Free Wisconsin 5-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit

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The 5-day notice to pay rent or quit is the notice a Wisconsin landlord gives before filing an eviction for nonpayment of rent on a month-to-month tenancy or a lease of one year or less. Wis. Stat. § 704.17(1p) and § 704.17(2)(a) require a pay-or-vacate date at least 5 days after the notice is given, and paying in full within that window cures the default. A 14-day no-cure alternative also exists. Generate a compliant notice below.

5-Day Notice Wis. Stat. § 704.17 Curable Free PDF

A Wisconsin 5-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit is the written notice a landlord gives a tenant who has failed to pay rent, demanding that the tenant either pay the full past-due rent or vacate on or before a date at least five days out. It is governed by Wis. Stat. § 704.17: subsection (1p) covers month-to-month tenancies, subsection (2)(a) covers leases for a term of one year or less, and both allow the tenant to cure the default by paying within the 5 days. Wisconsin also gives the landlord a 14-day no-cure alternative under § 704.17(1p) and (2)(b), while a lease for more than one year uses a 30-day notice under § 704.17(3)(a). Service is governed by § 704.21, and the eviction itself proceeds as a small-claims action under Wis. Stat. ch. 799. The form below builds a compliant notice; our Wisconsin eviction notice laws guide covers the full process, and the Wisconsin landlord-tenant laws hub covers the surrounding rules.

The 5-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit is the written notice a Wisconsin landlord gives a tenant who has failed to pay rent when it was due. It is the procedural first step before an eviction (small claims) action can be filed under Wis. Stat. ch. 799 for a month-to-month tenancy or a lease for a term of one year or less. Without a properly-drafted, properly-given notice that has expired, a Wisconsin circuit court will not order the tenant removed for nonpayment.

The notice does three things in one document. First, it demands the past-due rent. The amount should be the rent that is actually unpaid and due. Late fees, utility charges, and damage estimates are best kept out of the pay-or-vacate figure – Wisconsin’s consumer-protection rules (ATCP 134) and its courts look closely at what a landlord folds into a nonpayment demand, and an inflated figure can give the tenant an argument that the notice is defective.

Second, it gives the tenant a 5-day cure period. Under Wis. Stat. § 704.17(1p) for a month-to-month tenancy and § 704.17(2)(a) for a lease of one year or less, the tenant has until a date at least 5 days after the notice is given to pay the full amount or move out. This is the statutory cure opportunity: if the tenant pays in full within the period, the default is cured and the tenancy continues. The notice must tell the tenant that paying will preserve the tenancy – that is what makes it a pay-or-vacate notice rather than a straight vacate notice.

Third, it warns of the consequences. The notice should state that if the tenant neither pays the full amount nor vacates by the deadline, the landlord may commence an eviction action under Wis. Stat. ch. 799, which can result in a judgment of eviction and a writ of restitution directing the sheriff to remove the tenant. Because Wisconsin prohibits self-help lockouts and utility interruptions under § 704.05 and § 704.95, the court process is the only lawful path to removal – the notice starts that clock.

The 5-day pay-or-vacate notice sits inside a compact but exacting statutory framework. The core statute is Wis. Stat. § 704.17, which sets the notice periods for terminating a tenancy on nonpayment of rent. It is organized by tenancy type, and that structure controls which notice a landlord may give.

Month-to-month tenancies – § 704.17(1p). If a month-to-month tenant fails to pay rent when due, the tenancy is terminated if the landlord gives the tenant notice requiring the tenant to pay rent or vacate on or before a date at least 5 days after the notice is given, and the tenant fails to pay. Paying the full past-due rent within the 5 days continues the tenancy. Alternatively, while the tenant is in default, the landlord may give a notice requiring the tenant to vacate on or before a date at least 14 days out, with no right to cure.

Leases for a term of one year or less – § 704.17(2)(a). If a tenant under a lease for a term of one year or less (or a year-to-year tenant) fails to pay an installment of rent when due, the tenancy is terminated if the landlord gives notice requiring the tenant to pay rent or vacate on or before a date at least 5 days after the notice is given. As with a month-to-month tenancy, paying in full within the 5 days cures the default. Under § 704.17(2)(b), the landlord may instead give a 14-day no-cure vacate notice; and if within one year of a prior rent default the tenant defaults again, the landlord may move directly to a 14-day vacate notice for the repeat default.

Leases for more than one year – § 704.17(3)(a). If a tenant under a lease for more than one year fails to pay rent when due (or commits waste or breaches another lease covenant), the tenancy is terminated if the landlord gives notice requiring the tenant to pay the rent or otherwise comply on or before a date at least 30 days out. The longer term buys the tenant a longer cure window; a 5-day notice on a multi-year lease is the wrong instrument.

Service – § 704.21. A notice terminating a tenancy is only effective if it is given by one of the methods the statute lists (detailed below). Anti-self-help – § 704.05(2) and § 704.95. A Wisconsin landlord may not remove a tenant by changing locks, removing belongings, or shutting off utilities; doing so exposes the landlord to damages and can be an unfair trade practice. Eviction procedure – Wis. Stat. ch. 799. The eviction itself is a small-claims action; the notice is the precondition, not the eviction. One operational rule ties it together: match the notice to the tenancy and count the days correctly, because a defect in either sends the case back to square one.

The defining feature of the 5-day notice is the tenant’s right to cure. Unlike a straight vacate notice, the 5-day pay-or-vacate notice gives the tenant a statutory chance to keep the tenancy by paying.

What curing requires. To cure, the tenant must pay the full amount of past-due rent stated in the notice on or before the deadline. A partial payment does not cure the default; the tenant must tender the whole figure. If the tenant pays in full within the 5 days, the tenancy is not terminated and continues under its existing terms – the landlord cannot then evict on that notice.

Why the notice must state the cure clearly. Because the 5-day route is a pay-or-vacate route, the notice has to make the cure option unmistakable: it must tell the tenant the exact amount owed, the deadline, and that paying that amount by the deadline continues the tenancy. A notice that reads like a bare demand to leave, without the pay-to-stay option, is a 14-day vacate notice in substance and should not be used when the landlord intends to give a cure chance.

The landlord’s choice: 5-day cure vs. 14-day no-cure. Wisconsin gives the landlord the option. The 5-day pay-or-vacate notice is curable; the 14-day vacate notice is not. Many landlords lead with the 5-day notice on a first nonpayment, because a paying tenant who fixes the default is usually preferable to a vacant unit and the cost of a full eviction. The 14-day no-cure notice is the tool when the landlord has decided to end the tenancy – for example, on a repeat default within a year, which § 704.17(2)(b) expressly allows to proceed as a 14-day vacate. Choosing the notice is a business decision the statute leaves to the landlord, but once chosen, the notice’s language must match the route.

Wisconsin counts the 5-day period in calendar days, and the notice deadline must be a date at least 5 days after the notice is given. Getting the count right is the difference between a notice that expires cleanly and one a tenant can attack as premature.

The basic count. Under Wis. Stat. § 990.001(4), the day the notice is given is excluded and the last day of the period is included. So a notice given on a Monday runs its 5 days through the following Saturday, and the pay-or-vacate date should be no earlier than that. Because the statute says “at least” 5 days, building in a small cushion never hurts and protects against a miscount.

Weekends and holidays. Wisconsin does not exclude Saturdays and Sundays from the 5-day count the way some states exclude them from business-day counts – the 5 days are calendar days. However, § 990.001(4)(b) provides that if the last day of a period falls on a Sunday or a legal holiday, the period extends to the next day that is not a Sunday or legal holiday. Practitioners commonly extend to the next business day when the final day lands on a Saturday as well, to avoid any argument that the tenant could not reasonably pay on a closed day.

Worked example – personal delivery. A 5-day pay-or-vacate notice handed to the tenant on Tuesday the 4th excludes the 4th and counts the 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th; the deadline should be no earlier than the 9th. If the 9th is a Sunday or a legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day.

Worked example – service by mail. When a notice is given by mail under § 704.21, the safe practice is to allow additional days for the mailing to be received before the 5-day clock is treated as having started, because the tenant must actually have the notice for the period to run fairly. Many Wisconsin landlord-tenant attorneys add several days when a notice is mailed, and pair mailing with another method where possible. The generator on this page lets you enter the date the notice is given and the method, and computes a conservative deadline so the date on the notice is never short.

Why a cushion pays off. The single most common reason a correctly-worded Wisconsin notice fails is a short count – a deadline that is fewer than 5 full days after the notice was given, or a mailed notice treated as effective the day it was dropped in the mailbox. Because the statute sets a floor (“at least 5 days”), a landlord loses nothing by giving 6 or 7 days, and gains a defense against any timing challenge in the ch. 799 action.

Complete the form below to generate a compliant Wisconsin 5-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit. The form computes a pay-or-vacate deadline that is at least 5 days after the notice is given, states the past-due amount and the right to cure by paying, and includes the required warning of an eviction under ch. 799. Give the notice by a § 704.21 method and keep proof of how it was given.

Wis. Stat. § 704.21 controls how a notice terminating a tenancy must be given to a tenant. A notice given by a method not on the list may be ineffective, so choose one of the statutory methods and document it.

Proof of how the notice was given

Keep a record of how the notice was given: the date, the method, the person who gave it, and – for substituted, in-charge, mail, or posting methods – the name and age of any person a copy was left with, the mailing date and address, or a dated photograph of the posting. If the tenant does not pay or vacate and you file under ch. 799, this record supports the notice as an exhibit and defeats a claim that the notice was never properly given.

Documentation retention

Retain the signed original notice, the proof of how it was given, and any mailing receipts or posting photographs. If the eviction is filed, these become part of the small-claims record; if the tenant pays and cures within the 5 days, the same file documents that the default was cured and the tenancy continues.

The 5-day notice is the precondition to an eviction, not the eviction itself. If the tenant neither pays nor vacates by the deadline, the landlord’s next step is a small-claims eviction action under Wis. Stat. ch. 799.

Filing. The landlord files a summons and complaint for eviction in the circuit court for the county where the property is located, attaching the notice and proof of how it was given. The court sets a return date, generally within a few weeks of filing.

The return date and any contest. On the return date the tenant may appear and contest the eviction. Common defenses include that the notice was defective or short, that the amount demanded included non-rent charges, that the rent was actually paid or tendered within the cure period, or that the landlord accepted rent and thereby waived the notice. If the tenant raises a genuine dispute, the court may set the matter for trial; if not, the court may enter judgment for the landlord.

Judgment and the writ of restitution. If the landlord prevails, the court enters a judgment of eviction and issues a writ of restitution. The writ directs the sheriff to remove the tenant. Only the sheriff, acting under the writ, may carry out the removal – the landlord may never do it directly.

No self-help. Throughout the process, Wis. Stat. § 704.05(2) and § 704.95 prohibit the landlord from taking possession by self-help: no lock changes, no removing the tenant’s property, no shutting off heat, water, or electricity to force a move-out. Self-help exposes the landlord to actual damages, and utility shutoffs and lockouts can be treated as unfair trade practices. The lawful sequence is notice, then ch. 799 action, then sheriff-executed writ.

• Using the wrong notice for the tenancy. A 5-day pay-or-vacate notice on a lease of more than one year is short – that tenancy needs a 30-day notice under § 704.17(3)(a). Confirm the tenancy type first.
• Short-counting the 5 days. The deadline must be at least 5 days after the notice is given, with the day of giving excluded and a Sunday or holiday last day extended. A premature deadline can get the eviction dismissed.
• Overstating the amount. Folding late fees, utilities, or damage estimates into the pay-or-vacate figure invites a challenge that the notice demands more than rent. Keep the cure amount to past-due rent.
• Using a non-statutory method. A text, an email, or a note slipped under the door is not a § 704.21 method. Use personal delivery, a family-member drop, person-in-charge plus mail, registered/certified mail, or posting plus mail as a last resort.
• Accepting partial rent, then trying to evict on the notice. Accepting a partial payment can be treated as waiving the notice. Decline partial rent if you intend to proceed on the notice.
• Blurring cure vs. no-cure. A 5-day notice must offer the pay-to-stay cure; a 14-day notice must not. Mixing the two – a “14-day pay or quit” – is neither instrument and confuses the tenant and the court.
• Self-help removal. Changing locks or shutting off utilities to force a move-out violates § 704.05 and § 704.95 and can cost the landlord damages. Removal only happens through a ch. 799 judgment and a sheriff-executed writ.

A Wisconsin tenant who receives a 5-day pay-or-vacate notice has meaningful rights, and understanding them helps a landlord see why precision matters.

The right to cure by paying in full. The centerpiece right is the statutory cure. If the tenant pays the full past-due rent within the 5 days, the default is cured and the tenancy continues; the landlord cannot then evict on that notice. The right to challenge an overstated demand. If the notice demands more than past-due rent – rolling in late fees or damages – the tenant can dispute the figure and argue the notice is defective.

The right to a court process. A tenant cannot be removed by lockout or utility shutoff; removal requires a ch. 799 judgment and a sheriff-executed writ of restitution. A landlord who resorts to self-help exposes himself to damages under § 704.05 and § 704.95. The right to raise defenses at the return date. On the eviction return date the tenant may contest service, the count, the amount, waiver by acceptance of rent, or retaliation, and may request time to be heard.

Anti-retaliation and consumer-protection protections. Wisconsin’s consumer-protection rules for residential rental practices, ATCP 134, govern many aspects of the landlord-tenant relationship, and retaliatory conduct against a tenant who has exercised a legal right can give rise to defenses and remedies. A notice given in response to a habitability complaint or code-enforcement contact can be challenged as retaliatory. Fair-housing protection. The federal Fair Housing Act and Wisconsin’s Open Housing Law prohibit eviction decisions based on protected characteristics; a nonpayment notice must be a genuine nonpayment notice, not a pretext.

Local ordinances in Milwaukee, Madison, and other Wisconsin municipalities can add administrative requirements on top of state law; verify local rules before filing, and see our guide to Wisconsin eviction procedure for the full sequence.

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