Missouri Eviction Notice
Missouri eviction notice: no fixed notice for nonpayment (just a demand), but a 10-day notice to vacate for lease violations. Attorney review available.
Introduction
An eviction notice is a written notice a landlord serves on a tenant to begin ending a tenancy for cause, before filing an eviction case in court. This page is built around the actual notice document a Missouri landlord fills out and serves, not a general walkthrough of how the eviction process works. Missouri splits the notice itself into two different tracks. For nonpayment of rent, Missouri sets no fixed pre-filing notice period: under Section 535.020, a landlord only needs to have demanded rent that is already due and unpaid before filing a Rent and Possession action, and the one-month notice used for no-cause terminations does not apply. For a lease violation, unauthorized assignment or subletting, waste, or illegal use of the premises (gaming, prostitution, or illegal drugs), Section 441.040 gives the landlord a straight 10-day notice to vacate, with no statutory chance to cure first. Missouri's no-fixed-day-count rule for nonpayment is unusual: most pay-or-quit statutes specify an exact number of days, but Missouri's Rent and Possession statute needs only a demand for rent already due, with no minimum number of days required before the landlord can file suit. Beyond that structural quirk, the notice rules sit across RSMo Chapter 441 (Landlord and Tenant), Chapter 535 (Rent and Possession), and Chapter 534 (Unlawful Detainer). There is no state-mandated notice form, but the notice must be in writing. Once sued for nonpayment, a tenant gets a real second chance: paying all rent owed plus court costs before judgment stops the case. For no-cause endings of a month-to-month or similar tenancy, either side must give one month's written notice; a year-to-year tenancy needs 60 days. Serve the wrong notice for the wrong cause, and the case can be dismissed.
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Key Things to Know
- 1
An eviction notice is a written notice a landlord must serve on a tenant to begin ending a tenancy for cause, before filing an eviction case in court.
- 2
Missouri sets no fixed notice-day count for nonpayment of rent. A landlord only needs to have demanded rent that is already due, then may file a Rent and Possession action; the demand itself is the only pre-filing requirement. (RSMo Section 535.020)
- 3
A lease violation, unauthorized assignment or subletting, waste, or illegal use of the premises (gaming, keeping a bawdyhouse or brothel, or illegal drug activity) gets a 10-day notice to vacate. Missouri law provides no statutory chance to cure these violations before the deadline. (RSMo Sections 441.020, 441.030, 441.040)
- 4
Ending a tenancy at will, by sufferance, or for less than one year (including ordinary month-to-month) without cause requires one month's written notice; a year-to-year tenancy requires 60 days' written notice. (RSMo Sections 441.050, 441.060)
- 5
The governing law is spread across RSMo Chapter 441 (Landlord and Tenant), Chapter 535 (Rent and Possession, the nonpayment procedure), and Chapter 534 (unlawful detainer, the holdover procedure).
- 6
Missouri's notice statutes require the notice to be in writing but do not prescribe a required delivery method (personal service, mail, or posting), unlike some states' detailed service hierarchies. Landlords commonly use personal delivery or certified mail to be able to prove the notice was given.
- 7
There is no state-mandated notice form. If a tenant is sued for nonpayment under a Rent and Possession action, paying all rent owed plus court costs before judgment stays the case. (RSMo Section 535.160)
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Eviction Notice in Missouri, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Eviction Notice guide walks through them.
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Missouri Requirements for Eviction Notice
Nonpayment of Rent Demand Requirement (Missouri Revised Statutes Section 535.020)
No fixed pre-filing notice-day count applies to nonpayment of rent. The landlord or the landlord's agent must have demanded rent that is already due and payable, and payment must not have been made, before filing a Rent and Possession action. Giving the one month notice required by Section 441.060 is not required first.
No Prescribed Service Method (Missouri Revised Statutes Sections 441.040, 441.060)
Missouri's notice statutes require the notice to be in writing and given to the person in possession, or for month-to-month terminations, to the other party or that party's agent, but they do not prescribe a required delivery method such as personal service, mail, or posting, and set no order of preference among methods.
No Prescribed Form, Pay-Before-Judgment Right (Missouri Revised Statutes Sections 441.040, 535.160)
There is no government-mandated notice form for the pre-filing notice to vacate itself. In a Rent and Possession case for nonpayment, the tenant may still stop the case by tendering all rent in arrears plus court costs to the landlord on the date judgment is given, which stays further proceedings.
10-Day Notice to Vacate for Lease Violations (Missouri Revised Statutes Sections 441.030, 441.040)
A tenant who assigns or sublets without the landlord's written consent, violates a written lease condition, or commits waste may be given a 10-day notice to vacate the premises. Missouri law does not provide a statutory opportunity to cure these violations before the deadline.
Governing Landlord-Tenant Statutes (Missouri Revised Statutes Chapters 441, 534, and 535)
The statutory basis for every notice type on this page and the court process that follows if the tenant does not comply: Chapter 441 (Landlord and Tenant, notice and termination rules), Chapter 535 (Rent and Possession, the nonpayment procedure), and Chapter 534 (Forcible Entry and Detainer / Unlawful Detainer, the holdover procedure).
No-Cause Termination Notice Periods (Missouri Revised Statutes Sections 441.050, 441.060)
Distinct from the cause-based notices above: ending a tenancy at will, by sufferance, or for less than one year, including ordinary month-to-month tenancies, without cause requires one month's written notice. Ending a year-to-year tenancy without cause requires at least 60 days' written notice before the end of the year.
10-Day Notice to Vacate for Illegal Use of Premises (Missouri Revised Statutes Sections 441.020, 441.040)
Illegal use of the premises, including prohibited gaming, keeping a bawdyhouse or brothel, or illegal possession, sale, or distribution of controlled substances, voids the lease. The landlord may then give a 10-day notice to vacate under the same no-cure procedure used for lease violations.