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.
Key Things to Know
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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.
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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))
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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))
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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))
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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
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).
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
It depends on whether this is the tenant's first offense and how long the tenancy has run. A first-time nonpayment of rent or lease violation gets 5 days to fix it (month-to-month, week-to-week, or a lease of one year or less/year-to-year), or 30 days for a lease over one year. A repeat default or violation within one year of an earlier notice drops straight to a 14-day notice with no cure option. Criminal activity or drug-related activity gets a 5-day notice with no cure, regardless of tenancy length.
No. Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(4) requires written notice, given by one of the methods in Section 704.21, before an eviction action can be filed. Self-help eviction, like changing the locks or removing a tenant's belongings without going through the court process, is prohibited outright. Skipping the notice, or getting the day count wrong, can get the eviction case dismissed.
At minimum, the notice needs the date it's given, the landlord's and tenant's names, the rental address, and a statement of the default: the amount owed for a nonpayment notice, or a description of the violated lease term for other defaults. A criminal-activity notice has to go further under Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(3m): it must describe the activity, the date it occurred, and who was involved, and tell the tenant they can contest the notice in court.
No. There's no state-promulgated fill-in form for the pre-filing notice itself; a landlord can write their own as long as it's in writing and states the required content for that notice type. Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17(4) sets the writing and service requirements. The eviction complaint filed later with the circuit court is a separate document and does not replace this notice.
A curable notice, the 5-day (or 30-day for leases over one year) track, gives the tenant a chance to pay the rent owed or fix the lease violation and keep the tenancy. An incurable notice offers no such chance: it applies to a repeat default or violation within one year of an earlier notice (14 days), and to criminal or drug-related activity (5 days), where the tenancy simply ends and the tenant must vacate by the deadline. Pick the incurable option on this form only when one of those two situations actually applies.
Start counting from the date the notice is given, using the day count that matches the reason selected: 5 days for a first-time default under most tenancies, 30 days if the lease runs more than a year, or 14 days for a repeat default or violation. Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.17 measures these periods in calendar days from the giving of the notice, not from when the tenant reads it, so date and keep proof of exactly when the notice was given.
Personal delivery to the tenant, or to a family member at least 14 years old at the tenant's home, is the primary method under Wisconsin Statutes Section 704.21. If that's not possible, leave a copy with someone in charge of the premises and mail a copy to the tenant's last-known address. Posting the notice on the property plus mailing a copy is allowed only if neither of those first two options can be accomplished with reasonable diligence. Registered or certified mail is also independently available at any time.
If the tenant hasn't paid, cured, or vacated by the deadline stated on the notice, the notice itself doesn't remove anyone from the property. The landlord's next step is filing an eviction action under Wisconsin Statutes Section 799.40 in the circuit court for the county where the rental is located, which starts the formal court case.