Every year, your landlord is supposed to compare what you have paid in charges (the provisions) with what he has actually spent on the building. This is the rental charge reconciliation. In theory, it is a simple accounting adjustment. In practice, many tenants receive a vague statement, without supporting documents, sometimes several years later, with an amount to pay that comes out of nowhere — or worse, never receive anything even though they have overpaid.
The Answer in 30 Seconds
Charge reconciliation must take place at least once a year (article 23 of the loi du 6 juillet 1989). One month before sending the statement, the landlord must provide you with the breakdown of charges by type, and keep the supporting documents available for at least one month. The landlord has 3 years from the date he received the supporting documents (usually the syndic's statement) to claim a supplement from you — after this period, the debt is prescribed. You have the same 3-year period to claim a refund of any overpayment. If a statement seems unjustified to you or if the documents are not provided, you can legitimately refuse to pay as long as proof is not provided. Upload your lease on bail.immo to check what your contract specifically provides for recoverable charges.
What the Law Says
Only the charges listed by the décret n° 87-713 du 26 août 1987 are recoverable from the tenant: they fall into three main categories — services related to the use of the dwelling (water, elevator, maintenance of common areas), routine maintenance and minor repair expenses, and local taxes such as the household waste collection tax. A charge absent from this list — for example, major roof work or condominium management fees — cannot be charged to you, even if the landlord includes it in his statement.
On the procedural side, the article 23 of the 1989 law requires the landlord, when charges are paid in the form of monthly provisions, to carry out an annual reconciliation based on the expenses actually incurred. One month before sending this statement, he must provide you with the breakdown of charges by category and, in condominiums, the method of distribution among the different tenants of the building. The supporting documents (invoices, maintenance contract, syndic's report) must remain available for at least one month.
Why This Can Be Problematic
The most misunderstood point, including by some landlords, concerns the deadline. Many tenants think that a statement arriving "too late" is automatically void. That is false: the reconciliation itself has no strict time limit, but the claim for additional charges is prescribed by 3 years from the date the landlord received the elements necessary for his reconciliation — not from the date of the work or the payment of provisions. A landlord who waits 4 years to claim a catch-up of charges for 2022 can therefore no longer demand anything for that period, even if he produces perfectly valid supporting documents.
Conversely, this same 3-year period works in your favor: if you have overpaid provisions and the landlord has never reconciled, you can claim a refund of the overpayment for 3 years from the date the reconciliation should have occurred, including after you leave the dwelling.
Concrete example. You leave your dwelling in 2026. Two years later, your former landlord sends you a charge statement for 2023 claiming €620 as a supplement, with no invoices attached, just a global total "building charges." You are entitled to demand the item-by-item detail and the corresponding supporting documents before paying anything — a total without documentation is not an enforceable reconciliation.
Exceptions and special cases. Co-tenants with a single lease are jointly liable for the payment of reconciled charges, including for the share of a co-tenant who left without paying their portion, unless there is a contrary clause or the end of the solidarity period. In furnished rentals with a flat charge (without adjustable provisions), there is in principle no reconciliation: the flat rate is final, unless there is an explicit contrary agreement in the lease.
Checklist Before Paying a Charge Catch-Up
- Does the statement detail each charge item separately, or is it limited to a global total?
- Are the supporting documents (invoices, syndic's report, maintenance contract) actually provided or just mentioned?
- Is each claimed charge indeed included in the restrictive list of the décret n° 87-713?
- Has the 3-year period since the landlord received the supporting documents already expired?
- If you have left the dwelling, have you checked that the landlord has properly settled the final account within the month following the approval of the building's accounts?
What to Do in Case of Disagreement
First, request in writing the detail of the charges and the corresponding supporting documents — the landlord cannot refuse this. If he does not respond or maintains an unjustified statement, you can refer the matter free of charge to the departmental conciliation commission before considering the judicial court. Keep a written record of every exchange: in case of a dispute, it is often what makes the difference.
FAQ
Can the landlord claim charges for several years at once? Yes, but only within the limit of the last 3 years from the receipt of his own supporting documents — not beyond.
Can I refuse to pay as long as I do not have the supporting documents? You can legitimately request a delay and contest the principle of payment without proof, but a total and lasting refusal to pay a sum that is otherwise justified could constitute an unpaid debt. The ideal is to request the documents in writing before any decision.
Can the reconciliation occur after I leave the dwelling? Yes. The landlord has one month after the final approval of the building's accounts to settle the balance and claim it from you or reimburse you, even if you have moved out long ago.
Do you have doubts about a charge clause in your lease, or about a statement you have just received? Analyze your rental contract on bail.immo to check what is actually recoverable.
Sources
- Charges payable by the tenant (rental charges or recoverable charges) — Service-Public.fr
- Refund of charges: starting point of the prescription — ANIL
- Prescription: indirect sanction of charge reconciliation — ANIL
Legal Information
The information presented on this page is provided for informational purposes and is based on the texts and sources available at the time of its publication or last update. Legislation, regulations, and case law may evolve at any time. The results and explanations proposed by bail.immo do not constitute legal advice and do not replace the opinion of a lawyer or another competent legal professional.