Alaska: Landlord Entry Notice Requirements
The short answer
Except in a genuine emergency, an Alaska landlord must give you at least 24 hours' notice before entering — and may enter only to inspect, make repairs, supply agreed services, remove the landlord's own property, or show the unit, and only at reasonable times. No notice is needed for a real emergency, when giving notice is impracticable, or after you have moved out. If a landlord enters unlawfully or keeps demanding entry to harass you, you can get a court order or end the lease, and recover your actual damages (or a month's rent, whichever is greater) plus court costs and attorney's fees.
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This is the general rule in Alaska. Ezel applies current Alaska law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | Alaska Stat. § 34.03.140, the access section of Alaska's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (URLTA). 'The landlord does not have a right of access to the dwelling unit' except as the section permits, by court order, as permitted by AS 34.03.230(b), or after the tenant abandons or surrenders (§ 34.03.140(d)) |
|---|---|
| Advance notice required | At least 24 hours. 'Except in case of emergency or if it is impracticable to do so, the landlord shall give the tenant at least 24 hours notice of intention to enter and may enter only at reasonable times and with the tenant's consent' (§ 34.03.140(c)). This is a hard minimum. The same rule covers showings; there is no shorter period for them |
| Reasons a landlord may enter | To inspect the premises; make necessary or agreed repairs, decorations, alterations, or improvements; supply necessary or agreed services; remove personal property belonging to the landlord that is not covered by a written rental agreement; or exhibit the unit to prospective or actual purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workers, or contractors (§ 34.03.140(a)). Beyond those, the landlord has no right of access except by court order, under AS 34.03.230(b), or after abandonment (§ 34.03.140(d)). A tenant may not unreasonably withhold consent to a listed entry |
| Permitted hours | 'reasonable times' (§ 34.03.140(c)). Alaska fixes no clock; emergency entries are exempt |
| When no notice is needed | A genuine emergency — 'the landlord may enter the dwelling unit without the consent of the tenant in the case of emergency' (§ 34.03.140(b)); where giving 24-hour notice 'is impracticable' (§ 34.03.140(c)); and after the tenant has abandoned or surrendered the unit (§ 34.03.140(d)(2)) |
| Form and delivery of the notice | The statute does not require the notice to be in writing, set fixed content, or name delivery methods — it requires 'at least 24 hours notice of intention to enter' (§ 34.03.140(c)). Practice is to give clear advance notice of the time and purpose |
| Special rules for showings | No separate showing rule. Exhibiting the unit to purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workers, or contractors is one of the listed entry purposes and carries the same 24-hour notice as any other entry (§ 34.03.140(a), (c)). See the advance-notice column |
| Tenant's remedies for unlawful entry | If the landlord 'makes an unlawful entry or a lawful entry in an unreasonable manner or makes repeated demands for entry otherwise lawful but which have the effect of unreasonably harassing the tenant, the tenant may obtain injunctive relief to prevent the recurrence of the conduct or terminate the rental agreement,' and 'may recover an amount not to exceed the actual damages or one month's periodic rent, whichever is greater, court costs and reasonable attorney fees' (§ 34.03.300(b)). If the tenant instead refuses lawful access, the landlord has a mirror remedy (§ 34.03.300(a)) |
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Requirements one by one
Advance notice required
An Alaska landlord must give "at least 24 hours notice of intention to enter"
(§ 34.03.140(c)), except in an emergency or where notice is impracticable. This is a
hard minimum, and the statute adds an unusual clause: the landlord "may enter only at
reasonable times and with the tenant's consent." Read together with the tenant's duty
not to "unreasonably withhold consent" in subsection (a), the practical rule is that a
tenant should not block a properly-noticed, lawful entry — but the landlord still must
give the day's notice first.
Reasons a landlord may enter
Section 34.03.140(a) lists the reasons: to inspect the premises; to make necessary or
agreed repairs, decorations, alterations, or improvements; to supply necessary or
agreed services; to remove the landlord's own personal property not covered by a
written rental agreement; or to exhibit the unit to prospective or actual purchasers,
mortgagees, tenants, workers, or contractors. Subsection (d) makes clear the landlord
"does not have a right of access" beyond those, except by court order, under
AS 34.03.230(b), or after abandonment or surrender.
When no notice is needed
The landlord may enter without consent "in the case of emergency" (§ 34.03.140(b)), and
the 24-hour notice is excused where it "is impracticable" (§ 34.03.140(c)). No notice
is required after the tenant abandons or surrenders the unit (§ 34.03.140(d)(2)). There
is no general "reasonable belief" exception beyond a true emergency.
Tenant's remedies for unlawful entry
Alaska's remedy is one of the more generous. Under § 34.03.300(b), for an unlawful
entry, a lawful entry made in an unreasonable manner, or repeated harassing demands,
the tenant "may obtain injunctive relief to prevent the recurrence of the conduct or
terminate the rental agreement" and "may recover an amount not to exceed the actual
damages or one month's periodic rent, whichever is greater, court costs and reasonable
attorney fees." If the tenant terminates, they must give the landlord at least 10 days'
written notice. The same section (subsection (a)) gives the landlord a mirror remedy if
the tenant refuses lawful access.
What trips people up
"With the tenant's consent" does not erase the 24-hour rule. Section 34.03.140(c)
says the landlord may enter "with the tenant's consent," but subsection (a) bars the
tenant from unreasonably withholding consent to a lawful, listed entry. The landlord
must still give at least 24 hours' notice; the tenant must not unreasonably block a
proper entry.
The damages floor is a month's rent. Unlike states that set no dollar figure, Alaska
lets a wronged tenant recover the greater of actual damages or one month's rent, plus
costs and attorney's fees (§ 34.03.300(b)) — a meaningful minimum even where actual
harm is small.
A landlord can enter to remove their own property. Alaska's list includes removing
"personal property belonging to the landlord that is not covered by a written rental
agreement" (§ 34.03.140(a)) — a purpose most states' statutes omit.
Common questions
How much notice does my Alaska landlord need to enter? At least 24 hours, except in
an emergency or where notice is impracticable (§ 34.03.140(c)), and only for a reason
the statute lists and at a reasonable time.
Can my landlord enter without notice in an emergency? Yes. "The landlord may enter
the dwelling unit without the consent of the tenant in the case of emergency"
(§ 34.03.140(b)) — a genuine one, like a fire or flooding.
What can I do if my landlord keeps entering without notice? You can get an injunction
or end the lease, and recover the greater of your actual damages or one month's rent,
plus court costs and attorney's fees (§ 34.03.300(b)).
Is there a shorter notice for showings? No. Showing the unit uses the same 24-hour
notice as any other entry (§ 34.03.140(a), (c)).
Statutes and sources
- Alaska Stat. § 34.03.140 — the access section: the listed entry purposes and the tenant's duty not to unreasonably withhold consent (a); emergency entry (b); the at-least-24-hours notice, reasonable-times limit, and no-harassment rule (c); and the limits on any other right of access (d).
https://law.justia.com/codes/alaska/title-34/chapter-03/article-4/section-34-03-140/ (accessed 2026-07-11) - Alaska Stat. § 34.03.300 — landlord and tenant remedies for abuse of access: the tenant's injunctive relief or termination for an unlawful entry, with damages capped at the greater of actual damages or one month's rent, plus court costs and attorney fees (b).
https://law.justia.com/codes/alaska/title-34/chapter-03/article-7/section-34-03-300/ (accessed 2026-07-11)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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