Missouri: Eviction Notice Requirements

Requirements one by one

Notice for unpaid rent

Missouri handles unpaid rent differently from most states: there is no fixed
"pay-or-quit" notice period. Once rent is "due and payable" and "payment has been
demanded by the landlord," and the tenant has not paid, the landlord may file a
verified statement to start a "rent and possession" action (§ 535.020). The
statute is explicit that the one-month termination notice used for no-fault
endings "is not required prior to filing" a rent-and-possession case. So the
practical trigger for nonpayment is a demand for the rent, not a set number of
days — though the tenant keeps a strong right to pay and stay, described under
cure below.

Lease violations and waste (10-day notice to vacate)

If a tenant "assign[s] or transfer[s]" the lease without the landlord's written
consent, "violate[s] any of the conditions of his written lease," or "commit[s]
waste" (§ 441.030), the landlord may recover possession "after giving ten days'
notice to vacate the premises" (§ 441.040). Note what this is not: it is a notice
to vacate, not a cure-or-quit. Missouri's statute gives no built-in right to fix
the violation within the ten days and keep the tenancy — the ten days are time to
leave.

Illegal use of the premises (10-day notice to vacate)

Certain uses void the lease outright. If a tenant permits gambling, keeps "a
bawdyhouse, brothel or common gaming house," or allows "the illegal possession,
sale or distribution of controlled substances upon the premises," the "lease or
agreement... shall become void," and the landlord may recover possession
(§ 441.020) — again after the ten-day notice to vacate of § 441.040. There is no
cure for this category.

Ending a month-to-month tenancy

To end a periodic tenancy with no fault, the landlord gives "one month's notice,
in writing" for a tenancy at will, by sufferance, or for less than a year
(§ 441.060.1). For a month-to-month tenancy the written notice must state that the
tenancy ends "upon a periodic rent-paying date not less than one month after the
receipt of the notice" (§ 441.060.4) — so the termination date lands on a rent
date at least a full month out. Either party may give this notice, and no reason
is required.

How the notice must be served

Section 441.060 requires the termination notice to be "in writing," but Missouri's
statutes do not prescribe a specific way to deliver the pre-suit notice, so
landlords use personal delivery or posting-and-mailing and keep proof of service.
The formal service rules that are statutory apply to the court summons in the
rent-and-possession or unlawful-detainer case, not to the notice itself.

Tenant's right to cure/reinstate

Missouri's strongest statutory tenant protection is the right to redeem in a
nonpayment case. If the tenant, "on the date any money judgment is given,"
tenders "all the rent then in arrears, and all the costs," then "further
proceedings in the action shall cease and be stayed" (§ 535.160). Even after
trial, paying the money judgment and all costs "before the judgment becomes final"
stops the eviction from being carried out. There is no comparable statutory cure
right for a lease-condition or illegal-use quit, and Missouri's notice statutes do
not create a general retaliation defense — so the pay-and-redeem right is the main
statutory lifeline, and it applies to unpaid rent.

What trips people up

Missouri gives no set number of days' warning before a nonpayment filing.
Unlike states with a 3-, 5-, or 14-day pay-or-quit notice, Missouri only requires
the landlord to demand the rent before filing a rent-and-possession suit
(§ 535.020). Don't wait for a formal countdown notice that the statute doesn't
require — the protection comes at the back end, through your right to pay the back
rent and costs.

The 10-day notice for a lease violation is a notice to leave, not a chance to
fix it. For an unauthorized sublet, a violated lease condition, or waste, the
ten days under § 441.040 are time to vacate. Missouri's statute does not give a
right to cure the violation and stay, unlike many states' cure-or-quit rules.

"Pay and stay" runs to the judgment, but don't cut it close. You can stop a
rent-and-possession case by tendering all the rent in arrears plus costs on the
day the money judgment is entered (§ 535.160). Waiting until then means paying the
full arrears and court costs; the safest course is to pay before the case is filed
if you can.

Common questions

How many days' notice do I get before an eviction for unpaid rent? In
Missouri, none is fixed by statute. The landlord must demand the rent, and if it
isn't paid, may file a rent-and-possession suit right away (§ 535.020). You'll get
a court summons with a hearing date, and you can stop the case by paying all back
rent and costs by the day judgment is entered (§ 535.160).

If I got a 10-day notice for a lease violation, can I fix the problem and
stay? Not under the statute. The 10-day notice under § 441.040 is a notice to
vacate for a violation of § 441.030 (or illegal use under § 441.020); Missouri law
doesn't give a statutory right to cure and keep the tenancy. Any right to fix it
would have to come from your lease.

Does my landlord need a reason to end my month-to-month tenancy? No. Missouri
has no statewide just-cause requirement, so a landlord can end a month-to-month
tenancy for any reason with one month's written notice ending on a rent date
(§ 441.060). Some Missouri cities add their own rules; this page states the
state-law floor.

Can my landlord lock me out or shut off the utilities instead of going to
court? No. Only a court can order an eviction in Missouri; a self-help lockout
or utility shutoff to force a tenant out is illegal regardless of any notice.

Statutes and sources

• RSMo § 535.010 — landlord may recover possession on default in rent through the rent-and-possession process.
  https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=535.010 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• RSMo § 535.020 — demand for rent, then file; the § 441.060 notice is not required first.
  https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=535.020 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• RSMo § 535.160 — redemption: pay all rent in arrears and costs at the money judgment to stop the case.
  https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=535.160 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• RSMo § 441.030 — no assignment without consent, no violation of lease conditions, no waste.
  https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=441.030 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• RSMo § 441.040 — 10-day notice to vacate for a § 441.020 or § 441.030 violation.
  https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=441.040 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• RSMo § 441.020 — illegal use (gambling, brothel, controlled substances) voids the lease.
  https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=441.020 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• RSMo § 441.060 — one month's written notice to end a tenancy at will / month-to-month, ending on a rent date.
  https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=441.060 (accessed 2026-07-10)