Residential Tenancies Regulation 2019

The Regulation casts a wide net:

• Private landlords and their agents — every person granting a right to occupy residential premises for value (defined in s 3 of the Act and elaborated in clause 3 of the Regulation) must use the prescribed form, make the nine mandatory disclosures, maintain smoke alarms to the exact timelines, and attach supporting evidence to termination notices.

• Tenants — including co-tenants, sub-tenants (subject to exemptions), and applicants for social housing. Tenants gain rights to reimbursement for permitted smoke-alarm repairs, to install minor fixtures without consent (clause 22), to keep up to four animals unless the landlord proves one of the four statutory refusal grounds (clause 22A), and to receive detailed termination information statements (clause 23A).

• Social housing providers (including NSW Land and Housing Corporation, Aboriginal Housing Office, and registered community housing providers) receive both additional obligations (e.g. optional services charges under clause 9) and exemptions (from certain rent-increase rebating rules, rectification orders, and parts of the smoke-alarm regime).

• Strata owners corporations, councils, and embedded-network operators — indirectly, through obligations to maintain smoke alarms on common property (clause 21), sewerage usage charges (clause 12A), and metering rules for embedded electricity and gas networks (clauses 34–35).

• Competent persons who sign domestic-violence declarations (Schedule 3) — registered health practitioners, AASW social workers, child-welfare employees, funded domestic-violence or refuge workers, and Victims Services approved counsellors — are given statutory authority to make declarations that trigger early termination rights under ss 105B–105C of the Act. They are also exposed to the offence in s 105H for knowingly false declarations.

• The Secretary of the Department of Communities and Justice in its capacity as database operator and recipient of mandatory termination data under clause 23L.

• The Tribunal — the Regulation sets the monetary jurisdictional limit ($30,000 for bond claims, $15,000 otherwise — clause 40) and all the prescribed time periods that determine when applications are out of time.

Landlord duties (non-exhaustive):

• Provide the prescribed standard form and a Tenant Information Statement before or at signing (cl 4, standard form cl 2).
• Disclose the nine material facts in clause 8(1) — breach can found a s 26 claim and may vitiate consent to the agreement.
• Install, maintain and periodically replace smoke alarms; engage authorised electricians for hardwired units; reimburse tenant repairs within 7 days (cll 14–18, 20, 42 of standard form).
• Pay all non-usage utility charges unless premises are separately metered and water-efficiency measures are installed (cll 10–12A, 34–36).
• Give 60 days’ notice of any rent increase and never more than once in any 12-month period (standard form cll 5–6; s 41 of the Act).
• When terminating on sale, renovation, demolition or owner-occupancy grounds, attach the exact documents stipulated in cll 23B–23I or commit an offence under s 85.
• Not refuse pet applications except on the four grounds in s 73F of the Act, interpreted by clause 22A (e.g. “inappropriate fencing” does not include fencing the landlord has failed to repair).

Tenant rights:

• Quiet enjoyment and non-interference (standard form cl 15; s 50 of the Act).
• Install 14 categories of minor fixtures without consent (clause 22(1)), including child-safety devices, internet cabling, and wireless removable outdoor security cameras.
• Keep up to four animals unless landlord proves high-probability damage exceeding the bond, insufficient open space (taking into account common property), or inappropriate fencing (clause 22A).
• Repair and replace removable batteries in smoke alarms and, in defined circumstances, engage an electrician for hardwired units and claim reimbursement (cll 15–18).
• Receive a detailed termination information statement and all supporting evidence when landlord seeks to end the tenancy (cl 23A).
• Terminate without penalty if in circumstances of domestic violence and supplies one of the four statutory documents, including a competent-person declaration in the exact form of Schedule 3 (ss 105B–105C).

Mutual rights and duties around condition reports (clause 7, Schedule 2), electronic service of notices (standard form cl 50), and mitigation of loss (standard form cl 40).

The Regulation feeds directly into the Act’s penalty regime. Clause 40A sets the maximum monetary penalty the Local Court may impose at 650 penalty units, reflecting the 2025 uplift. Schedule 4 lists 30+ offences with penalty notice amounts ranging from $110 (cl 23L data-reporting breach) to $5,500/$35,750 for individuals/corporations issuing non-genuine termination notices or false supporting documents (ss 86–87).

Enforcement is primarily civil. The Tribunal may order compensation, specific performance, termination, or bond repayment. Time limits are strict: 30 days for rent-increase challenges (cl 39(1)), 14–30 days for termination challenges depending on the ground (cl 39(4)), 6 months for bond disputes (cl 39(8)). Clause 23L imposes a positive obligation on landlords and agents to report termination data to the Secretary within 14 days of certain bond claims, with a 10-penalty-unit notice offence.

Criminal liability is reserved for egregious conduct: issuing a termination notice on a false ground, supplying false supporting documents, or entering a new agreement during an exclusion period (ss 85–87). The Regulation’s detailed documentary requirements make these offences easier to prove.

The Regulation is a hub statute. It expressly incorporates definitions from 15+ Acts (clause 3) and the National Electricity Rules (clause 12). Key intersections include:

• Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 — owners corporations responsible for hardwired smoke alarms on common property exempt the landlord from personal obligations (cl 21); by-laws can override minor-fixture rights (cl 22(3)(a)).
• Home Building Act 1989 — LFAI Register listings trigger mandatory disclosure (cl 8(1)(c)) and affect asbestos-removal costs in meter replacements (cl 12(3)(a)).
• Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and its regulations — combustible-cladding notices, development consents for demolition, and fire-safety orders all trigger disclosure and termination-document obligations (cll 8(1)(j), 23E).
• Surveillance Devices Act 2007 — limits on wireless outdoor security cameras installed under cl 22(1)(l).
• Fair Trading Act 1987 (Part 4 Div 4A) — short-term rental accommodation arrangements must be proved by STRA-register extract when landlord terminates on change-of-use ground (cl 23H(1)(c)).
• National Energy Retail Law (NSW) and National Gas (NSW) Law — definitions of “separately metered”, NMI, MIRN, and embedded-network rules that determine who pays usage charges (cll 34–36).
• Victims Rights and Support Act 2013 — approved counsellors are competent persons for domestic-violence declarations (Schedule 3).

The Interpretation Act 1987 applies to the Regulation itself (note to cl 3(1)).

The Regulation has been heavily amended, most significantly by the Residential Tenancies Amendment Regulation 2025 (2025 (139)) and the Residential Tenancies Amendment (Miscellaneous) Regulation 2020.

2025 amendments responded to the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2024 which introduced new termination grounds (sale, significant renovations, demolition, change of use, owner-occupancy) and a pet-friendly rebuttable presumption. The Regulation now requires landlords to attach documentary proof (contracts, agency agreements, development consents, statutory declarations) to every such notice (new cll 23B–23I) and supplies the content of the mandatory “termination information statement” (cl 23A). Clause 22A supplies the only permissible grounds for refusing pet consent, reversing the onus and limiting landlord discretion. New cl 23L forces landlords to report termination grounds and supporting-document types to the Secretary whenever a bond is claimed. These changes were designed to deter “no-grounds” or pretextual terminations and to give the Department data for compliance monitoring.

2020 amendments (560 and 717) introduced the detailed smoke-alarm maintenance scheme (cll 13–21) after the 2017 Lacrosse fire and the 2019 cladding crisis, and updated the competent-person declaration form for domestic-violence terminations.

The cumulative effect is a shift from facilitative to prescriptive regulation, driven by tenant-protection policy, data-gathering for systemic oversight, and response to known market failures (unscrupulous terminations, pet bans, hidden defects).

Because the Regulation is relatively recent and heavily amended, reported challenges remain limited, but several recurring disputes are evident in Tribunal and appellate decisions grounded in its text.

The smoke-alarm provisions have generated volume litigation. NCAT has repeatedly held that a landlord’s obligation under cl 14 is strict once awareness arises; a tenant’s self-help under cl 16 or 17 does not require proof that the landlord “failed” if the 2-business-day clock has expired (see Tribunal decisions applying the exact wording of cl 14(1)). Owners-corporation exemptions (cl 21) have been narrowly construed: the landlord must still give written notice to the tenant and notify the OC within 24 hours; failure on either limb removes the exemption.

Pet-consent refusals under the new cl 22A have already produced controversy. The “highly probable” damage test in cl 22A(4) and the inclusion of common-property open space (cl 22A(3)(a)) have been criticised by landlord advocates as unduly restrictive. Conversely, tenant advocates argue the 4-animal safe harbour and the fencing-repair carve-out do not go far enough.

Disclosure obligations (cl 8) have been tested on the meaning of “significant health or safety risks that are not apparent to a reasonable person”. Tribunal members have required objective evidence; mere assertion is insufficient. The 5-year look-back for flooding and violent crime has been held to run from the date the tenancy commences, not the date the disclosure is made.

Termination-document cases under the 2025 amendments are emerging. Landlords who supply heavily redacted contracts (permitted by cl 23J) have faced arguments that the redaction removes a “material” particular required by cl 23B(a)(ix) (vacant possession). The Tribunal has indicated that cl 23J cannot be used to hide the very facts the clause requires to be shown.

No superior-court challenges to the validity of the Regulation itself have succeeded. The breadth of the regulation-making power in s 15 (standard form) and s 222 (general regulation power) of the Act has so far insulated the detailed prescriptive content.

Most practitioners miss the following traps:

1. The “existing agreement” trap — clauses 50, 61 and the transitional divisions (especially Div 7) extend many standard-form terms (including the new pet clauses) to agreements entered before the 2025 amendments. A landlord relying on an old lease that is silent on pets is still bound by the s 73F regime after the commencement date.

2. Smoke-alarm clock — awareness by either the landlord or the landlord’s agent starts the 2-business-day repair period (cl 14). Many managing agents do not appreciate that tenant notification to the agent is deemed notification to the landlord.

3. Embedded-network metering — clauses 34 and 35 create an exception to the general “landlord pays non-metered usage” rule where the meter satisfies paragraphs (a)–(d) of the separately-metered definition but lacks an NMI or MIRN because it sits behind an embedded network. Landlords who fail to recognise their own building’s embedded status overpay or wrongly charge tenants.

4. Redaction limits — cl 23J allows redaction of landlord contact details and non-mandatory information, but not the nine particulars required by cl 23B(a). Redacting the purchaser’s name or the vacant-possession clause renders the notice invalid.

5. Competent-person declaration — Schedule 3 requires the competent person to name the “relevant domestic violence offender” identified by the tenant. Failure to insert the name invalidates the declaration. The competent person must also have consulted the tenant (and dependent child if applicable) in their professional capacity; a casual conversation will not suffice.

6. Water-efficiency “check and fix” obligation — cl 10(d) and 12.4.4 require the premises to be checked at the commencement of the agreement and whenever any other water-efficiency measures are installed, repaired or upgraded. A landlord who replaces a tap but does not re-check the toilet for leaks loses the right to charge usage.

7. Clause 23L reporting — the obligation to report to the Secretary arises on any bond claim, including joint claims. Many agents assume only contested claims trigger the duty.

For landlords and agents (compliance checklist):

• Use the current Schedule 1 form (as amended 2025). Attach any additional terms on a separate signed page; do not alter the printed text.
• Before marketing, obtain and retain copies of all nine disclosure categories in cl 8. Use a checklist signed by the landlord.
• At lease signing, hand over two hard copies or one electronic copy of the completed condition report (Schedule 2) and the Tenant Information Statement. Complete the “minimum standards”, smoke-alarm, and water-efficiency sections.
• For smoke alarms: maintain a register showing manufacture date, battery-change dates, and electrician invoices. Hardwired alarms must be serviced only by authorised electricians (cl 15(1)(b)(ii)).
• When issuing a termination notice on any ground in ss 87D–87M, attach the exact documents required by cll 23B–23I (or the redacted version permitted by cl 23J) and the approved termination information statement (cl 23A(2)). Keep copies.
• Pet applications must be on the Fair Trading approved form, answered within 21 days, and refusals limited to the four statutory grounds interpreted by cl 22A. Consent, once given, survives for the life of the animal (standard form cl 54.5).
• Lodge bonds online within statutory timeframes. When claiming, ensure cl 23L data is reported to the Secretary within 14 days.
• Retain records for at least 2 years after tenancy ends (s 222A of the Act and cl 23L).

For tenants:

• Inspect and return the condition report within 7 days, noting every defect. Photograph/video the premises on move-in day and have the landlord/agent countersign the photographs.
• Notify landlords in writing (email permitted if cl 50 consent given) of any smoke-alarm fault. Keep copies of all notices and receipts for battery purchases.
• When seeking to terminate for domestic violence, obtain one of the four statutory documents. If using a competent-person declaration, ensure the practitioner uses the exact Schedule 3 form and names the relevant domestic violence offender.
• Before installing any fixture, check cl 22(3) exclusions (strata common property, heritage items, LFAI Register premises).

For competent persons completing Schedule 3 declarations:

• Use the exact form; do not improvise.
• Document the date of professional consultation.
• Insert the name the tenant supplies as the relevant domestic violence offender; do not speculate.
• Store the declaration securely; disclosure is permitted only as allowed by Part 5 Div 3A of the Act.

Compliance is now data-driven. The combination of mandatory supporting documents, cl 23L reporting, and higher penalties means that every termination file must be treated as potentially examinable by NSW Fair Trading or the Tribunal. Practitioners who maintain a clause-by-clause checklist aligned to the 2025 amendments will avoid the most expensive pitfalls.