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Residential Tenancies Act 1986

Tenancy agreements - Termination of tenancies and recovery of possession

61: Abandonment of premises

You could also call this:

“When a renter leaves their home without telling anyone and doesn't pay the rent, the owner can ask for the rental agreement to end”

If you’re renting a place and you stop living there without telling your landlord, it’s called abandonment. Your landlord can ask a special group called the Tribunal to end your tenancy if you’ve abandoned the place and you’re behind on rent.

If the Tribunal agrees to end your tenancy, they’ll try to figure out when your landlord first knew (or should have known) that you left. This is important because it affects how much rent you need to pay.

Even if you abandon the place, you still have to pay rent for a while. If you’re on a periodic tenancy (where you don’t have a fixed end date), you pay rent until 28 days after the date the Tribunal decided, or until someone new starts renting the place - whichever comes first. If you’re on a fixed-term tenancy, you pay rent until the end of your term or until someone new moves in - again, whichever is sooner.

Your landlord doesn’t have to try to end your tenancy or find a new tenant if they discover you’ve abandoned the place. They can if they want to, but they don’t have to.

It’s against the law to abandon your rented home when you owe rent, unless you have a really good reason.

There’s a quick way for landlords to apply to end a tenancy for abandonment. It takes 10 working days and doesn’t need a hearing. You can find more information about this in [section 91AA].

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM95530.

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Part 2 Tenancy agreements
Termination of tenancies and recovery of possession

61Abandonment of premises

  1. On the application of the landlord, the Tribunal may make an order terminating a tenancy where it is satisfied that the tenant has abandoned the premises and the rent is in arrear.

  2. Where the Tribunal makes an order under subsection (1) in respect of a periodic tenancy, it shall determine, as best it can on the evidence before it, the date on which the landlord first became aware, or ought reasonably to have become aware, that the tenant had abandoned the premises, and shall specify that date in the order.

  3. A tenant who abandons the premises shall, notwithstanding any rule of law to the contrary, be liable to pay the rent for any period up to and including, but not after, the following date:

  4. in the case of a periodic tenancy,—whichever is the earlier:
    1. the date of the expiry of the period of 28 days after the date specified by the Tribunal under subsection (2); or
      1. the date of commencement of a new tenancy of the premises,—
      2. in the case of a fixed-term tenancy,—whichever is the earlier.
        1. the date of the expiry of the term; or
          1. the date of commencement of a new tenancy of the premises,—

          2. Subsection (3) does not apply if section 78A applies.

          3. Nothing in section 49 shall impose upon the landlord any obligation, on finding that the tenant has abandoned the premises, to make an application under this section or to grant a new tenancy of the premises.

          4. It is declared that a tenant commits an unlawful act if, without reasonable excuse, he or she abandons the premises when the rent is in arrear.

          5. A process for dealing with applications under subsection (1) within 10 working days and without a hearing is set out in section 91AA.

          Notes
          • Section 61(3)(a)(i): amended, on , by section 43 of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2020 (2020 No 59).
          • Section 61(3A): inserted, on , by section 13 of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2019 (2019 No 37).
          • Section 61(5): inserted, on , by section 43 of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 95).
          • Section 61(6): inserted, on , by section 17 of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2016 (2016 No 26).