Outline of the eviction process in Alaska

Alaska residential evictions run on two statutes that have to be read together. The Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (AS 34.03) sets the grounds and the length of each termination notice. The forcible entry and detainer (F.E.D.) statutes (AS 09.45.060 to 09.45.160) and Alaska Civil Rule 85 control how the notice to quit is written and served, when you may file, and how fast the court moves. Rule 85 sets the eviction hearing not more than 15 days after the complaint is filed, and the summons only has to be served two days before it.

The process is statewide and uniform. We found no Alaska just-cause or rent-control law, and no enacted 2025 or 2026 change to the eviction statutes.

1. Grounds

AS 09.45.090(a) lists when a residential tenant “unlawfully holds by force” so that an F.E.D. case may be filed. For property under AS 34.03 the grounds are:

• Nonpayment of rent (AS 34.03.220(b); AS 09.45.090(a)(1)).
• Material noncompliance with the rental agreement or with the tenant duties in AS 34.03.120 (AS 34.03.220(a)(2)).
• Deliberate substantial damage to the premises, meaning damage of more than $400 (AS 34.03.220(a)(1)).
• Illegal activity on the premises in breach of AS 34.03.120(b) (AS 34.03.220(a)(1); AS 09.45.090(a)(2)(G)).
• Utility shutoff: electricity, gas or water is discontinued because the tenant did not pay the utility (AS 34.03.220(e)).
• End of a periodic tenancy or holdover after the term expires (AS 34.03.290).

No reason is required to end a month-to-month tenancy, but retaliation is a defense. Under AS 34.03.310 a landlord may not bring or threaten a possession action because the tenant complained to the landlord about a violation of AS 34.03.100, sought to enforce rights under the Act, joined a tenant organization, or complained to a government housing agency. A tenant in default in rent is one of the listed exceptions. When you end a tenancy for one of the other listed reasons, such as recovering the unit for your own use, major remodeling or demolition, taking it off the rental market for at least six months, or a good-faith sale, the tenant is not holding over unlawfully until the longer of 30 days or the notice period in the rental agreement has run after service of the notice to quit (AS 09.45.090(a)(2)(D)). Mobile home parks have their own limits: a park operator may terminate only for the reasons in AS 34.03.225, and a land use change requires at least 270 days’ notice.

2. Notices to quit

• Nonpayment: seven days (AS 34.03.220(b)). A written notice of nonpayment stating that the rental agreement will terminate if the rent is not paid in full within seven days. If the tenant pays in full within that time the tenancy continues. A landlord who has served the notice may accept a partial payment and “extend the date for the eviction accordingly”; put that in writing. The court’s form notice (CIV-725) states that the amount demanded does not include late fees or interest and that a tenant cannot be evicted for nonpayment of late fees, so demand rent only.
• Lease or AS 34.03.120 violation: ten days (AS 34.03.220(a)(2)). The notice specifies the breach and a termination date not less than ten days after service. If the tenant remedies the breach before that date, the tenancy continues. If substantially the same breach recurs within six months, the landlord may terminate on not less than five days’ notice.
• Deliberate substantial damage: 24 hours to five days (AS 34.03.220(a)(1)). The termination date is not less than 24 hours and not more than five days after service; there is no cure right. AS 09.45.090(a)(2)(B) ties your filing right to that same notice date, so a 24-hour damage notice is enforceable as written.
• Illegal activity: use five days. The 34.03.220(a)(1) notice itself can be as short as 24 hours, but AS 09.45.090(a)(2)(G) separately makes holding over unlawful only once five days pass after service, whatever date the notice states. Filing sooner is premature. Use five days, matching form CIV-729.
• Utility shutoff: five days (AS 34.03.220(e)). The tenancy terminates five days after service. It continues if, within three days, the tenant has the service reinstated and repays the landlord any amounts the landlord paid, and the premises were not damaged. A repeat within six months allows termination on not less than three days’ notice.
• Ending a periodic tenancy (AS 34.03.290). Month to month: written notice at least 30 days before the rental due date specified in the notice. Week to week: at least 14 days before the termination date, while rent is current. If the tenant stays after the term or the termination date, the landlord must still serve a notice to quit under AS 09.45.100 to 09.45.105 before suing (AS 34.03.290(c)).
• Federally backed or subsidized properties may also be subject to the federal CARES Act 30-day notice requirement; check with counsel before relying on a shorter state notice for those units.

What the notice must say (AS 09.45.105). A notice to quit must state the nature of the breach or other reason for termination; if the breach can be corrected, what the tenant must do and by when; the date and time the tenancy terminates; a direction to quit by that date and time; and a warning that if the tenant stays, the landlord may file a civil action to remove the tenant and recover possession. The court publishes form notices CIV-725 to CIV-729, one for each ground.

How it is served (AS 09.45.100(c)). The notice must be in writing and must be (1) delivered to the tenant or person in possession, (2) left at the premises in case of absence from the premises, or (3) sent by registered or certified mail. The court’s instructions describe the second method as knocking and, if no one answers, taping a copy securely to the front door. Leaving it at the premises is valid only when the tenant is absent; try personal delivery first and record the attempt. For nonpayment, service of the AS 34.03.220(b) notice itself counts as the notice to quit; no second notice is needed (AS 09.45.100(b)).

Counting days. If you serve by mail, three days must be added to the notice period (AS 09.45.090(c)), so a mailed seven-day notice is a ten-day notice. The court’s booklet (CIV-720) counts the day after delivery as day one and includes Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. The F.E.D. action may be filed on or after the date the tenant unlawfully holds under AS 09.45.090 (AS 09.45.110).

Waiver. Accepting rent with knowledge of a default waives the right to terminate for that breach unless otherwise agreed after the breach (AS 34.03.240).

3. Filing

File in the court location closest to the rental property. According to the court’s booklet, the case belongs in district court if the past-due rent and damages claimed are $100,000 or less, and in superior court above that. The forms are the Complaint (CIV-730), the Affidavit of Compliance with 30-Day Notice Requirement (CIV-731), the Information Sheet (Eviction Case) (CIV-732), the F.E.D. Summons (CIV-105), the Case Description (CIV-125D) and Service Instructions (CIV-615). The self-help page lists a $150 filing fee; confirm the current fee before filing.

Corporations, property managers and POA holders need a lawyer. The court’s booklet states that a corporation, a property manager, or a person acting for the owner under a power of attorney must have an attorney sign the complaint, because they must always be represented in court by an attorney (AS 22.20.040(a)(2) requires a corporation to appear by an attorney unless the law explicitly makes an exception). The booklet does not separately address LLCs, partnerships or trusts; if the owner is another kind of entity, confirm with the court or an attorney whether it may file without one. The one exception the booklet gives is a nonprofit housing corporation proceeding under AS 09.45.158.

4. Service and the eviction hearing

The summons and complaint in a possession action under AS 34.03 are served under Civil Rule 85 (AS 34.03.285). The summons must be served not less than two days before the eviction hearing, and the hearing is set not more than 15 days after the complaint is filed unless the court orders otherwise (Rule 85(a)(2); AS 09.45.120). You cannot hand the papers to the tenant yourself. The court’s materials describe service by a process server or peace officer, or by certified mail with restricted delivery and return receipt, with the signed green card as proof. Mail service not signed for in time will cost you the hearing date.

An Alaska F.E.D. case has two stages. The eviction (possession) hearing decides only who gets possession. Rent and damages are decided later at a damages trial if disputed. The tenant has 20 days after service to file an Answer (form CIV-735) on the money claims, and the landlord may apply for a default judgment if none is filed, but an appearance at the eviction hearing counts as an appearance in the whole case (Rule 85(a)(4)). Continuances are limited: no continuance longer than two days may be granted unless the defendant asking for it gives an undertaking, with sureties approved by the court, for the rent that may accrue (AS 09.45.120), and in cases under the Act neither side gets a continuance without good cause (AS 34.03.285).

At the hearing the landlord must prove a proper written notice to quit, proper service of the court papers and a valid ground. Expect defenses of defective notice or service, waiver, retaliation and landlord noncompliance. Under AS 34.03.190 the tenant may counterclaim for the landlord’s noncompliance in an action for possession or rent, and the court may reduce the rent to reflect the diminished value of the unit and may order rent paid into court.

5. Judgment and appeal

If the landlord wins, the court enters a Judgment for Possession (CIV-300) ordering the tenant to leave by a specific date and time set by the judge. The statutes do not fix that period.

According to the court’s booklet, a notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days from the date the judgment is distributed; district court cases are appealed to the superior court and superior court cases to the supreme court. An appeal does not automatically stop the eviction; the tenant must ask the court for permission to stay, and the court may require a bond.

6. The writ of assistance and the lockout

If you believe the tenant will not leave by the court’s deadline, ask for a Writ of Assistance (CIV-575) at the hearing. The writ is directed to any peace officer of the State of Alaska and commands the officer to remove all persons and turn possession over to the plaintiff. It takes effect on the date and time the court writes into it. There is no single statewide executing office: the booklet tells landlords to work with their local law enforcement agency, which may charge a fee.

Tenant property. The writ form makes the plaintiff responsible for the return, storage or disposal of personal property left on the premises and cites AS 34.03.260. Under that section, where the landlord reasonably believes the property is abandoned, the landlord must give the tenant notice to remove it within a period of not less than 15 days after delivery or mailing of the notice. The landlord may charge storage costs, and may then sell the property at public sale or dispose of items without value. A landlord who deliberately or negligently violates the section is liable for actual damages plus penal damages up to the same amount.

Self-help is prohibited. A landlord may not recover possession “by action or otherwise,” including by interrupting electricity, gas, water or other essential services, except in cases of abandonment, surrender, circumstances beyond the landlord’s control due to energy conditions, or as the Act otherwise permits (AS 34.03.280). A tenant who is unlawfully removed or excluded, or whose services are wilfully cut, may recover possession or terminate and, either way, recover up to one and one-half times actual damages (AS 34.03.210).

Recent law changes landlords should know

• No enacted 2025 or 2026 changes found. The 2025 codification of AS 34.03 and AS 09.45 matches the rules described here.
• Bills that did not become law. HB 115 (rent increase notice) and SB 207 (removal of unlawful occupants, with proposed Civil Rule amendments) remained in committee as of mid-2026. Neither is law; recheck their status before relying on this guide.

What actually goes wrong

• Mailing the notice and not adding three days, then filing early. The case is premature under AS 09.45.110.
• A notice to quit missing an AS 09.45.105 element: no termination date and time, no statement of how to cure, or no warning about a court action.
• Putting late fees in the seven-day rent notice.
• Accepting rent after a breach and then trying to terminate for that breach (AS 34.03.240), or taking a partial payment with nothing in writing about the new date.
• A corporation, property manager or POA holder filing without an attorney.
• Serving the summons yourself, or relying on certified mail that is not signed for before the hearing.
• Disposing of belongings right after the lockout without the 15-day notice under AS 34.03.260.

When to bring in an attorney

An individual owner with a clean seven-day notice can often handle an uncontested nonpayment case using the court’s forms. Use counsel when the owner is a corporation or you are a property manager or POA holder (it is required), for violation, damage and illegal-activity cases, for mobile home parks and subsidized housing, and whenever the tenant raises counterclaims or retaliation. The Alaska attorneys listed below represent landlords.

Sources

• AS 34.03 (Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act), 2025 codification: §§ 34.03.190, 34.03.210, 34.03.220, 34.03.225, 34.03.240, 34.03.260, 34.03.280, 34.03.285, 34.03.290 and 34.03.310.
• AS 09.45.070, 09.45.090, 09.45.100, 09.45.105, 09.45.110, 09.45.120 and 09.45.158 (forcible entry and detainer); AS 22.20.040.
• Alaska Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 85.
• Alaska Court System: Eviction Booklet (CIV-720, rev. 8/23); self-help pages “Start an eviction case,” “Respond to an eviction case” and “Eviction hearing”; forms CIV-725 to CIV-730, CIV-105, CIV-300, CIV-575 and CIV-735.
• LegiScan bill histories for HB 115 and SB 207 (34th Alaska Legislature).

This guide is general information about Alaska procedure and is not legal advice. Confirm the current statutes, court rules and forms before relying on any deadline.