Guidance

Standalone lease closure

Published 13 November 2024

Applies to England and Wales

1. Overvieew

There are 14 types of lease closure transaction in total. 

1.1 Lease closure – by disclaimer  

Use where bankruptcy or liquidation has occurred. 

1.2 Lease closure – by effluxion of time 

Use when the term of a fixed term lease expired. The lease needs to be outside Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 and the Local Government Housing Act 1989. You can use panel 9 of the CN1 to provide confirmation. Where determined by notice, provide a copy of the notice. 

1.3 Lease closure – by notice  

Use where the lease is terminated, for example following exercise of a break notice. The lease needs to be outside Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 and the Local Government Housing Act 1989. You can use panel 9 of the CN1 to provide confirmation. Where determined by notice, provide a copy of the notice. 

1.4 Lease closure – by forfeiture 

Use where there is a court order for forfeiture, or the landlord has exercised peaceable re-entry under the lease and a statutory declaration or statement of truth has been provided. For example, where the tenant has not paid the rent, or the tenant has breached covenants of the lease. This option cannot be used on an assured tenancy. 

1.5 Lease closure – merger with reversionary estate  

Make sure you are able to apply for merger with reversionary estate before you select this transaction. 

Two estates must be in same ownership (same person, same capacity, for example, one absolute owner and one trustee or personal representative - not possible). You may need to: 

• provide evidence that the applicant holds all estates in the same capacity 
• provide evidence that the applicant holds all estates upon the same trusts
• provide evidence that the trust no longer applies (so you’ll need to apply to cancel the existing Form A restriction or apply for a Form A restriction on the title/titles which doesn’t have one together with a certificate that the applicant holds all estates upon the same trusts,

If you are also lodging an application for transfer or Form A restriction in a transfer, make sure you choose the correct priority order (for example, transfer first) 

1.6 Lease closure – of assured tenancies following court order  

Refer also to Schedules 1 and 7 of the Housing Act 1988. 

This is only for use where the lease is registered. 

1.7 Lease closure – on enlargement 

Use to ‘enlarge’ the residue of a long lease into a freehold, subject to the requirements of LPA 1925 s153. 

1.8 Lease closure – on frustration  

Use for the automatic determination of a lease by the doctrine of frustration, not by an event referred to in the ‘frustration clause’ in the lease. 

1.9 Lease closure – surrender by deed  

The tenant surrenders the interest by way of deed and the landlord accepts. There is no prescribed form this can take but the landlord must consent to the surrender and evidence of this consent must be lodged. You will need to lodge a copy of the deed of surrender OR other deed effecting the surrender. 

1.10 Lease closure – surrender by deed (not for value or reverse premium) 

As above, but not for value. 

1.11 Lease closure – surrender by deed (together with transfer)  

Use when surrender is being effected by a transfer. This transfers it to the reversionary estate (for example, to the landlord). 

Select ‘Lease closure - surrender by deed (together with transfer)’ and ‘Transfer’. Make sure the surrender is clear in the additional provisions panel, or by including a letter making it clear. 

The landlord must consent to the surrender. Consent can be established by: 

• lodging a letter of consent or by the landlord (or their conveyancer) applying to close the registered leasehold title and/or cancel notice of the lease, 
• the deed (or duplicate deeds signed separately) being executed by both the landlord and tenant and incorporating wording along the following lines: 

“[Tenant] hereby [transfers and] surrenders to [landlord] the land comprised in the title above mentioned to the intent that the term of years granted by the [registered] lease may merge and be extinguished in the reversion thereof.”

or 

“[Tenant] transfers and surrenders and releases to [landlord] all their estate and interest and rights in that part of the whole of the land comprised in the above title edged … on the annexed plan (‘the Surrendered Land’), to the intent that the residue of the term of years granted by the registered lease in so far as it relates to the Surrendered Land, and all or any other estate, interest or right of the Tenant in the Surrendered Land, whether granted by or arising from the registered lease or any deed or document supplemental to it or otherwise, is to merge and be extinguished in the reversion immediately expectant on the term of years granted by the registered lease.” 

1.12 Lease closure – surrender by deed (not for value or reverse premium) 

As above, but not for value. 

1.13 Lease closure – surrender by operation of law 

This is to be used when there is implied surrender due to actions of both parties.  In most cases you will need to lodge a statutory declaration or statement of truth confirming: any consideration paid, that no deed of surrender was entered into, that premises have been vacated and if required, evidence to account for rent from any occupying under-lessee. 

1.14 Lease closure – surrender by operation of law (not for value or reverse premium) 

As above, but not for value. 

2. Application details 

This guidance covers the of registered leasehold titles. If the lease is noted, select ‘Cancellation of an unregistered noted lease (CN1)’ as the transaction. 

Lease closure transactions appear as either standalone register updates or can be added as additional titles on TP and New Lease applications. 

This guidance deals exclusively with standalone applications to close a lease. 

Select ‘‘Updating, adding, removing or noting information about an existing title on the register’. 

Enter the closing leasehold title and the landlord title number(s). This will trigger an application on both titles so that the leasehold title is closed, and the note of the lease is removed from the landlord title. 

2.1 Transaction selection 

All 14 lease closure options appear on the transaction list. Select the type of lease closure required. 

You do not need to lodge a CN1 to remove the note of a registered lease on the landlord title.  

The fee is calculated automatically.  

2.2 Entering transaction details 

Tenant and landlord details are required to populate the e-AP1 (and mirror the input of transferee and transferor capture). 

2.3 Attachments and evidence required 

Document prompts are dynamic and will populate based on the transaction – where the required evidence is various, the ‘Attach and certify document’ screen will display a dropdown list of options.