Can a landlord refuse to renew a commercial lease?
In England and Wales, only on specific statutory grounds if the tenant has 1954 Act protection, unless the lease was contracted out. In Scotland there is generally no right to renew.
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Commercial lease (Scotland)
A commercial lease lets business premises — an office, shop, workshop or unit — to a tenant for a term in return for rent. It covers rent and review, repairs and insurance, permitted use, alterations, assignment and subletting, break rights and ending the lease. The formalities differ significantly between England and Wales and Scotland.
When you need one
Use one whenever a business takes exclusive possession of premises for a period. For short, flexible occupation, a licence may be possible, but it must not grant exclusive possession.
What it should contain
Premises and term
What is let and for how long.
Rent and review
Rent, payment dates and how and when it can be reviewed.
Repair and insurance
Who repairs what, and who insures the building.
Use and alterations
What the premises may be used for, and consent for changes.
Alienation
Whether the tenant can assign or sublet.
Break and termination
Early exit rights and forfeiture or irritancy for breach.
Points specific to Scotland
- Scotland has no equivalent of the 1954 Act, so a commercial tenant has no general right to renew (shop tenants have a narrow right under the Tenancy of Shops (Scotland) Act 1949).
- A lease for more than a year must be in writing under the Requirements of Writing (Scotland) Act 1995, and one for more than 20 years is registered in the Land Register of Scotland. Land and Buildings Transaction Tax may be payable. Irritancy, not forfeiture, is the landlord's remedy for serious breach.
- Be Contract Wise (Scotland) prepares heads of terms for a commercial lease, for your solicitor to turn into the lease: preparing the lease itself for a fee, gain or reward is restricted to solicitors and other qualified persons by section 32 of the Solicitors (Scotland) Act 1980.
Different rules can apply elsewhere in the UK: see the England and Wales version of this guide.
Common mistakes
- A full repairing obligation on an old building without a schedule of condition.
- A break clause with conditions the tenant cannot realistically meet.
- Missing the formal steps that the law requires before the lease is signed.
See a specimen commercial lease — a short illustration of the structure and key clauses, laid out as the app produces them.
Quick answers
Who pays for repairs under a commercial lease?
Whoever the lease says. Many leases put full repairing and insuring obligations on the tenant, so check the building's condition first.
Prepare heads of terms for your lease
Be Contract Wise (Scotland) turns a few plain-English questions into professionally laid-out heads of terms for a commercial lease, ready for your solicitor to turn into the lease.
Prepare heads of terms — freeBrowse all guidesReviewed 2026-09-24. General legal information about Scots law, not legal advice.