Residential Tenancies Act 1986

Tenancy agreements - Termination of tenancies and recovery of possession

54: Tribunal may declare notice retaliatory

You could also call this:

"Landlord's notice can be cancelled if given as revenge"

Illustration for Residential Tenancies Act 1986

You can ask the Tribunal to say a notice from your landlord is retaliatory. This is if the landlord gave you a notice to end your tenancy that meets the rules of section 51 or section 66U. You can do this if you think the landlord was motivated by you using your rights as a tenant. You can apply to the Tribunal if you think the landlord gave you the notice because you complained about something or used your rights as a tenant. You can also apply if you think the landlord gave you the notice because someone else used their powers to help you with your tenancy. If you apply within 28 working days, you can also ask the Tribunal to say the notice has no effect. The Tribunal will look at your application and decide if the notice was retaliatory. If they think it was, they will say the notice is retaliatory and has no effect, unless they think you were being vexatious or frivolous. If the Tribunal says the notice is retaliatory, it means the landlord did something wrong by giving you the notice.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM95517.

This page was last updated on 24 December 2025 — View changes

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Part 2Tenancy agreements
Termination of tenancies and recovery of possession

54Tribunal may declare notice retaliatory

This section applies in relation to a notice given by a landlord terminating the tenancy, being a notice that complies with the requirements of section 51 (or, in the case of a boarding house tenancy, section 66U).
The tenant may apply to the Tribunal for an order declaring that the notice was retaliatory on either or both of the following grounds:
that, in giving the notice, the landlord was motivated wholly or partly by the exercise or proposed exercise by the tenant of any right, power, authority, or remedy conferred on the tenant by the tenancy agreement or by this or any other Act or any complaint by the tenant against the landlord relating to the tenancy:
that, in giving the notice, the landlord was motivated wholly or partly by the exercise or performance, or proposed exercise or performance, by the chief executive or any other person of any power or function conferred on the person under this or any other Act in respect of the tenancy or premises.

If the tenant makes the application within 28 working days after receiving the termination notice, the tenant may at the same time apply for an order declaring the notice to be of no effect.
If the Tribunal is satisfied that either or both of the grounds in subsection (2) apply, the Tribunal must declare the notice to be retaliatory and, if an order is applied for under subsection (3), of no effect.
However, the Tribunal need not declare the notice to be retaliatory and of no effect if the Tribunal is satisfied that, in the case of subsection (2)(a), the purported exercise by the tenant of any such right, power, authority, or remedy, or the making by the tenant of any such complaint, was or would be vexatious or frivolous to such an extent that the landlord was justified in giving the notice.
The giving of a notice terminating a tenancy is an unlawful act if the notice is declared under subsection (4) to be retaliatory.

Notes

Section 54: replaced, on 30 January 2025, by section 28 of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2024 (2024 No 52).