It is often possible, as a commercial matter, for prospective tenants to negotiate with the landlords to have an initial period during which they don’t have to pay rent – a “rent-free period”. The length of the rent free period is a matter for negotiation, but it is common in leases of several years for a period of three months or six months without rent to be negotiated, depending on the demand for properties at the time.
The tenant might negotiate a rent-free period simply as an incentive for taking the premises. But usually the justification for it is that the tenant will need to carry out fit-out works to make the premises ready for the business’s opening day. This is most likely to be the case with restaurants, bars and shops, who will need to be building all the fittings which will allow them to trade.