburse the renter within seven days. If that does not happen, the renter can apply to Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria. Non-urgent repairs must be made within 14 days of a written request.

A further layer is scheduled. The new rental laws page says energy efficiency standards for heating, cooling, hot water, showerheads, ceiling insulation and draughtproofing are phased in from 1 March 2027, with different triggers that the page does not describe.

Pets: 14 days and no pet bond

Consumer Affairs Victoria's pets page, last updated on 23 April 2025, defines a pet as any animal except an assistance dog.

The renter asks on the Pet request form, one form for each animal. The provider then has 14 days, starting the day after the form is received, to decide. A provider who wants to refuse does not simply say no: the provider applies to VCAT within those 14 days and tells the renter, and the tribunal decides. While it does, the renter cannot keep the pet. If the provider does not respond within the 14 days, the renter can keep it.

The page lists what VCAT may weigh: the type of pet, the type of property, its appliances, fixtures and fittings, and other laws such as a council prohibition.

Consent from the provider does not settle everything. The page notes that an owners corporation may have its own rules for common areas. A pet kept without consent can be the subject of an exclusion order from VCAT; the renter then has 14 days to comply, after which the provider can give a notice to vacate of at least 28 days.

When the provider ends the agreement

Since 25 November 2025, the regulator says, a rental provider cannot issue a notice to vacate without a valid reason, even at the end of a fixed-term agreement. When a fixed term runs out, the agreement becomes periodic unless the parties sign a new fixed term or the provider gives notice for a valid reason.

The notice to vacate page, last updated on 26 February 2026, lists the reasons and the notice each one carries.

A reason is not enough without proof. The page says evidence is required for several reasons, and that a notice sent without it is invalid. Among the documents it names are a statutory declaration, a building permit, and a contract of sale or an engagement with an estate agent.

The notice goes on the form Notice to vacate to renter/s of rented premises. It gives the reason, is signed, states the termination date, and is delivered by registered post, by hand, or by email where the renter has consented to electronic notices. In a fixed-term agreement the termination date cannot fall before the end date, and the page says a provider cannot shorten an agreement in order to give notice for a sale.

Two safeguards surround the list. A notice cannot be given because a renter did something lawful, such as requesting repairs, asking to keep a pet or challenging a rent increase. And after a notice for demolition, sale, moving in or business use, the premises must not be re-let as a residence within six months, unless VCAT approves.

A notice does not remove a renter who stays. The provider's next step, the page says, is to apply for a possession order.

When the renter leaves

A renter who wants to leave gives 28 days' notice, according to the regulator's page on renters giving notice, last updated on 7 December 2025. In a fixed-term agreement the date on the notice cannot be earlier than the end date. A fixed-term renter who gives no notice moves automatically to a month-to-month agreement.

The page lists the cases where 14 days are enough:

• the provider has breached a VCAT order, or breached a duty for the third time;
• the provider has refused changes requested for a person with disability;
• the renter needs temporary crisis accommodation, needs special and personal care elsewhere, or is moving into social housing;
• the renter has received a notice of intention to sell that was not disclosed before the agreement began;
• the provider has given a notice to vacate for major repairs, demolition, business use, moving in, sale or public acquisition.

The recommended form is the Notice of intention to vacate rented premises by renter, though the page says using it is not compulsory.

Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria

The Renters Guide of July 2026 describes Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria as a free dispute resolution and case management service provided by VCAT. According to the service's own site, which carries no date, it handles four subjects: bonds, compensation, rent increases and repairs.

The site states that an application to the service is also an application to VCAT. It notes that an application fee may be payable if a hearing is needed. It also flags a limit of jurisdiction: VCAT does not have it where all parties are individuals whose primary residences are in different Australian states. In that case the service cannot make binding orders, and an agreement can be referred to the Magistrates' Court.

Some points remain open on the pages read. None of them gives a penalty amount, although several describe an offence. The pets page predates the dispute service and names only VCAT. The renter's notice page, dated 7 December 2025, still lists a 14-day notice for a renter whose provider gave notice because a fixed term was ending, a notice the rental laws page says can no longer be given without a valid reason. On points like these, and on how days are counted for any deadline, the answer for one tenancy depends on its agreement, its dates and the current text of the Act.

Kooky, from Shaka

Kooky edits Agents Estate and builds Shaka, the payment router he made for real estate professionals. One payment comes in, and every agent, agency and party in the deal receives their signed share on closing date.

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