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Mississippi · Evictions · Updated Oct 2026

Mississippi eviction rules for tenants

In Mississippi, only a judge can order an eviction. See your dates below and get free help today.

Checked against official sources: Oct 23, 2026

Short answer

Notice for unpaid rent
3 days
Time to answer in court
The date on your court papers (see Legal details)
Judge's order
No eviction without a judge's order. Your landlord can't lock you out or remove you on their own.

Free help: Mississippi Access to Justice Commission: Housing issues · 601-974-0470 · Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project · 601-960-9577

I got court papersI got a notice

Official forms and court help: Court self-help: evictions in Mississippi

If you get an eviction notice

  1. Read it closely: the kind of notice, the amount, the dates and how it was delivered. Use the timeline below.
  2. Don't move out or stop paying because of a notice alone. Only a court can order an eviction; the notice is the first step.
  3. Get free legal help now. Legal aid and the court's self-help center can check whether the notice is valid.
  4. If you are served with court papers, respond by the deadline and go to every hearing. Missing one can mean losing by default.
  5. Keep copies of the notice, your lease, rent receipts, texts and photos.

Eviction notice timeline for Mississippi

Got a notice from your landlord? Enter the kind of notice and the day you got it to see the dates that follow from your state's rule, what your landlord may not do, and where to get free help fast.

This is not legal advice. Eviction deadlines are short and missing one can cost you your home. Read your notice carefully and contact legal aid or your court's self-help center right away.

Enter the date you got the noticeThe timeline appears when you pick a date.

Dates are estimates from the rule in our data. We skip weekends only where the rule counts business or court days, and we don't skip holidays.

Where to get free help in Mississippi

Legal details

Notice for unpaid rent
A written 3-day notice (or by email or text if you agreed in writing) saying the lease will end if the rent is not paid within 3 days (Miss. Code §89-8-13(5)). The statute does not say whether weekends count.
Notice for a lease violation
A written 14-day notice describing the breach; if you fix it within 14 days, the lease does not end. A repeat of the same breach within 6 months allows termination on 14 days' notice (Miss. Code §89-8-13(3)).
Ending a month-to-month tenancy
30 days' written notice from either side; week-to-week, 7 days. No notice is needed for a substantial violation that materially affects health or safety (Miss. Code §89-8-19). After a fixed-term lease ends, the landlord may give a 3-day notice before filing (§89-8-17).
Time to respond to an eviction lawsuit
The summons names a hearing date; go to the hearing and present any defense. If the landlord wins, you usually get at least 7 days to move out. In a nonpayment case, you do not have to move if you pay everything owed before the hearing or by the court-ordered move-out date (Miss. Code §§89-8-35, 89-8-39).
Lockouts and utility shutoffs
The Act sets out a court process: removal only by warrant executed by the sheriff or constable after a judgment (Miss. Code §§89-8-31 to 89-8-39). After removal you get 72 hours of reasonable access to get your belongings. No statute sets a specific penalty for lockouts or utility shutoffs. Since March 25, 2026 (HB 1404), it is a crime for a landlord who collected utility money under a lease to knowingly fail to pay the utility bill within 60 days of receiving it.
Law
Miss. Code Ann. §§89-8-13, 89-8-17, 89-8-19, 89-8-31 to 89-8-41

Retaliation in Mississippi

Limited. After a lease expires, a landlord may not raise rent or start eviction with the dominant purpose of retaliating against you for actions the Act allows (such as written repair complaints) (Miss. Code §89-8-17(2)). No general retaliation statute with a presumption period.

Rent increases and rent control in Mississippi

Notice of a rent increase
no statute; for month-to-month, the landlord can end the tenancy with 30 days' notice. After a lease ends, the landlord may demand higher rent unless the main purpose is retaliation (Miss. Code §89-8-17).
Rent control
No statewide rent control or rent cap.

More for Mississippi renters

Eviction in nearby states

Sources

Checked against official sources: Oct 23, 2026