Texas Eviction Notice

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   An eviction notice, called a notice to vacate in Texas, is a written notice a landlord must serve on a tenant to begin ending a tenancy for cause, before filing a forcible detainer suit in a Texas justice court.

2. 2

   Texas requires at least 3 days' written notice to vacate before filing suit, unless the lease contracts for a shorter or longer period. Since January 1, 2026, that count follows a new statutory formula: it includes weekends and holidays and excludes only the day the notice is given, moving the deadline to the next non-weekend, non-holiday day only if the last day would otherwise fall on one. (Tex. Prop. Code Sections 24.005(a), 24.0042)

3. 3

   Texas does not vary the day count by cause. Nonpayment of rent, holdover past the lease term, and other lease violations all default to the same 3 days; what varies is the notice's required form, not its length. (Tex. Prop. Code Section 24.005(a))

4. 4

   If a tenant's possession is being ended solely for nonpayment of rent and the tenant was not already late before that month, the notice must be captioned as a notice to pay rent or vacate, not a plain notice to vacate. If the tenant was already delinquent, the landlord may use either form. (Tex. Prop. Code Section 24.005(a))

5. 5

   Texas law does not create a statutory cure period for lease violations other than nonpayment. A lease default other than rent, or a holdover past the lease term, gets the same 3-day notice to vacate with no legally guaranteed chance to fix the problem; any cure right comes only from the lease itself. (Tex. Prop. Code Section 24.005(a))

6. 6

   The governing law is Texas Property Code Chapter 24, the Forcible Entry and Detainer statute. The notice may be delivered by any one of four methods, mail, leaving it inside the premises in a conspicuous place, hand delivery to any tenant 16 or older, or agreed-upon electronic delivery, with no required order of preference; actual receipt by the tenant satisfies the requirement regardless of which method was used. (Tex. Prop. Code Sections 24.005(f-3), 24.005(f-4))

7. 7

   There's no state-mandated form for the notice itself. Separately, a landlord who wants to be eligible to recover attorney's fees must send a distinct written demand by registered or certified mail at least 10 days before filing suit, warning that fees may be recovered if the tenant does not vacate before the 11th day after receiving it. (Tex. Prop. Code Section 24.006)

Texas Requirements for Eviction Notice

• Notice Period and Computation of Time (Texas Property Code Sections 24.005(a), 24.0042)

  At least 3 days' written notice to vacate before filing a forcible detainer suit, unless the parties' written lease or agreement contracts for a shorter or longer period. Effective January 1, 2026, the count follows Texas Property Code Section 24.0042: it excludes the day the notice is given, includes Saturdays, Sundays, and state or federal holidays, and moves the deadline to the next non-weekend, non-holiday day only if the last day of the period would otherwise fall on one.

• Service of Notice Requirements (Texas Property Code Sections 24.005(f-3), 24.005(f-4))

  Any one of four delivery methods is sufficient, with no required order of preference: mail (first class, registered, certified, or a delivery service), delivery to the inside of the premises in a conspicuous place, hand delivery to any tenant of the premises age 16 or older, or electronic communication if the parties agreed to it in writing. A defective delivery method does not matter if the tenant actually received the notice.

• Notice Form for Nonpayment of Rent (Texas Property Code Section 24.005(a))

  If a tenant's right of possession is being terminated solely for nonpayment of rent and the tenant was not late or delinquent before the notice month, the written notice must be given in the form of a notice to pay rent or vacate. If the tenant was already late or delinquent before that month, the landlord may use either a notice to pay rent or vacate or a plain notice to vacate.

• No Statutory Cure Period for Lease Violations (Texas Property Code Section 24.005(a))

  Texas's eviction statute does not create a separate statutory cure-or-quit notice type or a state-mandated cure period for lease violations other than nonpayment. A landlord terminating for a lease default other than rent, or for holdover past the lease term, serves the same 3-day (or lease-modified) notice to vacate; any opportunity to cure the violation and stay exists only if the parties' written lease itself provides one, not by operation of Chapter 24.

• Holdover and No-Cause Termination Notice (Texas Property Code Section 91.001, cross-referenced by Section 24.005(a))

  Ending a monthly or month-to-month tenancy without cause requires a notice of termination given by the landlord or the tenant; if the rent-paying period is at least one month, the tenancy ends on whichever is later, the date stated in the notice or one month after the notice is given. A landlord relying on holdover past the lease term for a forcible detainer suit must satisfy this Section 91.001 timing before the 3-day notice to vacate under Section 24.005(a) can run.

• Attorney's Fees Eligibility Demand (Texas Property Code Section 24.006)

  Separate from the notice to vacate required to file suit at all: to be eligible to recover attorney's fees, a landlord must send a distinct written demand by registered mail or certified mail, return receipt requested, at least 10 days before filing suit, stating that fees may be recovered if the tenant does not vacate before the 11th day after receiving the demand.

• Governing Forcible Entry and Detainer Statute (Texas Property Code Chapter 24)

  The statutory basis for every notice type on this page and the justice-court process that follows if the tenant does not comply: Texas Property Code Chapter 24, "Forcible Entry and Detainer," Sections 24.001 through 24.008.