California Eviction Notice

California Eviction Notice Requirements

In California, a landlord must serve a written notice before filing for eviction under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 1161, 1162; Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1946, 1946.1, 1946.2 (Tenant Protection Act of 2019 / AB 1482, as amended). The required notice period depends on the reason:

• Nonpayment of rent: 3-day notice to pay or quit. 3-day notice to pay rent or quit under CCP § 1161(2). Critically, since the AB 2343 reform (effective Sept 1, 2019), the 3-day count EXCLUDES Saturdays, Sundays, and judicial holidays — confirmed by the statutory phrase 'three days' notice, excluding Saturdays and Sundays and other judicial holidays' — so it is 3 court/business days, not 3 calendar days. The notice may demand RENT ONLY (no late fees, utilities, or other charges) and must state the amount due and where/how/when to pay. The clock starts the day after service. Document generators must encode the business-day skip; the integer 3 alone is the raw statutory number.
• Curable lease violation: 3-day notice to cure or quit. 3-day notice to perform covenant or quit under CCP § 1161(3) for curable lease breaches; the statute likewise reads 'three days' notice, excluding Saturdays and Sundays and other judicial holidays,' so the 3 days EXCLUDE Saturdays, Sundays, and judicial holidays. Under Civ. Code § 1946.2(c), for a tenant protected by just cause, the landlord MUST first serve this cure notice before any notice to quit for a curable violation.
• No-cause termination (month-to-month): 60-day notice. No-fault termination of a month-to-month tenancy: 60 days' notice if the tenant has occupied the unit 1 year or more; 30 days if less than 1 year (Civ. Code § 1946.1). However, for units covered by AB 1482, after 12 months of occupancy the landlord must also have a statutory just cause (no-fault grounds are limited and may require relocation assistance/rent waiver). The generic § 1946 30-day rule is superseded by § 1946.1's 30/60-day scheme for residential tenancies.

Just cause: Yes — statewide just cause under the Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB 1482), Civ. Code § 1946.2 (since amended, e.g., AB 12/SB 567 operative April 1, 2024; current sunset Jan 1, 2030). After a tenant has continuously and lawfully occupied a residential unit for 12 months (24 months if adult tenants are added later), the owner may terminate only for an enumerated at-fault or no-fault just cause, which must be stated in the written notice. Many newer units (built within the last 15 years, rolling), most single-family homes/condos owned by non-corporate owners with proper exemption notice, and owner-occupied duplexes are exempt. Some cities (e.g., LA, SF, Oakland) impose stricter local just-cause ordinances.

Service: Per CCP § 1162, a notice may be served three ways: (1) personal delivery to the tenant; (2) substituted service — leaving a copy with a person of suitable age and discretion at the residence or business, AND mailing a copy; or (3) post-and-mail ("nail and mail") — affixing a copy in a conspicuous place on the property (and giving a copy to anyone residing there, if present), AND mailing a copy. Substituted and post-and-mail service extend the deadline by the mailing.

• Nonpayment, curable-breach, and non-curable (waste/nuisance/unlawful use) notices are all 3-day notices under CCP § 1161, subdivisions (2), (3), and (4) respectively.
• Since AB 2343 (eff. Sept 1, 2019), the 3-day pay-or-quit and cure-or-quit periods EXCLUDE Saturdays, Sundays, and judicial holidays (per the express statutory text of subdivisions (2) and (3)) — meaning roughly a week of calendar time, not 3 calendar days. The subdivision (4) unconditional-quit notice does NOT carry that exclusion and is counted in calendar days. Getting this wrong produces a defective notice.
• Ending a month-to-month tenancy without cause requires 60 days' notice if the tenant has lived there 1 year or more, otherwise 30 days (Civ. Code § 1946.1).
• Statewide just cause (AB 1482, Civ. Code § 1946.2) bars no-fault terminations of covered units after 12 months of occupancy unless a statutory just cause is stated; many units are exempt and local ordinances may be stricter.
• Landlords must STRICTLY comply with notice form and service (CCP § 1162); a defect in the pre-litigation notice can defeat the entire unlawful detainer action.

California Eviction Notices by Type

Disclaimer

This California eviction notice generator is a self-help tool for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Confirm California and local requirements before serving, and consult a landlord-tenant attorney for contested cases.