What are the steps to evict a tenant for unpaid rent in Virginia?

In Virginia, an eviction for unpaid rent runs through 4 steps, each set by the statute or court rule beside it: (1) Serve a 5-day pay-or-quit notice — Va. Code § 55.1-1245(F); (2) File a summons for unlawful detainer — Va. Code § 8.01-126; (3) The return date — Va. Code § 55.1-1250; (4) Writ of eviction, no sooner than ten days — Va. Code § 8.01-470. A Virginia tenant may pay everything owed — rent, late fees, court costs and attorney fees — at or before the return date and the case is dismissed. This is the "redemption tender" and it is available once every twelve months. The procedure as a whole is set by Va. Code §§ 55.1-1245, 55.1-1250, 8.01-124, 8.01-126, 55.1-1243.

WhatVirginia
CourtGeneral District Court for the city or county where the property is.
Steps with a citation4

Notes

A Virginia tenant may pay everything owed — rent, late fees, court costs and attorney fees — at or before the return date and the case is dismissed. This is the "redemption tender" and it is available once every twelve months.

Source

Va. Code §§ 55.1-1245, 55.1-1250, 8.01-124, 8.01-126, 55.1-1243 — last checked 2026-09-16.

This is a summary of the published procedure, not legal advice. Courts, local rules and the facts of a tenancy change what applies, and a defect in a notice or a filing can end a case. Have a lawyer review anything before it is served or filed.

How Seayora uses this rule

Seayora does not file, serve or appear in an eviction, and is not anybody’s lawyer. When a tenant has stopped paying, it lays out these steps for the property’s own state and city with the statute beside each one, holds back any step that would come too early, keeps an append-only record of the case — and shows the resident what would end it, legal-aid links included.

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