Article 1944 C.c.Q.: Ending a lease after a long sublet
The lessor may avoid the renewal of the lease where the lessee has subleased the dwelling for more than 12 months by giving notice, within the same time as for modification of the lease, of his intention to terminate it to the lessee and to the sublessee. The lessor may similarly avoid the renewal of the lease where the lessee has died and no one was living with him at the time of the death, by giving the notice to the heir or to the liquidator of the succession.
Civil Code of Québec, art. 1944 C.c.Q.
What this article means
Article 1944 creates two exceptions to the right to stay in the dwelling: the landlord can avoid the automatic renewal of the lease when the tenant has sublet the home for more than 12 consecutive months, or when the tenant has died and no one was living with them at the time of death. In either case, the landlord can take back the home at the end of the lease without going through a repossession or an eviction.
For the long sublet, the logic is that the main tenant is no longer really using the home as a residence: they're using it as a rental investment by subletting it. The right to stay in the dwelling protects residential use, not commercial exploitation. After 12 months of continuous subletting, the landlord can therefore end the lease by giving the proper notice to both the main tenant AND the current subtenant, within the same deadlines as for a change to the lease (3 to 6 months before the end).
For a death with no one living there, the absence of an occupant who shared the home means there's no one to protect. If someone was living with the deceased tenant (spouse, child, roommate), they keep certain rights over the lease and the landlord can't avoid renewal on this basis.
What it means for you
If you are a tenant
If you sublet your home, be aware that any sublet lasting more than 12 consecutive months can let the landlord avoid renewing your lease. If you're planning a long absence, consider an assignment of the lease instead (article 1870), which frees up your home cleanly, or alternate short sublets.
If a loved one dies and no one was living with them, the landlord can end the lease by notifying the estate. The heirs or the liquidator must respond to that notice within the set deadlines. If someone was living with the deceased (spouse, child), that person should come forward quickly to preserve their rights.
If you are a landlord
If your tenant has been subletting the home continuously for more than 12 months, you can send a notice to end the lease, respecting the deadlines in article 1942 (3 to 6 months before the end for a one-year lease). Send the notice to both the main tenant and the current subtenant, by a means that proves receipt. Document how long the sublet has lasted using the successive notices the tenant sent you under article 1870.
If the tenant dies, first check whether anyone was living with them. If so, that person keeps certain rights and you can't rely on this article. If not, send your notice to the estate (heir or liquidator) within the applicable deadlines.
Related articles
- Article 1870 C.c.Q.: The right to sublet or assign your lease
- Article 1871 C.c.Q.: The landlord's refusal: serious reason and the 15-day deadline
- Article 1872 C.c.Q.: Reasonable expenses for a sublet or assignment
- Article 1978.2 C.c.Q.: Refusing an assignment without a serious reason: resiliation by operation of law (Law 31)
- Article 1873 C.c.Q.: The effects of assigning a lease
- Article 1876 C.c.Q.: A subtenant's recourse against the landlord