If you’re a landlord or property management company seeking to evict a tenant for non-payment of rent by the due date or another reason, use a Connecticut (CT) Eviction Notice to begin the eviction process.
Your written notice must follow Connecticut law and give your tenant the legally required time period to respond (i.e., correct a violation of the rental agreement) or move out.
In Connecticut, Title 47a, Chapters 830 and 832 of the General Statutes of Connecticut governs evictions (also known as the summary process in this state).
Eviction notices in Connecticut are also known as:
- Connecticut Notice to Quit
- Connecticut Notice to Vacate
- Connecticut Notice to Pay Rent or Quit
- Connecticut Lease Termination
Connecticut Eviction Notices by Type
Download a free form customized for Connecticut law below in MS Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF format.
Lease Termination: Use this notice to let a tenant know that you’re ending a month-to-month lease and that they must prepare to leave your rental property.
In Connecticut, there’s no state law for how much of a notice period landlords or tenants must notify the other therefore, it depends on the terms of the lease agreement.
Download: Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF
15-Day Notice to Quit for Non-Compliance: Use this notice to quit to begin evicting a tenant for a lease violation.
In Connecticut, landlords must give tenants a 15-day notice period to either comply or vacate the property.
During that time period, tenants may have the option to fix (or “cure”) the problem.
Landlords may terminate the lease in cases where the tenants break the same terms twice within six months or fail to meet the terms of their lease agreement.
There is no option to cure for illegal activity such as using or selling illegal drugs or behavior that endangers others.
Download: Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF
3-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit: Use this notice to quit to evict a tenant if they’re late paying the rent.
After the applicable grace period, landlords and property managers must give tenants three days to pay past-due rent before the Connecticut eviction process can proceed in court.
If the tenant pays the full amount of rent and any late fee within three days, the lease won’t be terminated.
Download: Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF
If you wish to simply send a letter reminding your tenant of unpaid rent, use a late notice.
Eviction Laws & Requirements
- Eviction Notice: Landlords must generally give 3 days’ notice before obtaining a writ, summons, and complaint from a Superior Court Commissioner. (C.G.S.A. § 47a-23)
- Grace Period for Late Rent: Nine or four days ( week-to-week tenancy only). A landlord may not terminate the rental agreement or charge a late fee until after the expiration of the nine or four-day grace period. (Late Rent Grace Period and Fees and C.G.S.A. § 47a-15a)
- Notice of Late or Non-Payment of Rent: Three days (C.G.S.A. § 47a-15a)
- Notice of Non-Compliance: 15 days (C.G.S.A. § 47a-15)
- Notice of Illegal Conduct or Serious Nuisance: No notice required (C.G.S.A. §§ 47a-15 and 47a-31)
- Lease Termination (Month-to-Month): No notice required (C.G.S.A. § 47a-23)
What is the Eviction Process in Connecticut?
The following guide to evictions in Connecticut is an overview of the legal timeline of eviction proceedings. Landlords renting mobile homes have additional processes to follow so contacting an attorney is helpful.
Step 1- Serve Notice
The landlord must first serve the tenant an eviction notice that states the reasons for the eviction (one or more lease violations).
Those reasons could be non-payment of rent, violating the lease/rental agreement, illegal activity in the dwelling unit, or terminating a monthly tenancy.
The length of time required for the notice or any grace period depends on the reason for eviction.
You can use personal service, mail, or a process server to serve the tenant with an eviction notice. This formally starts the eviction process.
Remember, there will likely be court costs and possible attorney fees to consider when starting the eviction process.
Step 2 – File Eviction
If a tenant hasn’t responded (i.e., paid the past due rent) or moved out in the time specified in the notice, landlords may file a summons and complaint with the Superior Court in their county.
Step 3 – Issue Summons and Complaint
The next step in the eviction process is the Superior Court setting a hearing date and issuing the summons and complaint to be served on the tenant.
Step 4 – Tenant Answers or Defaults
If the tenant wants to contest the eviction, they must file an appearance with the Superior Court and a written answer to the summons and complaint within the time frame indicated on the summons.
If the tenant fails to respond, the landlord may bring a default motion for judgment for the tenant’s failure to appear or file pleadings to get a court judgment and order for possession.
Step 5 – Court Sets Trial Date
If the tenant files an answer to the complaint, a trial date is set typically between 7 to 10 days after the answer has been filed. Landlords may win a default judgment on their case if tenants fail to show up for the court date.
Step 6 – Court Issues Judgement
If the landlord wins (by default judgment if a tenant fails to show up for the hearing), a judicial officer enters a judgment against the tenant, and the landlord can request an execution order to remove the tenant from the premises
. This court order is served on the tenant by a state marshal. The tenant then has 24 hours to leave the premises, or their belongings may be placed in storage.
Step 7 – Tenant Appeals or Moves Out
The tenant has five days after the judgment to file an appeal. During that time, the landlord can’t execute the judgment (stay of execution). Only the state marshall can forcibly remove a tenant from a rental unit.
If the tenant files an appeal, the stay of execution extends until after the appeal process is complete unless the court finds the appeal was made merely for delay or other improper purposes (the maximum stay is three months).
Remember that landlords must return any refundable portions of security deposits when tenants move out.
Documenting the property condition with a Rental Inspection Checklist is a good idea, so it’s easier to determine what damages are normal wear and tear versus excessive.
Related Connecticut Court Forms
Notice to Quit (End) Possession: Notice a landlord provides notice to quit to the tenant to leave the rental unit for failing to pay the rent due.
Summary Process (Eviction) Complaint, Nonpayment of Rent: This document begins the eviction lawsuit for non-payment of rent, stating the facts of the tenancy and non-payment.
Summons – Summary Process (Eviction): Served with the complaint to notify the tenant they’re being evicted and what they must do.
Summary Process (Eviction) Complaint, Termination of Lease by Lapse of Time: This document begins the eviction process for lease termination.
Summary Process (Eviction), Answer to Complaint: The tenant answers the eviction lawsuit with this document, argues in their defense, and provides any proof of wrongdoing by the landlord such as uninhabitable living conditions or accepting full payment of rent while proceeding with the eviction.
Motion for Default for Failure to Appear and Judgment for Possession: The landlord files this if the tenant doesn’t appear in the eviction lawsuit.
Motion for Judgment for Possession for Failure to Plead: The landlord files this if the tenant doesn’t file an answer to the eviction lawsuit.
Reply to Special Defenses: The landlord may respond to the tenant’s defenses to the eviction.
Summary Process Execution for Possession (Eviction): The court issues this document after the landlord wins the court case and is used to remove the tenant from the rental premises (only a state marshall can forcibly remove the tenant).
Eviction Information for Connecticut Landlords and Tenants
Below are resources for legal help for landlords and tenants dealing with eviction proceedings.
Resources for Landlords
Landlord and Tenant Process for Collecting Overdue Rent: A landlord must not use self-help eviction tactics, such as turning off utilities or locking tenants out of the premises.
Landlords and Utility Services: Landlord’s obligations regarding utilities.
Rights and Responsibilities of Landlords and Tenants in Connecticut: Guidebook on rental agreements, late fees, security deposits, and the eviction process.
Connecticut Law about Landlord/Tenant Law: Connecticut General Statutes Annotated on landlord and tenant obligations.
Resources for Tenants
Fair Housing Act: The federal statute forbids landlords from discriminating against tenants based on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, family status, or disability.
HUD tenant resource page: Official Housing and Urban Development (HUD) resource for Connecticut tenants in federally assisted housing.
Connecticut Fair Housing Center: Connecticut law forbids landlords from discriminating against tenants based on race, gender, sex, and sexual orientation.
Connecticut Legal Services: Organization that provides low-cost legal services for qualified applicants.
Late Rent Grace Period and Fees: Connecticut’s law on late rent grace periods.
How to Write an Eviction Notice (Notice to Pay Rent or Quit)
Follow the steps below to write an Eviction notice in Connecticut. Use our document builder to easily create a customized Connecticut eviction notice for your tenant.
Step 1 – Fill Out the Date of Eviction Notice
Write the date of the eviction notice.
Step 2 – Enter Tenant Information and Property Address
Provide the name of all tenants on the original lease or rental agreement. Enter the full and complete street address for the rental property.
Step 3 – Enter Lease/Rental Agreement Information
Provide the name (or title) and the original lease or rental agreement date.
Step 4 – Enter Late Rent Details
Provide the beginning and end dates for the period in which the rent is past due. Write the amount of the past due rent, late fees (if any), and the total amount the tenant owes to the landlord.
Step 5 – Sign Notice and Enter Landlord Information
The landlord will sign and date the eviction notice. Provide the landlord’s current contact information so the tenant can contact the landlord if necessary.
Step 6 – Provide Proof of Service
Proof of service is an affidavit that shows that the eviction notice was served to the tenant.
Enter the date of delivery. This is important because it provides evidence of the date the notice is delivered to the tenant, which starts the number of days the tenant has to pay the past due rent (three days) or vacate the property.
The person delivering the eviction notice, the server, should complete the delivery method, the fields for the person receiving the notice, and the address of the location where the notice was delivered.
The server signs, prints their full name, and dates the proof of service.
Connecticut Eviction Notice Sample
Below is an example of what a Connecticut eviction notice looks like.