Abandoned rental property in France: the procedure

A tenant who stops paying and seems to have left does not give you the home back: you may not go in or change the lock. For an unfurnished lease, French law sets a two-stage procedure: a commissaire de justice (court enforcement officer) puts the tenant on notice to prove they still live there, records the abandonment one month later if nobody answers, then a judge finds the lease terminated and orders repossession (article 14-1 of the law of 6 July 1989).

This guide is part of our file Unpaid rent in France: what to do, step by step.

Never go in alone#

A dwelling holding the tenant's furniture is their home under French criminal law, whether or not they live there: entering it by trickery, threats, force or coercion is punished by three years and €45,000 (article 226-4 of the Criminal code). Forcing them out without the State's assistance is punished by three years' imprisonment and a €30,000 fine. See Changing the locks on a tenant who doesn't pay.

The steps for an unfurnished lease#

Step	Delay	Text
Notice to prove occupation, served by a commissaire de justice	—	1989 law, art. 14-1
Tenant's answer	One month after service	1989 law, art. 14-1
Abandonment recorded, belongings listed	After that month, with no answer	1989 law, art. 14-1
Request to the juge des contentieux de la protection	—	Service-Public
Order served on the tenant	Within two months, or it lapses	Service-Public
Tenant may contest	One month after service	Service-Public
Repossession by the commissaire de justice	Then	CPCE, art. R451-1

The CPCE is the Code des procédures civiles d'exécution, France's code of civil enforcement.

1. The notice#

When there are signs the tenant has abandoned the home (unpaid rent, mail piling up), you instruct a commissaire de justice to serve a notice to prove they occupy the home. It can be included in a commandement de payer if rent is owed.

2. Recording the abandonment#

With no answer one month after service, the commissaire de justice may record the abandonment. According to Service-Public, they enter with two witnesses: the mayor, a councillor or an authorised municipal officer, plus a police or gendarmerie officer, or as a last resort two adults unrelated to them or to you. They draw up a report listing the belongings left behind and whether each seems to have market value.

3. The judge#

You file a request (requête) with the juge des contentieux de la protection, the local judge for tenancy disputes, of the property's area, enclosing the lease and the abandonment report. The same request can ask for the tenant to be ordered to pay the arrears. The judge rules by order (ordonnance): the lease is found terminated, repossession is ordered, and the judge may authorise the auction of belongings and declare unsaleable ones abandoned.

If the request is rejected, you cannot appeal the order, but you can bring an ordinary action to terminate the lease, for example for unpaid rent. Service-Public adds that a request found abusive can cost a civil fine of up to €10,000.

4. Service and repossession#

You have two months to have the order served on the tenant by a commissaire de justice; after that it lapses. The tenant may contest it within one month. If they do not, the commissaire de justice takes back the premises and draws up a report. The tenant's personal papers are kept for two years by the commissaire de justice.

Furnished lease or bail mobilité#

This procedure does not apply to furnished lets. According to Service-Public, for a furnished lease or a bail mobilité (a short furnished lease) you must ask the judge to terminate the lease and order the eviction, for example for unpaid rent. The path is then the termination clause and the eviction procedure.

Dated example#

Unfurnished lease, rent unpaid since January 2027, mailbox overflowing.

Date	Step
1 March 2027	Notice to prove occupation served by a commissaire de justice
1 April 2027	One month over with no answer: the abandonment can be recorded
Then	Abandonment report and inventory, then the request to the judge
Date of the order	Lease found terminated, repossession ordered
Within two months of the order	Order served on the tenant
One month after service	Time to contest over, then repossession

No text sets how long the court takes: only the statutory delays are dated here.

Sources#

• Article 14-1 of law no. 89-462 of 6 July 1989 (Légifrance, in French)
• What to do when the tenant abandons the home, Service-Public (in French)
• Article R451-1 of the Code of civil enforcement (Légifrance, in French)
• Article 226-4 of the Criminal code (Légifrance, in French)

Last checked on 9 November 2026