Housing & Tenant · Eviction Notice
Eviction Notice in Hawaii
How many days of written notice a landlord must give before filing an eviction in Hawaii, broken down by reason, and what you can do about it, cited to the statute.
Every notice period in Hawaii
The written notice for each reason a landlord can end a tenancy, and what each one means.
| Reason for the notice | Notice in Hawaii | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Nonpayment of rent | Can fix and stay10 calendar days | The statute itself calls it the ten-calendar-day notice, giving the tenant that time to pay before the agreement can be terminated (HRS 521-68). This period has been amended in recent years, so the current day count should be confirmed. |
| Breach of the rental agreement or a rule | Can fix and stay10 days | For a breach of the rental agreement, or of a rule adopted under HRS 521-52, the notice must give a time not less than ten days to remedy it (HRS 521-72). |
| Breach threatening damage to a person | No cure period | For a breach that causes or threatens damage to any person, or that violates HRS 521-51(1) or (6), no allowance of time to remedy is required (HRS 521-72). |
| No cause, month-to-month, landlord ending it | 45 days | A landlord ending a month-to-month tenancy without cause must give 45 days (HRS 521-71). A tenant ending the same tenancy needs only 28 days. |
| After the notice | Court | The landlord serves the written notice, then may bring a summary possession action. HRS 521-72 also puts a deadline on the landlord, allowing a summary proceeding within thirty days after the continued or recurring breach. Only a court can order a tenant removed. |
| Statute | Haw. Rev. Stat. §521-68; §521-71; §521-72 | The controlling statute for these notice periods. Read the full text through the source link below. |
The nonpayment period in HRS 521-68 has been amended in the recent past. Confirm the current day count and its effective date against capitol.hawaii.gov before relying on it.
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps if you have received an eviction notice in Hawaii. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Confirm the current nonpayment period
Hawaii has changed its rent notice period in recent years. The figure here is read from the statute text but should be checked against the current official version before you rely on it, especially if timing is close.
- Pay or cure within the period
For unpaid rent, paying within the notice period keeps the tenancy. For a curable breach you have at least ten days to fix it. A breach that threatens damage to a person carries no cure time. Get written confirmation once you resolve it.
- Watch the landlord deadline too
Hawaii puts a clock on the landlord as well. Under HRS 521-72 the landlord must bring the summary possession case within thirty days of the continued breach, so a stale notice may not carry.
- Get local legal help
A local Hawaii legal aid office can confirm the current notice periods and explain the court steps. Search for legal aid in your county and act before any hearing date.
This is general legal information, not legal advice. Read your own lease and check for a local ordinance, since either can change the notice that applies to your home.
What Hawaii renters get wrong
Hawaii writes an unusually lopsided no-cause rule into its statute. When a month-to-month tenancy ends without cause, a landlord must give 45 days, while a tenant ending the same tenancy needs only 28 days (HRS 521-71). Very few states put that asymmetry so plainly in the code. For unpaid rent the statute uses what it openly calls a ten-calendar-day notice, giving the tenant that time to pay before the agreement can be terminated (HRS 521-68), though that period has been amended in recent years and its current form should be confirmed before anyone relies on it, which is why this page is marked as cited. A curable breach of the rental agreement or a rule carries at least ten days to fix, while a breach that threatens damage to a person allows no cure time at all. Hawaii also puts a deadline on the landlord, not just the tenant, by requiring the summary possession case to be filed within thirty days of the continued breach under HRS 521-72. After the notice runs, a summary possession action follows, and only a court can order a tenant out.
Common questions
Why does my Hawaii landlord need 45 days when I only need 28?
Hawaii writes that asymmetry directly into HRS 521-71. A landlord ending a month-to-month tenancy without cause must give 45 days, while a tenant ending the same tenancy needs only 28. It is one of the clearest statutory no-cause asymmetries in the country.
Are the Hawaii ten days calendar days or business days?
Calendar days. The statute itself calls the rent notice a ten-calendar-day notice under HRS 521-68, so weekends and holidays count. Note that this period has been amended in recent years, so confirm the current figure against the official source.
Can my Hawaii landlord skip the cure period?
Only for serious conduct. A breach that causes or threatens damage to a person, or that violates HRS 521-51(1) or (6), needs no allowance of time to remedy under HRS 521-72. An ordinary breach of the agreement or a rule carries at least ten days to fix.
How long does my Hawaii landlord have to file after the notice expires?
Thirty days. HRS 521-72 requires the landlord to bring the summary possession case within thirty days after the continued or recurring breach, so a notice the landlord sits on for too long may not carry through to a filing.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.