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Wisconsin Notice to Vacate Letter

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[Your full name]

[Date]

[Your landlord's name]

Re: Notice to vacate — [Rental property address]

Dear [Your landlord's name],

Please accept this letter as my formal written notice that I will terminate my tenancy at [Rental property address] and vacate the premises on [Move-out date].

Under Wisconsin Statutes - Notice necessary to terminate periodic tenancies and tenancies at will (Wis. Stat. § 704.19(3)), a month-to-month tenancy may be terminated by the tenant on 28 days written notice. This notice is given in accordance with that requirement and with any additional notice period my lease provides.

I will leave the unit clean and in good condition, ordinary wear and tear excepted, and will return all keys and access devices on or before my move-out date. I would like a move-out inspection during my final week; please propose a date and time.

Please send my security deposit, with any itemized statement required by law, to my forwarding address: [Your forwarding address]. Kindly confirm receipt of this notice in writing.

Sincerely,

[Your full name]

Know your rights

Notice to vacate law in Wisconsin

Tenant notice required: 28 days
Governing statute: Wis. Stat. § 704.19(3)
How the clock runs: A month-to-month tenancy requires at least 28 days' written notice, and under § 704.19(2)(b) a periodic tenancy can be terminated only at the end of a rental period - so the notice must expire on a rent-period boundary, not simply 28 days after delivery. Notice mailed within Wisconsin counts as given on the second day after mailing.
Delivering the notice: Written notice must be given by a method authorized in Wis. Stat. § 704.21 - personal delivery, leaving it at the landlord's usual abode or business, or certified/registered mail (effective the second day after in-state mailing under § 704.19(7)).
Fixed-term leases: A lease for a fixed term simply expires on its end date with no statutory notice, but if the tenant holds over and the landlord accepts rent, Wis. Stat. § 704.25 continues the tenancy as periodic on the same terms - and any lease auto-renewal clause must have been properly disclosed to bind the tenant.

Worth knowing: The 28-day figure is deliberately not 'one month,' so a tenant paying on the 1st must have notice in the landlord's hands (or deemed given) by the 3rd or 4th of the prior month to make the next period end. If rent is payable on a basis less than monthly, notice at least equal to the rent-paying period suffices. Victims of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking may terminate early under Wis. Stat. § 704.16 with qualifying documentation. The lease may modify the notice rules, and Wisconsin's ATCP 134 administrative code adds consumer protections around how leases handle these terms.

Last reviewed August 2026 · General information, not legal advice · Read the statute · Also for Wisconsin: security deposit demand letter

Field notes

Three tips before you send

Written notice must be given by a method authorized in Wis. Stat. § 704.21 - personal delivery, leaving it at the landlord's usual abode or business, or certified/registered mail (effective the second day after in-state mailing under § 704.19(7)).
A month-to-month tenancy requires at least 28 days' written notice, and under § 704.19(2)(b) a periodic tenancy can be terminated only at the end of a rental period - so the notice must expire on a rent-period boundary, not simply 28 days after delivery. Notice mailed within Wisconsin counts as given on the second day after mailing.
Date math is unforgiving — the clock usually runs from the day your landlord receives the notice, not the day you write it. Build in a few days of cushion, and photograph the empty unit when you hand back the keys.

Straight answers

Questions people ask

How much notice does a tenant have to give in Wisconsin?

A month-to-month tenancy requires at least 28 days' written notice, and under § 704.19(2)(b) a periodic tenancy can be terminated only at the end of a rental period - so the notice must expire on a rent-period boundary, not simply 28 days after delivery. Notice mailed within Wisconsin counts as given on the second day after mailing. The governing statute is Wisconsin Statutes - Notice necessary to terminate periodic tenancies and tenancies at will.

What happens when a fixed-term lease ends in Wisconsin?

A lease for a fixed term simply expires on its end date with no statutory notice, but if the tenant holds over and the landlord accepts rent, Wis. Stat. § 704.25 continues the tenancy as periodic on the same terms - and any lease auto-renewal clause must have been properly disclosed to bind the tenant. Check your lease for a renewal or notice clause — where the statute allows it, the lease controls.

Anything else Wisconsin renters should know before moving out?

The 28-day figure is deliberately not 'one month,' so a tenant paying on the 1st must have notice in the landlord's hands (or deemed given) by the 3rd or 4th of the prior month to make the next period end. If rent is payable on a basis less than monthly, notice at least equal to the rent-paying period suffices. Victims of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking may terminate early under Wis. Stat. § 704.16 with qualifying documentation. The lease may modify the notice rules, and Wisconsin's ATCP 134 administrative code adds consumer protections around how leases handle these terms.

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When to use this letter

Moving out should be the easy part — but in Wisconsin, when you give notice and how you deliver it decide whether you owe another month of rent. The rule that matters: for a month-to-month tenancy, Wisconsin law generally requires 28 days written notice from the tenant, under Wisconsin Statutes - Notice necessary to terminate periodic tenancies and tenancies at will. This generator writes a tenant's notice to vacate that cites Wis. Stat. § 704.19(3) by name, states your move-out date, and asks for the move-out inspection and your deposit instructions in the same letter — so nothing gets renegotiated later. No blank template to fight with: fill in your landlord, the address, and the date, then send it in a way you can prove, because notice clocks here run from delivery, not from the day you write it.