A service let replays the serve. A fault uses it up.

The baseline used on this page

This page applies the ITF Rules of Tennis, 2026 edition, current for the 2026 rules year and checked on 28 August 2026. The controlling provisions are Rules 11 and 16–24, with error correction in Rule 27 and the optional no-let procedure in Appendix VI. The rulebook and amendment notice identify the effective edition as 2026 but do not give a separate day-level commencement date, so this page does not invent one.

The ITF's 2026 amendment notice matters here: Rule 18 Case 1 now expressly says that a doubles server may stand behind the part of the baseline between the singles and doubles sidelines. That position remains illegal in singles. Tournament regulations can supplement the baseline, so this page labels the no-let and self-officiated variations separately.

When the motion and the point begin

Immediately before starting the service motion, both feet must be at rest behind the baseline and between the imaginary extensions of the centre mark and the relevant sideline. Under Rule 16, the server releases the ball by hand in any direction and strikes it before it reaches the ground. A player able to use only one arm may release it with the racket.

The service motion ends when the racket hits the ball or misses it in an attempt to hit. The ball is in play only when the racket hits it, unless a fault or let is called (Rule 11). This timing explains why landing inside the court after contact is legal but touching the court before contact is a foot fault.

Four ways the feet can make the serve a fault

During the service motion, ITF Rule 18 prohibits the server from:

1. Changing position by walking or running; slight foot movements are permitted.
2. Touching the baseline or the court with either foot.
3. Touching the area outside the imaginary extension of the sideline with either foot.
4. Touching the imaginary extension of the centre mark with either foot.

The line itself is forbidden: even a small touch counts. A server may have one or both feet off the ground, and may land in front of the baseline after the racket has hit or missed the ball because the service motion has then ended.

Which sideline controls the stance?

In singles, the legal standing area ends at the imaginary extension of the singles sideline. Standing behind the doubles alley is therefore a foot fault even when the match is played on a court marked for doubles.

In doubles, Rule 18 Case 1 allows the server to stand behind the alley between the singles and doubles sidelines. The outer boundary is then the imaginary extension of the doubles sideline. In both formats, the server must also stay on the correct side of the centre-mark extension for that point.

What uses up a first or second service

Rules 17–20 make the service a fault when the server breaks the service, serving or foot-fault rules; tries to strike the released ball and misses; or serves a ball that touches a permanent fixture, singles stick or net post before bouncing. It is also a fault if the served ball touches the server, the server's partner, or anything either is wearing or carrying.

A struck serve that fails to pass over the net and land in the diagonally opposite service court is a fault. A line bounding that service court counts as part of the court under Rule 12. After a first fault the server serves again without delay from the same half, unless the original serve came from the wrong half. A second consecutive fault is a double fault and loses the point under Rule 24(a).

Catching the toss is not a fault

Rule 19 Case 1 draws a firm line between abandoning a toss and missing an attempted stroke. The server may decide not to hit, then catch the ball with a hand or racket or let it bounce. That is not a fault.

If the server swings in an attempt to hit and misses, the service motion is complete and the result is a fault. The deciding fact is the attempt, not whether the ball happened to be caught afterwards. Repeated abandoned tosses could create a pace or delay issue under the applicable event rules, but Rule 19 does not convert a single abandoned toss into a service fault.

Only that service is replayed

ITF Rule 22 requires a service let when:

• The serve touches the net, strap or band and is otherwise good.
• After touching the net, strap or band, it hits the receiver, the receiver's partner, or something either wears or carries before bouncing.
• The ball is served while the receiver is not ready.

That particular service does not count. A first-service let is followed by another first service; a second-service let is followed by another second service. A service let never cancels a previous fault.

Net plus “otherwise good” is the key

A serve that clips the net and lands outside the correct service court is a fault, not a let. Likewise, a serve that hits a singles stick or net post before bouncing is a fault even if it then lands in the correct box. Rule 19 Case 2 states this expressly for a singles stick.

By contrast, the standard Rule 22 result for a net touch followed by a legal landing is a let. The receiver's return cannot keep that point alive: once the service let is called, that service is replayed.

An attempted return shows readiness

Rule 21 requires the server to wait until the receiver is ready, while requiring the receiver to play to the server's reasonable pace. A receiver who attempts a return is treated as ready. The receiver cannot try the return and then claim not to have been ready because the serve was difficult.

If it is demonstrated that the receiver was not ready, the serve cannot be called a fault; Rule 22 makes it a service let. This remains a readiness ruling, not a second chance because the serve landed out.

They restore different numbers of serves

A service let under Rule 22 repeats only that service, so an earlier fault remains. A general let during the point under Rule 23 replays the whole point. The ITF's own case gives the example of another ball rolling onto court after a prior first fault: because the whole point is replayed, the server receives a first service again.

If a disruption is noticed before the next service begins, an official can use “Wait, please” to delay the second service. That instruction does not itself replay a point or erase the first fault. The timing and the kind of ruling—not simply the length of the pause—decide whether the server gets one service or two.

Who the served ball hits changes the result

• Server or server's partner before the bounce: service fault under Rule 19(d).
• Receiver or receiver's partner before the bounce, without a service let: the receiving side loses the point under Rule 24 Case 7. Standing outside the service court does not let the receiver catch an incoming serve before it lands.
• Receiver or partner after the ball first touches the net, strap or band: service let under Rule 22(a), not a point to the server.
• Receiver volleys the serve: the receiver loses the point under Rule 24(e); the service must be allowed to bounce.

A sanctioned event can announce a different net-cord rule

Appendix VI authorises a no-let alternative. It removes the service let in Rule 22(a), so a serve touching the net, strap or band remains in play if it lands legally. It does not turn an out net-cord serve into a good serve, and it does not remove Rule 22(b)'s protection for a receiver who was not ready.

For doubles combining Short Sets, No-Ad scoring and no-let play, the sanctioning body may also allow either receiver to return an otherwise good net-cord serve. This is an announced event procedure, not the universal ITF baseline. Check the entry information or competition regulations before play.

A serving-position error is not always treated alike

Under Rule 27, points completed before an error is discovered generally stand. If the server served from the wrong half, correct the side immediately according to the score; a fault delivered before discovery stands. If the players were at the wrong ends, correct the ends immediately, but a fault delivered before discovery does not stand under the 2026 wording.

Service-order errors have their own standard-game, tie-break and doubles provisions. Do not use the wrong-half rule as a shortcut for a wrong server. The referee applies Rule 27 according to when the error was found and, in a tie-break, whether an even or odd number of points has been completed.

Foot faults are findings of fact

Under the 2026 Duties and Procedures for Officials, a line umpire assigned to the baseline, sideline or centre service line calls the corresponding foot fault after the service is struck. A clear foot fault missed by a line umpire may be called by the chair umpire. If the call is mistakenly made before contact, the procedure directs that a let be played.

For ITF-sanctioned matches without a chair umpire, the ITF procedure says a receiver cannot call a foot fault; an official must do so, on court where practicable. That calling procedure should not be confused with whether the server's action actually violates Rule 18.

USTA self-officiated play uses The Code

In a USTA match governed by the 2026 Friend at Court, The Code §24 permits the receiver or receiver's partner to call a foot fault only after reasonable efforts—such as warning the server and trying to obtain an official—have failed, and only when the foot fault is so flagrant that it is clearly perceptible from the receiver's side.

The Code also says any player may call a service let, subject to its timing requirements. These are USTA procedures for unofficiated play; they do not replace the ITF procedure at an ITF-sanctioned event or automatically apply in another country or league.

How to rule on a disputed serve

1. Name the ruleset. Standard ITF Rule 22, an announced no-let event, or a national self-officiated code?
2. Check readiness and position. Was the receiver ready, and did the server begin at rest behind the correct half?
3. Watch the feet until contact or miss. Test the baseline, court, centre-mark extension, sideline extension and walking/running prohibition.
4. Identify hit, miss or abandoned toss. A deliberate catch or bounce without an attempted strike is not a fault.
5. Track the ball's first contacts. Net, service court, fixture and player contacts lead to different rulings.
6. Separate fault from let. A fault consumes the service; a service let repeats it; a point let restores a first service.
7. Apply the count. First fault means second service; second consecutive fault means loss of point.

The server lands over the baseline

Situation: the server jumps from a legal position, strikes the ball while both feet are airborne and lands inside the court.

ITF 2026 ruling: no foot fault on those facts. Rule 18 allows both feet to leave the ground, and the service motion ended at contact. The landing occurred afterwards.

The racket misses the toss

Situation: on a second serve, the server swings but completely misses the ball.

ITF 2026 ruling: fault under Rule 19(b), producing a double fault and loss of point. Had the server abandoned the attempt and caught or allowed the toss to bounce, Rule 19 Case 1 would make it no fault.

A net cord hits the receiver before bouncing

Situation: a second serve touches the band, crosses the net and hits the receiver's shoe before reaching the ground.

ITF 2026 standard ruling: second-service let under Rule 22(a), so replay the second service. The net touch is decisive; without it, Rule 24 Case 7 would award the point to the server.

The doubles server stands in the alley

Situation: a doubles server begins behind the section of baseline between the singles and doubles sidelines without touching either outer extension.

ITF 2026 ruling: legal position under the amended Rule 18 Case 1. The same stance in singles would be outside the singles sideline extension and therefore a foot fault.

A loose ball interrupts the second-serve rally

Situation: the first serve was a fault. After the second serve starts the rally, a ball rolls onto court and a let is called.

ITF 2026 ruling: replay the whole point with a first service under Rule 23. This is a point let, not a Rule 22 service let, so the earlier first fault is not carried forward.

Five shortcuts that give the wrong answer

• “Any net touch is a let.” Under the standard rule, the serve must be otherwise good; a no-let event uses a different announced procedure.
• “Catching a bad toss is a fault.” It is not, unless the server actually tried and failed to hit the ball.
• “The foot may touch the baseline as long as it does not cross.” Touching the line itself is a foot fault.
• “A second-serve let restores two serves.” A service let repeats only the second service; a whole-point let restores the first.
• “The receiver can always call a foot fault.” Calling authority depends on the event and officiating code; ITF and USTA unofficiated procedures differ.

Governing-body sources and effective version

• International Tennis Federation — Rules of Tennis 2026, Rules 11–24 and 27; Appendices VI–VII
• International Tennis Federation — 2026 Amendments, Rule 18 foot-fault clarification
• International Tennis Federation — Duties and Procedures for Officials 2026, Sections II.C, II.H, II.K and Appendix E
• United States Tennis Association — Friend at Court 2026, The Code §§23–30 (USTA self-officiated variation)

Checked on 28 August 2026 against the ITF's controlling 2026 rulebook, its separate 2026 amendment notice and the 2026 officiating procedures. Those publications specify the 2026 edition but no separate day-level commencement date. The ITF baseline is used unless a section says otherwise. Sanctioning bodies may announce the Appendix VI no-let alternative, and national or local rules may add different procedures for matches without officials.