From Lawpack's Residential Letting Kit.
As a landlord, when you're asking your tenant to move out it's very important that your notice is in the correct form, as otherwise you won't be able to use it in court proceedings for possession. A letter asking the tenant to leave by a certain date will not be sufficient.
The notices should be completed as follows:
Section 33 Notice and Notice to Quit
If you haven't served any termination notices at the end of the fixed term, the tenancy continues automatically for the same term as the original term of the tenancy (e.g. if the tenancy was for eight months, it continues for a further eight months by what is called 'tacit relocation', and if you want to repossess your property, you will have to serve the correct notices at least two months before the end of that further eight-month period). It's therefore important to make sure that the notices are served before the expiry of the fixed term or you run the risk of the tenancy being continued by tacit relocation.
If you're simply bringing the tenancy to an end because the fixed term is up, it should be sufficient to serve the Section 33 Notice at the same time as the Notice to Quit, but if there are other reasons for which you wish to terminate the lease (e.g. rent arrears or you think you will have to raise proceedings), you should also serve the tenant with a section 19 Notice (AT6). If the Notices are signed by an agent, their full name and address should be included.
Section 19 Notice AT6 and Notice to Quit, Scotland
The AT6 notice can be used if the tenant falls into arrears of rent. If the tenant is in arrears of at least three months at the date of service of the notice and on the date of a subsequent court hearing, you are entitled to an order for possession as of right by referring to ground 8 of Schedule 5 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1988).
The AT6 can also be used when there are arrears of rent of less than three months, except that in the AT6 you refer to ground 12 of the Housing (Scotland) Act, rather than ground 8. The difference with ground 12 is that it's a discretionary ground and there's no guarantee that the Sheriff will grant an order for possession. However, it may still be worthwhile serving the notice as it might encourage the tenant to pay the arrears. Alternatively, if the arrears have risen by the time you come to raise court action, you are much more likely to be granted an order for possession. The landlord must still complete Part 3 of the AT6, where it asks for details, and a rental statement showing how the arrears are calculated should be attached.
The procedure for using the AT6 on the basis of either ground 8 or 12 is exactly the same. The notice period required in the AT6 notice is two weeks; however, the Notice to Quit must also be served and this has to give at least 40 days' notice. These notices should be served by recorded delivery and the 40-day notice period runs from the date the notices are received; so if you're serving by recorded delivery, the notice period should be at least 41 days. If recorded delivery is unsuccessful or if you wish to guarantee the notices are served on a certain day, the alternative is for the notices to be served by a sheriff officer but this is more costly.
If you are unsure which ground to rely on or when to serve the AT6 notice, you should seek legal advice.
Law stated as at 1 April, 2005.