N245 Form: Suspend a Warrant or Change Your Payments — and Why an Eviction Warrant Needs N244 Instead

Last reviewed: 1 October 2026 — England and Wales

General information only. This article describes the law and court procedure in England and Wales as at the date shown above. It is not legal advice and is not a substitute for advice on your case. For free regulated advice, contact a Law Centre, Citizens Advice, or Shelter England. The Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service, funded by the Legal Aid Agency, gives free early legal advice to anyone at risk of losing their home from the moment they receive written notice, and on-the-day advice and representation at possession hearings, whatever their income. Find a provider at find-legal-advice.justice.gov.uk.

Which Form Do You Need?

The two forms are easily confused, because both "suspend a warrant". They suspend different warrants.

If your letter says "warrant of possession", "notice of eviction" or "bailiff's appointment to take possession", skip to the eviction section. Filing an N245 will not stop an eviction, and the days lost finding that out are days you do not have.

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Part A — Form N245 for Money Judgments

What N245 does

N245 is the Application for suspension of a warrant and/or variation of an order. GOV.UK describes it as the form to "ask the court to change the amount you must pay to a person or business you owe money to, or to suspend a warrant issued by a court". Use it when:

• a County Court judgment orders you to pay a sum, or instalments, that you cannot afford, and you want the court to vary the terms; or
• the creditor has issued a warrant of control and you want it suspended on terms of payment.

The power to vary instalments is in rule 40.9A of the Civil Procedure Rules; the power to suspend a warrant is in rule 83.7, which lets a debtor apply for a stay of execution where there are "special circumstances which render it inexpedient to enforce the judgment or order" or where the debtor is unable "from any reason to pay the money".

How the N245 process works

1. Complete the two-page form. It asks for your income and outgoings (the statement of means) and the offer you can realistically afford. Be honest and precise. The court is deciding whether your offer is credible, and an offer that does not match your own figures is refused.
2. File it at the County Court dealing with the judgment with the fee, or a Help with Fees application. The fee for an application to vary a judgment or suspend enforcement is £16 on the civil court fees list (EX50) current from 13 July 2026. Help with Fees on form EX160 can cover it in full; see our EX160 guide.
3. The court sends your application and statement of means to the creditor. The creditor has 14 days to tell the court whether it objects (CPR 83.7(8)).
4. No objection: a court officer may suspend the warrant on the terms you offered, without a hearing (CPR 83.7(9)).
5. Objection: the court decides the terms, on paper or at a short hearing. GOV.UK puts it plainly: "If your offer is rejected, the court will decide on the amount you have to pay."
6. Keep to the terms. As long as you pay as ordered, the warrant stays suspended. Miss payments and the creditor can ask for it to be reissued.

What to attach

• Payslips, benefit award notices or Universal Credit statements
• Recent bank statements
• A one-page income and expenditure schedule in the format used by StepChange or Citizens Advice, if the form's own boxes do not give enough room
• Any evidence of the change of circumstances you rely on

If you have several debts, look at the Breathing Space scheme as well. A standard breathing space pauses enforcement of most debts for 60 days. You apply to a debt adviser after getting debt advice from them. Rent arrears count, so it also pauses eviction under a possession order made for rent arrears (even on the mandatory Ground 8), but not eviction on other grounds such as nuisance.

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Suspending a Warrant of Possession (Form N244)

The power to suspend

Once a possession order has been made and a warrant of possession issued, a tenant can ask the court to suspend, stay or postpone the warrant. The application is made on form N244, the general application notice, supported by a witness statement and an income and expenditure schedule. Shelter's legal guidance states it directly: "An application to suspend or stay a warrant is made on form N244."

The court's power depends on the tenancy:

• Assured tenancies (most private and housing association lets since 15 January 1989): section 9 of the Housing Act 1988, where the order was made on a discretionary ground such as Grounds 10 or 11 (rent arrears), 12 (breach of another tenancy term) or 14 (nuisance).
• Secure tenancies (council lets, and housing association tenancies that began before 15 January 1989): section 85 of the Housing Act 1985.
• Rent Act protected tenancies (pre-1989): section 100 of the Rent Act 1977.
• Mortgage possession: section 36 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970, also on N244.

Where the court cannot help

The court has no general power to suspend where the possession order was made on a mandatory ground (Ground 8 for serious rent arrears, for example) or on a section 21 notice (in England: for private tenancies, possible only where the notice was served before 1 May 2026 and the landlord asked the court to issue the claim by 31 July 2026, or any earlier deadline for that notice; assured tenancies of social housing let by housing associations remain on the pre-1 May 2026 rules, including section 21). In those cases section 89 of the Housing Act 1980 allows the date for possession to be postponed only up to 14 days after the order, or up to six weeks in cases of exceptional hardship. Both limits run from the date of the possession order, not the warrant, so by the time an eviction date is set the court usually has no power left to delay it. The exceptional-hardship test is fact-sensitive: serious illness, disability or a child's schooling are the usual examples.

A tenant in that position needs a different route: an appeal under Part 52 of the Civil Procedure Rules within 21 days, or, if they did not attend the hearing, an application to set the order aside under CPR 3.1(2)(p), to which the court applies the r.39.3(5) factors (Forcelux Ltd v Binnie [2009] EWCA Civ 854). Our set-aside guide covers both.

Timing

• The bailiff must deliver a notice of eviction to the property at least 14 days before the eviction (CPR 83.8A). That notice is the trigger to act.
• An application to suspend should give the landlord at least three days' notice, but the court can shorten that, and the application can be made at any time up to and including the eviction date. Courts list these urgently when the appointment is days away.
• File on the day the notice arrives if you can.

The fee

The civil court fees list (EX50) has a specific entry for an application to suspend a warrant of possession: £16 from 13 July 2026. That is not the £321 on-notice N244 fee, even though the application is made on N244. If the court office asks for £321, point to the "suspend a warrant of possession" line on EX50. Help with Fees on EX160 covers it; apply at the same time.

What terms the court will accept

The court's discretion is wide. Sheffield City Council v Hopkins [2001] EWCA Civ 1023, as summarised in Boyd v Incommunities Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 756, confirms that conditions on suspension may be imposed without formal proof of conduct. In practice the terms must be ones you can meet, and clear enough that everyone can tell whether they have been kept:

Terms you can meet. The proposed monthly figure must sit inside the surplus shown on your income and expenditure schedule. Offering £200 a month towards arrears on an £80 surplus is refused. Bring payslips or benefit awards, bank statements showing outgoings, and a schedule that shows the surplus and the offer side by side.

Terms everyone can check. "Something towards the arrears each month" is not an enforceable term. Orders are drawn as: "The warrant of possession be suspended on terms that the defendant pays the current rent of £X per calendar month as it falls due, plus £Y per calendar month towards the arrears of £Z until the arrears are cleared. Liberty to apply on 14 days' notice." The figures vary; the structure does not.

If you breach the terms

The court will only suspend where there is a realistic basis for believing the terms will be kept. In an anti-social behaviour case, Manchester City Council v Higgins [2005] EWCA Civ 1423, the Court of Appeal replaced a suspended order with an outright one because the hope of improvement was not supported by the evidence. In practice a first breach may be met with a second suspension on stricter terms. A repeated breach rarely is. Propose a figure you can sustain rather than the lowest figure the court might accept.

The hearing

Suspension applications are usually listed for a short hearing before a District Judge. The judge checks the offer against the income and expenditure schedule, hears both sides briefly, and suspends, postpones, varies or refuses. Unrepresented tenants are often helped to shape a workable order, but only if they arrive with the numbers. The Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service may be able to help or represent you free of charge; ask as soon as you get the eviction notice.

Disability and proportionality

Against any landlord, the Equality Act 2010 can require the landlord to show that eviction is proportionate where a disabled tenant's conduct arises from their disability, following Akerman-Livingstone v Aster Communities Ltd [2015] UKSC 15. Against public-authority landlords, Article 8 proportionality is also available under Manchester City Council v Pinnock [2010] UKSC 45 and Hounslow LBC v Powell [2011] UKSC 8. Those arguments belong at the possession hearing.

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What Defeats Suspension Applications

1. Wrong form. An N245 filed against an eviction date buys nothing. It is returned or refused, and the warrant stands.
2. Late filing. The bailiff's appointment proceeds unless the application is before the court in time.
3. Unrealistic offers. A figure at or above your surplus soon fails. A figure comfortably below it is taken seriously.
4. No income and expenditure schedule. The court cannot assess an offer without numbers. A handwritten page is better than nothing.
5. No supporting evidence. Payslips, benefit decisions and bank statements turn assertions into facts.
6. Missing the parallel set-aside deadline. If you were not at the possession hearing, the set-aside application (CPR 3.1(2)(p), applying the r.39.3(5) factors: Forcelux) has its own promptness requirement and often runs alongside the suspension application.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is form N245 used for?

N245 asks the County Court to vary the instalments on a money judgment or to suspend a warrant of control on terms of payment. You set out your income and spending and offer what you can afford. If the creditor does not object within 14 days a court officer can suspend the warrant on your terms; if it objects, the court decides.

Can I use N245 to stop an eviction?

No. An eviction is carried out under a warrant of possession, and the application to suspend that is made on form N244, relying on the Housing Acts or, for a mortgage, the Administration of Justice Act 1970. The fee is £16 and Help with Fees applies.

How much does an N245 application cost?

The fee for an application to vary a judgment or suspend enforcement is £16 on the civil court fees list current from 13 July 2026. Form EX160 can cover it if you are on a qualifying benefit or a low income.

Where do I get the N245 form?

Download it free from the GOV.UK publication page linked above. It is two pages, with large-print and Welsh versions. Do not pay for a copy from any other site.

How long does the court take to decide an N245?

The creditor has 14 days to object once the court sends it your application. Without an objection, a court officer can suspend the warrant on your offer soon after. With an objection, the court lists a short hearing or decides on paper; timing varies by court.

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Where to Get Help

• Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service: funded by the Legal Aid Agency, gives free early legal advice to anyone at risk of losing their home from the moment they receive written notice, and on-the-day advice and representation at possession hearings, whatever their income. Find a provider at find-legal-advice.justice.gov.uk.
• Shelter England: helpline and webchat at england.shelter.org.uk.
• Citizens Advice: local offices and Adviceline.
• StepChange: for the income and expenditure schedule and advice on applying for a Breathing Space: stepchange.org.
• Your local Law Centre: representation at suspension hearings in some areas.

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Authoritative Sources

• Civil Procedure Rules Part 40 (rule 40.9A, varying the rate of payment): justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/part40
• Civil Procedure Rules Part 83 (rule 83.7 stay of execution; rule 83.8A notice of eviction): justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/part-83-writs-and-warrants-general-provisions
• Form N245: gov.uk/government/publications/form-n245-application-for-suspension-of-a-warrant-and-or-variation-of-an-order
• Form N244: gov.uk/government/publications/form-n244-application-notice
• Civil court fees (EX50): gov.uk/government/publications/fees-in-the-civil-and-family-courts-main-fees-ex50
• Housing Act 1988 s.9: legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/50/section/9
• Housing Act 1985 s.85: legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1985/68/section/85
• Housing Act 1980 s.89: legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1980/51/section/89
• Shelter Legal, applications to suspend a warrant of possession (last updated by Shelter before the Renters' Rights Act changes; the section 21 position above is from Shelter's separate abolition guidance): england.shelter.org.uk
• Cases: Sheffield City Council v Hopkins [2001] EWCA Civ 1023, as summarised in Boyd v Incommunities Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 756; Forcelux Ltd v Binnie [2009] EWCA Civ 854; Manchester City Council v Higgins [2005] EWCA Civ 1423; Manchester City Council v Pinnock [2010] UKSC 45; Hounslow LBC v Powell [2011] UKSC 8; Akerman-Livingstone v Aster Communities Ltd [2015] UKSC 15.

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BundleCreator's Housing Possession & Tenant Debt subsite at /housing-possession-debt maps the defending tenant's journey from the N11R defence through the N244 set-aside and suspension applications to enforcement. The defending bundle template carries a witness statement in support of a suspension application, with the income and expenditure schedule and the proposed terms laid out for a same-day hearing. The N244 itself is the official form from GOV.UK.

Nothing in this article is legal advice or a substitute for it. It describes the law in England and Wales as at the date shown. If you have an eviction date, contact Shelter or an adviser today, before the bailiff's appointment. The Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service, funded by the Legal Aid Agency, gives free early legal advice to anyone at risk of losing their home from the moment they receive written notice, and on-the-day advice and representation at possession hearings, whatever their income. Find a provider at find-legal-advice.justice.gov.uk.