How do I assign my lease or sublet my dwelling?

General information, not legal advice. To leave your dwelling before the end of the lease, the Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL) explains that you can assign your lease or sublet your dwelling, with the landlord's consent. If you assign your lease, you are released from your obligations from the date of the assignment; if you sublet, you remain fully responsible for the lease. In both cases, you must notify the landlord in writing: the landlord has 15 days to answer and, if there is no answer within that time, is deemed to have accepted. If the landlord refuses, the reasons given must be serious, and the TAL can decide if you disagree.

Key facts

Landlord's response time

15 days from receiving the notice. With no answer within that time, the landlord is deemed to have accepted.

Responsibility afterward

Assignment: the assigning tenant is released from all obligations from the date of the assignment. Sublease: the tenant remains fully responsible for all the obligations of the lease.

Allowed price

Assignment: free, no consideration. Sublease: no more than the rent paid to the landlord, plus the cost of the services offered and reasonable fees for the use of movable property. Not following these rules is an offence punishable by a fine; the TAL page does not give the amount.

When it is not possible

Tenant who is a student in a dwelling of an educational institution; low-rent housing; family residence without the spouse's written consent (if the landlord has been notified of it).

Sublease of more than 12 months

If you sublet for more than 12 months (consecutive or not), the landlord may decide not to renew your lease.

TAL forms

Notice of lease assignment, Notice of sublease, Lease assignment contract, Response to a notice of lease assignment (PDFs on the TAL page).

Steps

1. Choose between the two options. With a lease assignment, you give up the right to return to the dwelling and you are released from your obligations from the date of the assignment. With a sublease, you keep the possibility of returning, but you remain fully responsible for all the obligations of the lease.
2. Check that your situation is allowed. You cannot assign or sublet your dwelling if you are a student renting a dwelling in an educational institution, if you are a tenant in low-rent housing, or if the dwelling is the family residence and the landlord has been notified of it, unless your spouse consents in writing.
3. Find the interested person and follow the price rules. An assignment must be done free of charge: you cannot demand any consideration. For a sublease, you cannot demand an amount higher than the rent you pay, besides the cost of the services offered and reasonable fees for the use of your furniture.
4. Prepare the agreement. For an assignment, the TAL offers a model contract conditional on obtaining the landlord's consent (Contrat de cession de bail). For a sublease, use the TAL's mandatory lease form, replacing "tenant" and "landlord" with "subtenant" and "sublessor".
5. Notify the landlord in writing. The notice must contain the name and address of the interested person (and, for an assignment, the planned date of the assignment). Notice models are available on the TAL website. Make sure you can prove the date on which the landlord received the notice.
6. Wait for the landlord's answer; the landlord has 15 days from receiving the notice. With no answer within that time, the landlord is deemed to have accepted. If the landlord accepts, the landlord may claim the reasonable expenses incurred from you (for example credit check fees). If the landlord refuses the proposed person, the landlord must tell you and give serious reasons.
7. If you think the refusal is not serious, you can ask the TAL to rule on the reasons or to terminate the lease. The TAL can declare the assignment or sublease valid if the refusal is unjustified. For the hearing, bring the useful documents and have the person you are proposing summoned as a witness.

General information drawn from official sources. It does not replace legal, medical or financial advice. For your situation, contact the organization concerned or a professional.