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How much notice before they can come in?

47 quoted answers, each with its source

The short answer

In Victoria, a rental provider or their agent may enter only for a listed reason, between 8 am and 6 pm on days that are not public holidays, and must give written notice stating the reason. For a private rental, a routine inspection requires at least 7 days written notice, may be done only after the first 3 months and not more than every 6 months; showings to prospective renters are capped at twice a week and one hour each time, a sales inspection requires payment of $30 or half a day's rent, whichever is greater, and the renter does not have to leave during an inspection or showing. Rooming house residents generally must receive at least 24 hours' written notice, with at least 48 hours for a routine inspection as of 12 August 2026, and a general room inspection is allowed only once every four weeks. There are conflicts: Aussierentlaws.com states routine inspections need at least 24 hours' written notice and commonly occur every three months, while other claims state at least 7 days written notice for a private rental routine inspection and general inspections every 6 months at most; also, a 2015 VCAT decision found no right to open house inspections, but a 2026 documented position says open for inspections cannot happen more than twice a week or last more than an hour.

Every part of this comes from the quotes below. How we write these.

What the rules actually say31

Quoted straight from Consumer Affairs Victoria, the Residential Tenancies Act or a tribunal.

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The right of entry does not allow a Victorian rental provider or their agent to show the property to prospective renters…

  • more than twice a week.
  • for longer than one hour each time.
first-party
1 quote from 1 source
The rental provider or their agent must not show the property to prospective renters more than twice a week, or for longer than one hour each time.
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The right of entry requires…

  • Victorian rental providers to compensate renters for each sales inspection.
  • the compensation for each sales inspection to be either half a day's rent or $30, whichever is greater.
first-party
1 quote from 1 source
Rental providers must compensate renters for each sales inspection. The compensation is either half a day’s rent or $30, whichever is greater.
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The Victorian right of entry does not require a renter to leave the property…

  • during a general inspection.
  • when the property is shown to prospective tenants or buyers.
first-party
1 quote from 1 source
Rental providers sometimes ask renters to be absent during a general inspection or when they’re showing the property to prospective tenants or buyers, but the renter is not required to leave.
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The right of entry for a Victorian rental provider to show a rental property to potential buyers is available only if the…

  • renter of that property has been told that the owner is going to sell the property.
  • telling to the renter of that property that the owner is going to sell the property occurs at least 14 days before the provider wants to enter.
first-party
1 quote from 1 source
If they are showing the property to potential buyers, they can only do this if the renter has been told the owner is going to sell the property at least 14 days before they want to enter.
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The right of entry of a Victorian rooming house operator to a resident's room requires, in most cases, at least 24 hours written notice to the resident.

first-party
1 quote from 1 source
Operators can enter the room between 8am and 6pm on any day except public holidays. In most cases, they must give the resident at least 24 hours’ written notice.
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Consumer Affairs Victoria advised tenants who called for assistance that tenants may ask, but cannot insist, that those photographs not include their personal possessions.

medium confidencefirst-party
1 quote from 1 source
Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) advises tenants who call for assistance that landlords and agents may enter to take advertising photographs, and that tenants may ask, but cannot insist, that those photographs not include their personal possessions.
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  • A rooming house resident must receive a notice of entry at least 24 hours in advance.
  • A routine inspection requires a notice of entry at least 48 hours in advance.
1 quote from 1 source
You must receive the notice of entry at least 24 hours in advance, except in the case of a routine inspection, which must be given 48 hours in advance.
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Entry by a Victorian landlord or the landlord's agent other than as permitted by the law is an offence unless the Victorian landlord or the landlord's agent has a reasonable excuse.

1 quote from 1 source
Entry by your landlord or their agent, other than permitted by the law, is an offence unless they have a ‘reasonable excuse’.
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The right of entry requires the landlord to pay the renter $30 or half a day's rent, whichever amount is higher, for every sales inspection.

1 quote from 1 source
For every inspection, they must pay you $30 or half a day’s rent, whichever amount is higher.
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The right of entry…

  • permits a landlord, agent or other authorised person to enter a Victorian rental home between 8 am and 6 pm.
  • does not permit a landlord, agent or other authorised person to enter a Victorian rental home on public holidays.
1 quote from 1 source
The landlord, agent or other authorised person is allowed to enter your home between 8 am and 6 pm, but not on public holidays.
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The right of entry…

  • requires at least 7 days notice in writing for a routine inspection of a Victorian private rental.
  • allows a routine inspection of a Victorian private rental to happen after the renter has lived there 3 months.
  • allows a routine inspection of a Victorian private rental to happen not more often than every 6 months.
2 quotes from 1 source
At least 7 days notice in writing:
To do a routine inspection after you have lived at the property for at least 3 months and not more often than every 6 months
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The right of entry for open for inspections at a Victorian rental cannot…

  • happen more than twice a week.
  • last more than an hour.
1 quote from 1 source
Open for inspections cannot happen more than twice a week and cannot last for more than an hour.
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A Victorian renter who has suffered loss, damage or significant inconvenience because the landlord or agent did not follow the rules about privacy and entry can apply to Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria to claim compensation.

1 quote from 1 source
If you have suffered loss, damage or significant inconvenience because the landlord or agent did not follow the rules about privacy and entry to your home, you can apply to Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria (RDRV) to claim compensation.

Measured finding1

Something someone actually measured, with the method attached.

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Member Grainger found in favour of the landlord.

medium confidencefirst-party
1 quote from 1 source
Member Grainger found in favour of the landlord, noting that it was reasonable for the landlord to take photographs to record the condition of the unit when entering in order to carry out the duty to maintain the property in good repair.

Practical effect8

What is observed to happen in practice, as distinct from what is documented.

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  • VCAT found that the Residential Tenancies Act only bestows on landlords and agents a right to conduct private inspections with a particular prospective tenant or a particular prospective buyer.
  • VCAT decided that the Residential Tenancies Act does not give landlords and agents a right to enter to hold open house inspections.
medium confidencefirst-party
1 quote from 1 source
In deciding that landlords and agents do not have a right to enter to hold open house inspections, VCAT has found that the RTA only bestows on landlords and agents a right to conduct private inspections with a particular prospective tenant or a particular prospective buyer.
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  • Member Tyler rejected an agent's argument that collecting attendees' names on entry would mean that the house was not open to the world at large.
  • An agent argued that collecting attendees' names on entry would mean that the house was not open to the world at large.
medium confidencefirst-party
1 quote from 1 source
Member Tyler rejected the agent’s argument that collecting attendees’ names on entry would mean that the house was not ‘open to the world at large’.
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Member Grainger noted it was reasonable for the landlord to take photographs to record the condition of the unit when entering to carry out the duty to maintain the property in good repair.

medium confidencefirst-party
1 quote from 1 source
Member Grainger found in favour of the landlord, noting that it was reasonable for the landlord to take photographs to record the condition of the unit when entering in order to carry out the duty to maintain the property in good repair.
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Consumer Affairs Victoria advised tenants who called for assistance that landlords and agents may enter to take advertising photographs.

medium confidencefirst-party
1 quote from 1 source
Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) advises tenants who call for assistance that landlords and agents may enter to take advertising photographs, and that tenants may ask, but cannot insist, that those photographs not include their personal possessions.
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  • It is generally accepted that a Victorian landlord or their agent can take photos during an entry if there is a specific and legitimate reason.
  • Assessing repairs is a specific and legitimate reason for a Victorian landlord or their agent to take photos during an entry.
medium confidence
1 quote from 1 source
it is generally accepted that the landlord or their agent can take photos during an entry if there is a specific and legitimate reason, such as assessing repairs or investigating a possible breach of your lease (officially called a rental agreement) or rental laws

Changed on2

A dated change. This is where advice quietly stops being true.

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Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria…

  • launched on 23 June 2025.
  • is a service to settle disputes over bonds, compensation, repairs and excessive rents.
first-party
2 quotes from 1 source
23 June 2025
Launched today, Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria (RDRV) is a dispute resolution service to help settle disputes over bonds, compensation, repairs, and excessive rents.

Disputed between sources3

Sources that do not agree, presented without picking a winner.

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  • Aussierentlaws.com states that right of entry inspections are commonly carried out every three months.
  • Consumer Affairs Victoria states that right of entry general inspections can be done every 6 months at the most.
first-partyvendor
2 quotes from 2 sources
Inspections are commonly carried out every three months.
A general inspection may only be made after the first 3 months of the rental agreement. They can be done every 6 months at the most.
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Aussierentlaws.com states that, regarding the right of entry, at least 24 hours written notice is normally required for a routine inspection in Victoria.

vendor
3 quotes from 2 sources
At least 24 hours written notice is normally required for a routine inspection.
At least 7 days notice in writing:
To do a routine inspection after you have lived at the property for at least 3 months and not more often than every 6 months

Often said, but we could not find it in the rules2

Lots of people say this. We went looking for an official source that backs it up and could not find one, so treat it as something people repeat rather than something settled.

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aussierentlaws.com states that the right of entry normally requires at least 24 hours written notice for a routine inspection in Victoria.

vendor
1 quote from 1 source
At least 24 hours written notice is normally required for a routine inspection.
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Regarding right of entry, aussierentlaws.com states that routine inspections in Victoria are commonly scheduled every three months.

vendor
1 quote from 1 source
Routine inspections are commonly scheduled every three months; more frequent visits without a strong reason may be unreasonable.