Kentucky: Landlord Entry Notice Requirements
The short answer
It depends on where you live. Kentucky's statutory entry rule applies only in cities and counties that have adopted the state's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. Where it applies, a landlord must give at least two days' notice before entering and may enter only at reasonable times, for reasons like inspection, repairs, agreed services, or a showing — with no notice needed in an emergency. Where a local government has NOT adopted the Act, Kentucky has no statutory entry-notice rule at all, and your lease plus the common-law right to quiet enjoyment govern.
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This is the general rule in Kentucky. Ezel applies current Kentucky law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.615, the access section of Kentucky's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (URLTA). Kentucky is a LOCAL-OPTION URLTA state: § 383.615 is in force only in a city, county, or urban-county government that has adopted URLTA 'in their entirety and without amendment' (§ 383.500). In every other part of the state there is no statutory landlord-entry rule — the lease and the common-law covenant of quiet enjoyment govern |
|---|---|
| Advance notice required | At least 2 days, where URLTA applies. 'Except in case of emergency or unless it is impracticable to do so, the landlord shall give the tenant at least two (2) days' notice of his intent to enter and may enter only at reasonable times' (§ 383.615(3)). This is a hard minimum, not a rebuttable presumption; the same two-day period applies to a showing. Outside URLTA-adopting jurisdictions, no statutory period applies |
| Reasons a landlord may enter | The statute frames entry through the tenant's duty not to 'unreasonably withhold consent' (§ 383.615(1)) to: inspect the premises; make necessary or agreed repairs, decorations, alterations, or improvements; supply necessary or agreed services; or exhibit the unit to prospective or actual purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workmen, or contractors. Beyond these, the landlord 'has no other right of access except' by court order, as permitted by §§ 383.665 and 383.670(2), or where the tenant has abandoned or surrendered the unit (§ 383.615(4)) |
| Permitted hours | 'Reasonable times' only (§ 383.615(3)). The statute fixes no clock — no business-hours or a.m./p.m. window — so reasonableness is judged by the circumstances. Emergency and abandonment entries are not limited to reasonable times |
| When no notice is needed | 'A landlord may enter the dwelling unit without consent of the tenant in case of emergency' (§ 383.615(2)), and the two-day notice is excused 'in case of emergency or unless it is impracticable to do so' (§ 383.615(3)). Entry is also allowed without the tenant's consent by court order or where the tenant 'has abandoned or surrendered the premises' (§ 383.615(4)). The 'impracticable' escape is narrow — it covers a situation where giving two days' notice genuinely cannot be done, not ordinary convenience |
| Form and delivery of the notice | The statute requires 'at least two (2) days' notice of his intent to enter' but does not say the notice must be in writing, and lists no required contents or delivery method (§ 383.615(3)). Oral notice can satisfy the rule; a careful landlord still puts it in writing. Outside URLTA jurisdictions there is no statutory notice at all |
| Special rules for showings | None. Showing the unit to 'prospective or actual purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workmen, or contractors' is one of the ordinary entry purposes under § 383.615(1), carrying the same two-day-notice, reasonable-times rule as any other entry. Kentucky has no shorter or oral-notice track for sale showings |
| Tenant's remedies for unlawful entry | The statute's own limit is § 383.615(3): a landlord 'shall not abuse the right of access or use it to harass the tenant.' URLTA sets no fixed dollar penalty for an improper entry, so a tenant's recourse is general law — a trespass claim, an injunction, and actual damages — plus URLTA's separate remedies for an unlawful lockout or utility shutoff where the Act applies. The duty runs both ways: a tenant 'shall not unreasonably withhold consent' to a lawful entry (§ 383.615(1)). Outside URLTA jurisdictions, the tenant's recourse is a common-law quiet-enjoyment or trespass claim under the lease |
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Requirements one by one
Governing law
Kentucky is unusual: its landlord-entry rule is not automatically in force statewide.
The rule lives in KRS § 383.615, the "Access" section of Kentucky's Uniform
Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (URLTA). But URLTA in Kentucky is a local
option. The General Assembly "authorizes cities, counties and urban-county
governments to enact the provisions of the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant
Act as set forth in KRS 383.505 to 383.705," and "[i]f adopted, these provisions
shall be adopted in their entirety and without amendment" (§ 383.500). So § 383.615
applies to you only if the city or county where you rent has adopted URLTA. A number
of Kentucky's larger urban areas have done so; many rural counties have not. Where a
local government has not adopted URLTA, Kentucky has no statutory landlord-entry
rule, and the lease plus the common-law right to quiet enjoyment control. The first
practical question in Kentucky is therefore: has my city or county adopted URLTA?
Advance notice required
Where URLTA applies, the landlord "shall give the tenant at least two (2) days'
notice of his intent to enter and may enter only at reasonable times"
(§ 383.615(3)). Two days is a firm floor, not a "presumed reasonable" figure the way
California's 24 hours is — the statute says "at least" two days. The only built-in
exceptions to the two-day rule are an emergency or a situation where giving notice
"is impracticable." The same two-day period covers a showing; Kentucky has no
shorter rule for exhibiting the unit.
Reasons a landlord may enter
Section 383.615 lists the entry purposes through the tenant's side of the deal: a
tenant "shall not unreasonably withhold consent" to entry to inspect the premises;
make necessary or agreed repairs, decorations, alterations, or improvements; supply
necessary or agreed services; or exhibit the unit to prospective or actual
purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workmen, or contractors (§ 383.615(1)). Beyond those,
the landlord "has no other right of access except" by court order, as permitted by
KRS 383.665 and 383.670(2) (the Act's rules for a tenant's extended absence and
abandonment), or where the tenant has abandoned or surrendered the unit
(§ 383.615(4)).
When no notice is needed
A landlord "may enter the dwelling unit without consent of the tenant in case of
emergency" (§ 383.615(2)), and the two-day notice requirement is lifted "in case of
emergency or unless it is impracticable to do so" (§ 383.615(3)). Entry without the
tenant's consent is also allowed under a court order or where the tenant "has
abandoned or surrendered the premises" (§ 383.615(4)). The emergency has to be
genuine — a fire, a burst pipe, a gas leak — and the "impracticable" escape is
narrow: it covers a case where two days' notice truly cannot be given, not everyday
convenience.
Tenant's remedies for unlawful entry
The statute's built-in limit is § 383.615(3): the landlord "shall not abuse the
right of access or use it to harass the tenant." URLTA sets no fixed dollar penalty
for a bad entry, so a tenant's remedies come from general law — a trespass claim, a
request for an injunction to stop repeated intrusions, and actual damages — together
with URLTA's separate protections against an unlawful lockout or utility shutoff in
jurisdictions where the Act is in force. The obligation is mutual: a tenant "shall
not unreasonably withhold consent" to a lawful, properly-noticed entry
(§ 383.615(1)). Where URLTA has not been adopted, a tenant's recourse is a
common-law claim for breach of quiet enjoyment or trespass under the lease.
What trips people up
Whether the rule applies at all depends on your city or county. This is the
Kentucky trap. The two-day rule in § 383.615 is real, but it binds a landlord only
where the local government has adopted URLTA under § 383.500. Two tenants in
different Kentucky counties can have entirely different rights. Before relying on the
two-day rule, confirm your jurisdiction adopted the Act.
"Two days" is a minimum, and it is calendar days, not hours. Unlike the many
states that use a 24-hour rule, Kentucky's URLTA sets "at least two (2) days." A
landlord who calls the afternoon before has not given valid notice where the Act
applies.
Notice can be oral, but the safe practice is writing. The statute does not
require the two-day notice to be in writing or to state a specific time. That makes a
disputed entry harder to prove after the fact, so tenants and landlords alike benefit
from written notice even though the statute does not demand it.
Common questions
How do I know if the Kentucky entry law applies to my rental? Check whether the
city or county where you rent has adopted the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant
Act. Section 383.500 lets local governments adopt it, and § 383.615's two-day rule
binds a landlord only where they have. If your area has not adopted URLTA, your lease
and the common-law right to quiet enjoyment govern instead.
How much notice does my landlord need to enter? Where URLTA applies, at least two
days' notice, and the landlord may enter only at reasonable times and only for a
listed reason such as repairs, an inspection, agreed services, or a showing
(§ 383.615(1), (3)).
Can my landlord come in without notice in an emergency? Yes. A landlord may enter
without your consent "in case of emergency," and the two-day notice is excused in an
emergency or where notice is "impracticable" (§ 383.615(2)-(3)). It must be a real
emergency.
Does my landlord get extra time to enter to show the place to buyers? No — and no
less. A showing to prospective purchasers or new tenants is an ordinary entry purpose
under § 383.615(1), so the same two-day-notice, reasonable-times rule applies. There
is no special showing track in Kentucky.
Statutes and sources
- Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.615 — the URLTA access section: tenant's duty not to unreasonably withhold consent and the list of entry purposes (1); no-consent emergency entry (2); the no-harassment limit, the "at least two (2) days" notice rule, and reasonable-times limit (3); and the "no other right of access" cases — court order, §§ 383.665/383.670(2), abandonment (4).
https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=35740 (accessed 2026-07-11) - Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.500 — makes Kentucky's URLTA a local option: cities, counties, and urban-county governments may adopt KRS 383.505 to 383.705 "in their entirety and without amendment," and § 383.615 is in force only where they have.
https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=35717 (accessed 2026-07-11)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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