Wisconsin Eviction Notice
Wisconsin eviction notice: the 5-day pay-or-vacate notice under Wis. Stat. Section 704.17, plus the 14-day no-cure track for repeat defaults. Free template.
Introduction
Wisconsin runs the same lease violation through two different notice lengths depending on whether this is the tenant's first offense in the past year or a repeat one. This page's compact notice text below is the actual document a Wisconsin landlord fills out and serves, not a broader explainer of how Wisconsin eviction law works; that broader guide lives on the sibling notice-to-vacate page. A first-time nonpayment of rent, or a first-time lease violation other than rent, gets 5 days to pay or fix the problem under Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17. But if the tenant defaults or violates again within one year of that earlier notice, the cure option disappears and the landlord can give a 14-day notice to vacate outright, with no second chance to fix anything. Tenancy length changes the math too: those 5-day and 14-day periods apply to month-to-month, week-to-week, lease-of-one-year-or-less, and year-to-year tenancies, but a tenant under a lease exceeding one year gets 30 days' notice instead for the same categories of default. A separate, faster track sits outside all of this: criminal activity that threatens health, safety, or peaceful enjoyment, or drug-related activity, gets a 5-day notice to vacate with no cure chance at all, regardless of how long the tenancy has run. There's no state-mandated notice form; the law requires only that the notice be in writing and served correctly, though its own wording still has to state the default and the deadline.
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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 action in Wisconsin circuit court.
- 2
A first-time nonpayment of rent gets a 5-day pay-or-vacate notice for month-to-month, week-to-week, lease-of-one-year-or-less, or year-to-year tenancies (called a "pay-or-quit" notice in some other states). A tenant under a lease exceeding one year instead gets 30 days. (Wis. Stat. Section 704.17(1p)(a), (2)(a), (3)(a))
- 3
A first-time lease violation other than nonpayment, like unauthorized pets or property damage, gets the same 5-day "cure-or-quit" structure: remedy the violation within 5 days and the lease continues (30 days for leases over one year). The tenant is treated as complying if they promptly take reasonable steps toward a fix. (Wis. Stat. Section 704.17(1p)(b)1, (2)(b))
- 4
If the tenant defaults or violates again within one year of an earlier notice, whether it's a second missed rent payment or a second lease violation, the cure option is gone. The landlord can give a 14-day notice to vacate with no chance to fix the problem this time. (Wis. Stat. Section 704.17(1p)(a), (1p)(b)2, (2)(a), (2)(b))
- 5
Criminal activity that threatens health, safety, or peaceful enjoyment of the property or the neighborhood, or drug-related criminal activity, gets an "unconditional quit" notice: 5 days to vacate, no cure option, regardless of tenancy length. This notice must describe the activity, date, and individuals involved. (Wis. Stat. Section 704.17(3m))
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The governing law is Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 704, and notice must be served under Section 704.21: personal delivery to the tenant (or to a family member 14 or older at the tenant's home) comes first, then leaving a copy with someone in charge of the premises plus mailing a copy, then posting on the property plus mailing, only if the first two options can't be done with reasonable diligence. Certified mail and summons-style service (governed by service of process rules in Section 801.11) are separately available at any time.
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There's no state-mandated form for the notice itself; Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(4) requires only that it be in writing and properly served. Separately, ending a month-to-month tenancy without any cause requires at least 28 days' written notice under Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.19, distinct from the for-cause notices above.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Eviction Notice in Wisconsin, 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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Wisconsin Requirements for Eviction Notice
Notice Period for Nonpayment of Rent (Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(1p)(a), 704.17(2)(a))
5-day pay-or-vacate notice on a tenant's first rent default, for month-to-month, week-to-week, lease-of-one-year-or-less, or year-to-year tenancies; 30 days for leases exceeding one year, under Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(3)(a).
Repeat Violation and Criminal Activity Notices, No Cure (Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(1p)(b)2, 704.17(3m))
A second rent default or lease violation within one year of an earlier notice gets a 14-day notice to vacate with no cure option. Separately, criminal activity threatening health, safety, or peaceful enjoyment of the premises, neighbors, or the landlord, or drug-related criminal activity, gets a 5-day notice to vacate with no cure option, regardless of tenancy length, and must describe the activity, date, and individuals involved.
Service of Notice Requirements (Wis. Stat. § 704.21)
Personal delivery to the tenant, or to a family member at least 14 years old at the tenant's usual place of abode, is required first. If that cannot be done, leave a copy with a person apparently in charge of the premises, plus mail a copy to the tenant's last-known address. Posting a copy conspicuously on the premises plus mailing is permitted only if neither of the first two methods can be accomplished with reasonable diligence. Registered or certified mail, and service as prescribed for a summons under Wisconsin Statutes Section 801.11, are independently available at any time. Actual receipt by the tenant cures a defective method, though the party alleging actual receipt bears the burden of proving it by clear and convincing evidence.
No Prescribed Form, Mandatory Written Notice (Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(4))
There is no state-promulgated fill-in form for the pre-filing notice terminating tenancy itself. Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(4) requires only that the notice be in writing and given by one of the Section 704.21 service methods; the notice's own operative wording must still state the applicable default (amount owed, or the violated lease term) and the deadline to pay, cure, or vacate.
No-Cause Termination Notice Period (Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.19)
Distinct from the for-cause notices above: ending a periodic tenancy (month-to-month, week-to-week, or other periodic basis) without cause requires at least 28 days' written notice. If rent is payable at intervals of less than one month, the notice period matches that shorter interval instead. A year-to-year agricultural tenancy requires at least 90 days' notice.
Governing Notice and Eviction Action Statutes (Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 704, Section 799.40)
The statutory basis for every notice type on this page and the circuit court eviction action that follows if the tenant does not comply: Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 704 (Landlord and Tenant), primarily Section 704.17. Wisconsin Statutes Section 799.40 cross-references notices given under Sections 704.16, 704.17, and 704.19 as the basis for filing an eviction action, and treats proof of certified mailing as sufficient to establish proper notice.
Notice Period for Curable Lease Violations (Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(1p)(b)1, 704.17(2)(b))
5-day remedy-or-vacate notice on a tenant's first violation of a lease covenant other than rent, such as waste or a material violation of Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.07(3) (30 days for leases exceeding one year). The tenant is deemed complying if reasonable steps toward a fix are promptly taken and pursued with reasonable diligence.