What is a Form 7 Notice to Remedy Breach in Queensland?

Under section 131 of the Property Law Act 2023 (Qld) (which replaced section 124 of the 1974 Act), a lessor cannot exercise any right of re-entry or forfeiture for a breach without serving a Form 7 notice.

Form 7 Notice to Remedy Breach QLD

The Form 7 Notice to Remedy Breach of Covenant is a formal legal notice that a landlord (lessor) must serve on a tenant before they can exercise their right of re-entry or forfeiture.

Under section 131 of the Property Law Act 2023 (Qld), this requirement applies to all leases: including retail shop leases, commercial leases, and industrial leases. This section replaces the well-known section 124 of the former 1974 Act.

What the Form 7 Must Contain

To be valid, the notice must:

Specify the breach (the specific clause in the lease that has been broken)
Require the tenant to remedy the breach (if it is capable of being remedied)
Specify a reasonable time within which the breach must be remedied
State that the lessor has a right to re-enter and terminate the lease if the breach is not remedied

Strict Compliance Required

Queensland courts are very firm about the validity of a Form 7. A breach notice that omits required information, uses unclear language, or fails to give the tenant a reasonable time to remedy is invalid. A landlord who re-enters a premises based on an invalid notice can face significant damages claims for unlawful re-entry.

Landlords: One Mistake Can Cost You a $50,000+ Damages Claim If your Form 7 contains a technical error or you re-enter the premises one day too early, you have committed an ‘unlawful re-entry’. The tenant can sue you for the total loss of their business value and legal costs. Never serve a Form 7 or change the locks without a solicitor’s sign-off.

Contact our commercial litigation team for an urgent Form 7 review. Call (07) 5532 8777.

What is a Reasonable Time?

What is ‘reasonable’ depends on the nature of the breach. A failure to pay rent can often be remedied in a few days. A failure to repair a structural part of the building may require several weeks or even months. If the breach cannot be remedied (such as an unlawful subletting that cannot be undone), the notice must still be served but may not require a remedy period.

Relief Against Forfeiture

Even if a valid notice has been served and the remedy period has passed, a tenant may be able to apply to the court for relief against forfeiture. A court can grant relief if the breach has been remedied, or if forfeiture is considered grossly disproportionate to the landlord’s loss.

For more information, see our Full Retail Leasing Guide .

Read our Complete Startup Legal Guide for Queensland