You've found out your landlord was running an unlicensed HMO, or collecting rent without the right paperwork in place. You know you're owed money back. The question sitting in your head now is how long this is going to take.
Most rent repayment orders in the UK take between 3 and 6 months from the moment you submit your application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to the day a decision lands. Not weeks. Not years. A few months, with most straightforward cases landing closer to 3 to 4 months.
The timeline isn't fixed, though. A landlord who contests the claim, missing evidence, or a busy tribunal listing window can push things out. This guide walks through each stage of the process so you know exactly what to expect and where the clock is most likely to slow down.
What the RRO process looks like, stage by stage
The rent repayment order process has five distinct stages, and each one has its own rough timeframe.
Stage 1: Gathering evidence (2 to 4 weeks) Before you file anything, you need to build your case. That means pulling together your tenancy agreement, rent payment records, proof of the landlord's offence (an unlicensed HMO, a missing gas safety certificate, an illegal eviction), and evidence that you were paying rent during the period you're claiming for. This stage is entirely in your hands, and it's the one most people underestimate. Do it properly here and you save time at every stage after.
Stage 2: Submitting your application (1 to 2 weeks) The application goes to the First-tier Tribunal using the RRO1 form. There is an application fee, plus a separate hearing fee if the case is listed for a hearing, and you can request reimbursement if your claim succeeds. Check the current amounts on GOV.UK. Once submitted, the tribunal acknowledges receipt within 2 to 3 weeks and formally notifies your landlord.
Stage 3: The landlord's response (2 to 4 weeks) Your landlord gets a chance to respond. If they don't dispute the claim, the case can sometimes be decided on the papers without a hearing. If they do contest it, a hearing gets listed. Most contested cases get listed within 1 to 3 months of the application, depending on tribunal workload in your area.
Stage 4: The hearing The hearing itself usually lasts between 1 and 3 hours. You present your evidence, the landlord presents theirs, and the tribunal panel decides. You do not need a solicitor to attend, though having well-organised evidence matters enormously.
Stage 5: The decision (2 to 6 weeks after the hearing) Decisions are typically issued within 2 to 6 weeks of the hearing date. The tribunal will confirm whether you're entitled to a repayment order, and if so, how much and over what period. That is up to 2 years' rent for offences on or after 1 May 2026, or 12 months for earlier offences.
Add all of that up for a contested case and you're realistically looking at 4 to 6 months. For an uncontested claim where the landlord doesn't engage, 3 months is achievable.
Why do some rent repayment order cases take longer than 6 months?
Six months is the typical ceiling, but it's not a hard one. Certain things reliably push cases past it.
A landlord who fights back. A landlord who appoints a representative and submits detailed written arguments will trigger a full contested hearing with proper disclosure. That adds at least 4 to 8 extra weeks to the schedule, sometimes more if the tribunal requests further evidence rounds.
Missing documentation. If the tribunal asks you to provide additional evidence after submission and you're slow to respond, the clock stops moving. Tribunals will typically set a deadline for additional documents, and missing it can push your listing date back by weeks.
Tribunal backlog. The First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) handles a large volume of cases. In high-demand areas, hearing slots can run 2 to 3 months out from the date your case is ready for listing. There's no way to pay to jump the queue.
Multiple tenants claiming together. A group of housemates filing a joint claim can complicate the scheduling and the evidence bundle. Joint claims are worth doing because they typically produce larger total awards, but they do take longer to coordinate.
The one thing that genuinely speeds up a case is a well-prepared initial application. Tribunals don't reward complexity. They reward clear, organised evidence that makes the decision easy. A thorough bundle submitted on day one is worth more than any legal argument you could make at the hearing.
How much can you claim through a rent repayment order?
Before you decide whether 3 to 6 months is worth your time, know what you're potentially claiming.
A rent repayment order can cover up to 2 years of rent paid during the period the landlord's offence was ongoing for offences committed on or after 1 May 2026, or up to 12 months for earlier offences. If you were paying £1,200 a month and your landlord was running an unlicensed HMO for the last year, that's up to £14,400 available on a successful claim, and an offence running longer than that could reach more. Even a partial award covering 6 months at that rent would be £7,200.
The tribunal has discretion on the amount. It will consider how long the offence lasted, whether the landlord knew about it, the condition of the property, and your own conduct as a tenant. Landlords who took active steps to hide a licensing issue tend to get larger awards against them.
You can claim if your landlord committed one of the qualifying offences listed in the Housing and Planning Act 2016 (as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025), which pulls in offences from the Housing Act 2004, the Protection from Eviction Act 1977 and other statutes. The most common grounds are operating an unlicensed HMO, failing to comply with an improvement notice, illegally evicting a tenant, and, from 1 May 2026, misusing a possession ground. This route applies to housing in England, and Wales runs its own separate scheme. You can read about which offences qualify on our rent repayment order grounds guide.
There is an application fee, plus a hearing fee if the case proceeds to a hearing. Check the current figures on GOV.UK. On a no-win-no-fee basis, you only pay a percentage of what you recover, so the maths almost always favours trying.
The 12-month and 2-year time limits you cannot afford to miss
The RRO process has a strict time limit, and missing it ends your claim entirely.
For offences committed before 1 May 2026, you have 12 months from the date of the offence to submit your application to the tribunal. So if your landlord's HMO licence expired 10 months ago, you have roughly 2 months left to file. The clock does not pause while you gather evidence.
For offences committed on or after 1 May 2026, the Renters' Rights Act extended the limitation period to 2 years. That's one of the more tenant-friendly changes in the legislation, giving you a longer window to identify the offence and build your case before the deadline cuts you off.
Neither limitation period can be extended by a tribunal. If you're outside the window, the tribunal has no discretion to hear your claim, regardless of how strong the underlying case is.
If you're not sure when the offence started, or whether you're still inside the window, check now rather than later. Remedy gives you a free instant assessment of your situation, including whether you're still within time, with no credit card needed. The worst outcome is finding out you had a strong case six weeks after the window closed.
For a detailed walkthrough on completing the application itself, see our step-by-step guide to the RRO1 form.
How to stop your rent repayment order claim being delayed
You cannot control the tribunal's listing schedule. You can control everything else.
Get your evidence bundle right before you file. That means rent receipts or bank statements showing every payment, your tenancy agreement, proof of the landlord's offence (a council licensing search, correspondence, dated photos), and a clear summary of the period you're claiming for. An organised bundle submitted upfront reduces back-and-forth with the tribunal.
Respond to tribunal correspondence the same day. The tribunal will send you documents by post or email. Every day you sit on a request for further information is a day added to your timeline. Set a reminder to check for tribunal correspondence regularly.
Don't wait for the landlord to admit anything. Most landlords contesting an RRO deny liability until the end. Their denial is not evidence that your claim is weak. The tribunal decides on the evidence, not on what the landlord admits.
Keep records of everything after you file. Any communication with your landlord during the process, any changes to the property, anything relevant should go into your evidence folder. Tribunals sometimes request up-to-date information at the hearing.
Remedy's tribunal support feature helps you prepare your evidence bundle, track deadlines, and upload and annotate documents so nothing slips through. For renters managing this without a solicitor, that structure makes a genuine difference. See our full guide on how to apply for a rent repayment order in the UK for the complete application process.
What changes after 1 May 2026 affect RRO timelines?
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 came into force on 1 May 2026, and it changes the RRO picture in ways that may affect how long your case takes.
First, the expanded grounds. The Act added new offences that qualify for a rent repayment order, including knowingly misusing a possession ground and re-letting within 12 months of using a moving-in or selling ground. Further grounds tied to the Private Rented Sector database are written into the Act but not yet in force, because the database has not launched. More qualifying offences mean more potential claims in the tribunal system, which may push listing times out further in the short term.
Second, the 2-year limitation period for post-May 2026 offences gives tenants more time to identify problems and file, which should reduce the number of borderline cases where tenants rush a poorly prepared application.
Third, landlord fines under the new Act are significant. Local councils can now issue civil penalties of up to £40,000 for certain offences. A landlord facing both a council fine and an RRO claim at the same time may be more inclined to settle, which could shorten timelines for some claimants.
GOV.UK has published updated rent repayment order guidance for tenants under the new framework, and tribunals are expected to refresh their standard directions to reflect the new legislation over the coming months.
If your claim involves an offence that straddles the May 2026 commencement date, get advice on which limitation period applies to your specific facts. You can read more about the fines landlords now face under the Renters' Rights Act and what that means for your bargaining position as a claimant.
A rent repayment order takes 3 to 6 months. That's real time, but it produces real money, and the process is accessible without a solicitor if your evidence is in order.
The single biggest risk to your claim is not the tribunal or the landlord. It's the time limit. If your landlord's offence happened more than 12 months ago and it pre-dates May 2026, you may already be close to the window closing. The time to check is now.
Remedy gives you a free instant assessment of your RRO eligibility, checks whether you're inside the limitation period, and walks you through building your evidence bundle. If your claim has merit, Remedy can support you from that first assessment through to the tribunal on a no-win-no-fee basis, starting at 10% of what you recover. Start your free assessment at Remedy and find out what you're owed before the clock runs out.
