Oregon: Eviction Notice Requirements

Requirements one by one

Governing law

Oregon's eviction-notice rules live in the Oregon Residential Landlord and Tenant
Act, ORS chapter 90, and an eviction lawsuit itself is a "forcible entry and
detainer" (FED) action under ORS chapter 105. The chapter breaks the notices out
by reason: nonpayment of rent (§ 90.394), a for-cause violation with a chance to
cure (§ 90.392), the most serious conduct on 24 hours' notice (§ 90.396), and the
no-cause / just-cause rules for ending a tenancy without tenant fault (§ 90.427).
Since 2019, Oregon has had a statewide just-cause law (Senate Bill 608) — one
of only a handful of states that limit no-reason evictions by state statute rather
than by local ordinance.

Notice for unpaid rent

Rent is not "late" for eviction purposes on day one. For a normal month-to-month
or fixed-term tenancy, the landlord must deliver either "at least 10 days
written notice of nonpayment," given "no sooner than on the eighth day of the
rental period," or "at least 13 days written notice," given "no sooner than on
the fifth day" (§ 90.394(2)). A week-to-week tenancy gets 72 hours, no sooner than
the fifth day. The notice has to "specify the amount of rent that must be paid and
the date and time by which the tenant must pay the rent to cure." Paying that
amount within the notice period stops the eviction.

(Oregon dropped its old 72-hour / 144-hour nonpayment notice in a 2023 amendment;
the current rule is the 10-day / 13-day structure above. A notice built on the old
shorter clock can be defective.)

Notice for a lease violation (for cause)

For a curable violation other than rent — breaking a rental-agreement term you can
still fix — the landlord serves a for-cause notice that must "specify the acts and
omissions constituting the violation" and "state that the rental agreement will
terminate upon a designated date not less than 30 days after delivery"
(§ 90.392(3)). If the violation is curable, the notice must "describe at least one
possible remedy" and set a cure date that is "at least 14 days after delivery"
(§ 90.392(4)). So the ordinary shape is 30 days' notice with at least 14 days to
cure. For a week-to-week tenancy those periods shrink to 7 days and 4 days.

Unconditional quit — repeat violations and 24-hour notices

Two situations take away the chance to cure. First, a repeat: if the notice is for
"substantially the same act or omission that constituted a prior violation for
which notice was given... within the previous six months," the termination date is
"not less than 10 days after delivery," and "the tenant does not have a right to
cure this subsequent violation" (§ 90.392(5)). Second, the most serious conduct —
seriously threatening or inflicting substantial personal injury, reckless
endangerment, or intentionally causing substantial damage — lets the landlord
terminate on "at least 24 hours written notice" with no cure (§ 90.396(1)).

Ending a month-to-month tenancy

To end a month-to-month tenancy for no fault, the notice is 30 days — but who can
use it depends on how long you have lived there. A tenant may always leave on 30
days' notice (§ 90.427(3)(a)). A landlord may end it without cause on 30 days'
notice only "during the first year of occupancy" (§ 90.427(3)(b)). Once you pass a
year, a no-cause termination is off the table (see just cause below). A week-to-week
tenancy can be ended by either side on 10 days' notice.

Just cause to evict required?

Yes. After the first year of occupancy, "the landlord may terminate the tenancy
only" for "a tenant cause" (nonpayment, a for-cause violation, serious conduct) or
"a qualifying landlord reason for termination" (§ 90.427(3)(c)). The qualifying
landlord reasons are a closed list: demolishing or converting the unit, doing
repairs that make it unfit to live in, the landlord or an immediate-family member
moving in, or selling to a buyer who will occupy it as a primary residence. Those
require 90 days' notice (or 60 days on a qualifying sale where the landlord
pays the tenant one month's rent), the notice must "specify... the reason for the
termination and supporting facts," and the landlord must "pay the tenant an amount
equal to one month's periodic rent" as relocation help (§ 90.427(5)-(6)). A
landlord who owns four or fewer rental units is exempt from that payment. Unlike
California's just-cause law, Oregon's has no built-in sunset date.

How the notice must be served

A notice is only valid if delivered the way the statute allows: "Personal delivery
to the landlord or tenant," "First class mail," or — only "if allowed under a
written rental agreement" — first class mail plus attachment to the door, or (under
a written addendum) email (§ 90.155(1)). When a notice is sent by first class mail,
Oregon adds three days to the notice period to account for delivery, so a mailed
10-day notice effectively runs 13 days.

Tenant's right to cure/reinstate

For nonpayment, paying the exact amount the notice states, within the notice
period, reinstates the tenancy; a payment "mailed to the landlord within the period
of the notice" counts as timely unless the notice was personally served (or served
by mail-and-attachment or mail-and-email) and the lease designates an on-premises
place to pay (§ 90.394(4)). For a curable for-cause violation, "the rental
agreement does not terminate if the tenant cures the violation by the designated
date" (§ 90.392(4)). And a termination is not valid if it is retaliatory: a
landlord "may not retaliate... by serving a notice to terminate the tenancy" after
a tenant complains to a housing-code agency, makes a good-faith complaint to the
landlord, or joins a tenants' union (§ 90.385(1)).

What trips people up

The nonpayment clock is not what old guides say. Oregon's nonpayment notice is
now 10 days (delivered no earlier than the 8th of the rental period) or 13 days (no
earlier than the 5th) — not the 72-hour/144-hour notice many older forms and
websites still show. A notice served too early in the month, or on the old
shorter clock, can get the case dismissed.

"First year of occupancy" is the hinge for no-cause. Under a year, a landlord
can end a month-to-month tenancy on 30 days' notice for no reason. At a year or
more, that route closes — the landlord needs a tenant cause or a listed qualifying
reason, usually with 90 days' notice and a month's rent. Count from when any tenant
first moved in.

Mailing a notice adds three days. Because § 90.155 adds three days for
first-class mail, the real deadline on a mailed notice is later than the bare day
count suggests — count the mail days in your favor.

Self-help is illegal. A landlord cannot lock you out, shut off your heat,
water, or power, or remove your belongings to force you out (§ 90.375, § 90.435).
Only a court, through the FED process, can order an eviction.

Common questions

My rent was due on the 1st and my landlord handed me a nonpayment notice on the
3rd — is that valid? No. For a normal tenancy the earliest a 13-day notice can be
delivered is the 5th day of the rental period, and a 10-day notice the 8th day
(§ 90.394(2)). A notice served before then is premature.

I've lived in my apartment for two years month-to-month and my landlord just
wants me out — can they give me 30 days? Generally no. After the first year of
occupancy, Oregon's just-cause law lets the landlord end the tenancy only for your
fault or for a listed landlord reason (like moving in or selling to an owner-
occupant), usually on 90 days' notice with one month's rent (§ 90.427). A bare
30-day no-cause notice is not enough once you pass a year.

If I pay everything I owe, can the landlord still evict me for nonpayment? No —
paying the full amount stated in the notice within the notice period cures the
nonpayment and the tenancy continues (§ 90.394). Pay by the deadline, keep proof,
and pay the way the lease requires if it names a place to pay.

Can my landlord evict me for asking for repairs or reporting code problems? No.
Serving a termination notice in retaliation after you complain to a housing agency,
raise a good-faith complaint, or organize with other tenants is prohibited and is a
defense to the eviction (§ 90.385).

Statutes and sources

• ORS 90.394 — nonpayment: 10-day (no sooner than the 8th day) or 13-day (no sooner than the 5th) notice; week-to-week 72 hours.
  https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors090.html (accessed 2026-07-10)
• ORS 90.392(3)-(5) — for-cause termination: 30-day notice, at least 14 days to cure; repeat within 6 months is 10 days with no cure.
  https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors090.html (accessed 2026-07-10)
• ORS 90.396(1) — 24-hour notice, no cure, for serious threats, injury, reckless endangerment, or intentional substantial damage.
  https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors090.html (accessed 2026-07-10)
• ORS 90.427(3)-(6) — no-cause 30-day notice limited to the first year; statewide just cause after the first year; qualifying landlord reasons, 90/60-day notice, one month's rent (small-landlord exemption).
  https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors090.html (accessed 2026-07-10)
• ORS 90.155(1) — permitted service methods (personal, first class mail, mail-plus-attachment or email if the agreement allows).
  https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors090.html (accessed 2026-07-10)
• ORS 90.385(1) — retaliatory termination prohibited (defense to eviction).
  https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors090.html (accessed 2026-07-10)