Finding and Setting Up Your First Home · Lesson 8 of 8 · 12 min

Moving out and getting your deposit back

Your deposit is often one of the largest sums of money you will have handed over. Getting it back is mostly about paperwork and preparation: start a month before you leave, not the night before.

Four to eight weeks before you leave

End the tenancy properly. In England, GOV.UK says tenants on an assured periodic tenancy must give notice in writing (letter, email or text); if the agreement does not say how much, it is at least 2 months, and the notice must end on a rent due day or the day before.
Hall contracts are different: GOV.UK says they normally run to the end of the academic year and you are liable for rent for that whole period.
Shelter warns that a landlord might keep your deposit if you leave without ending the tenancy legally.
In the UAE, check your contract for the notice period and renewal terms, and keep written proof of any notice you give. Disputes go to the Rental Dispute Centre in Dubai or the Rent Dispute Settlement Committee in Abu Dhabi (UAE government portal).
Keep paying rent until the end of the tenancy. Do not withhold the last month's rent expecting the deposit to cover it.

Paperwork to gather

Find your inventory or check-in report and your move-in photos. Shelter says the inventory should record the age of items, their condition and how clean they were.
Check your deposit is protected. In England, the three schemes are the Deposit Protection Service, mydeposits and the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, and Shelter notes all offer a free dispute service for unfair deductions.
To look up your deposit with a scheme, Shelter says you need your postcode, surname, tenancy start date and deposit amount.
Confirm in writing with your landlord the date you leave and ask when you will get your deposit back. Shelter advises keeping all emails and messages.

The final week: cleaning and checks

UAL says the property needs to be cleaned to the same standard it was when you moved in. Compare against your move-in photos, room by room.
Focus on the areas inspectors check most: inside the oven and fridge, the bathroom (limescale and mould), skirting boards, windows and under the bed.
Remove all your belongings and rubbish, including any furniture you brought (UAL).
Fix small things you caused, such as replacing bulbs that blew during your stay, if your contract makes this your responsibility.
Shelter says your landlord should not take money for normal wear and tear, the expected effect of ordinary living.

Moving-out day

Take dated photos and a walk-through video of every room after cleaning (UAL).
Take final readings of the gas, electricity and water meters (UAL).
Close your utility, phone and internet accounts and ask for final bills (UAL); keep proof they are paid.
Attend the check-out inspection if one is arranged, then return all keys (UAL) and ask for a written receipt.
Set up post redirection and exchange contact details with housemates in case of shared bills or deposit questions (UAL).

If deductions seem unfair

Ask the landlord in writing for an itemised list of deductions with evidence such as photos and receipts.
Compare each item against your inventory and photos. Wear and tear is not your cost; damage you caused may be.
In England, GOV.UK says the deposit must be returned within 10 days of you and the landlord agreeing the amount, and if there is a dispute it stays protected in the scheme until the issue is resolved.
Use the scheme's free dispute service (England) or the official rental dispute body (UAE). Send your evidence clearly organised by room.
A short, polite email often works: 'I disagree with the £X charge for the carpet. The check-in report on [date] records the same stain (photo 12 attached). Please return this amount or I will raise it with the deposit scheme's dispute service.'

Practise in real life

Tick each one off when you have done it.

Write a moving-out timeline for an imaginary tenancy ending on 30 June, with dates for giving notice, cleaning, final readings and the check-out inspection.
Draft a polite email asking a landlord to confirm your leaving date and when your deposit will be returned.
List the five places in a flat you think are most often missed in a final clean, and how you would clean each.

Remember

Give notice properly and in writing, and keep proof.
Use your move-in inventory and photos as the baseline.
Clean to the move-in standard, take final photos and meter readings.
Return every key and get a receipt.
Challenge unfair deductions in writing using the free dispute service.

Note: England's tenancy rules changed on 1 May 2026; tenancies that started before that date may have different notice rules (see GOV.UK). We could not find official UAE guidance on security deposit return timescales, so the UAE points stay general: check your contract and use the official dispute body. This lesson is general information, not legal advice.

Check yourself

1. In England, if your assured periodic tenancy agreement does not say how much notice you must give, what does GOV.UK say?

2. What does Shelter say about normal wear and tear?

3. To what standard does UAL say you should clean when moving out?

4. In England, within how many days must the deposit be returned once you and the landlord agree the amount?

5. What do all three English deposit protection schemes offer, according to Shelter?