Tenant Rights in Bangladesh 2026: Rent Control, Advances, Eviction and Remedies

Tenant rights Bangladesh: the 2026 rent law position

Tenant rights Bangladesh law recognises are stronger on paper than most renters, and many landlords, realise. The Premises Rent Control Act 1991 caps advance rent at one month, makes a written receipt compulsory for every payment, ties lawful rent to a statutory standard rent and bars eviction of a tenant who pays and keeps to the lease, except on a closed list of grounds. The problem has always been enforcement, not text.

That is changing in 2026. Rent disputes are now a scheduled category for compulsory pre-case mediation in thirty districts, Dhaka North City Corporation has issued its own house rent guideline, and the High Court Division continues to clarify how the rent-deposit procedure works. This guide covers residential and commercial tenancies, landlord duties, agreements, stamp duty and registration, police tenant registration, deposit disputes, lawful eviction and step-by-step remedies.

Summary: The Premises Rent Control Act 1991 governs residential and commercial lettings of buildings in the areas where it applies. It limits advance rent to one month without the Rent Controller's approval, requires a signed receipt for every payment, lets either party ask the Rent Controller to fix a standard rent equal to 15% a year of the building's market value, and protects a paying tenant from eviction except on statutory grounds. The Transfer of Property Act 1882 and Registration Act 1908 fill the gaps on notice, duties and formalities.

Key point: A tenant who pays the full lawful rent on time and keeps to the lease cannot be evicted merely because the lease has expired or the building has been sold. If the landlord refuses rent, the tenant must keep paying by money order and, if it is returned, deposit it with the Rent Controller within fifteen days. Missing that step is the single most common way tenants lose their statutory protection.

At a glance

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Table of Contents

Tenant rights Bangladesh law grants: the statutory framework

Four statutes define tenant rights Bangladesh law recognises. The Premises Rent Control Act 1991 (Act No. 3 of 1991, in Bangla the Bari Bhara Niyantran Ain) is the special law on rent, advances, receipts, repairs and eviction.[1] The Transfer of Property Act 1882 supplies the general law of leases: how a lease is made, the default duties of each side and the notice needed to end a periodic tenancy.[2] The Registration Act 1908 decides which leases must be registered.[3] The Specific Relief Act 1877 gives a fast possessory remedy to anyone, tenant included, who is thrown out without due process.[4]

Where the Rent Act and the general law conflict, the Rent Act wins. Section 18 applies expressly despite anything in the Transfer of Property Act or the Contract Act, and section 7 makes rent above the standard rent irrecoverable despite any agreement to the contrary.[1] A lease clause waiving these protections is unenforceable to that extent.

Where the Act applies

The Act took effect in the areas where its predecessor, the Premises Rent Control Ordinance 1986, was in force, and the government may extend it to other areas, or exclude areas, by gazette notification.[1] Section 33 excludes buildings held by the government and by the capital, Chattogram, Khulna and Rajshahi development authorities,.[1]

What counts as a building and who is a tenant

A "building" includes any building, part of a building or kutcha house let for residential, non-residential or mixed use, with its garden and courtyard. A "tenant" includes legal representatives and a person who stays on after the tenancy expires.[1] The same rules therefore govern a Gulshan office floor and a room in a Mirpur mess.

The Rent Controller

Section 3 lets the government appoint a Controller, with additional and deputy Controllers, by gazette notification.[1] In practice the function sits with judicial officers: in a 2026 revision the High Court Division dealt with a case heard by a Senior Assistant Judge sitting as the house rent Controller in Dhaka.[13] The Rent Controller fixes standard rent, receives deposits, orders refunds and repairs and hears complaints, and must hear applications within three months.[1]

Standard rent, rent increases and the 15% rule

Standard rent is the legal ceiling. Under section 15, the Rent Controller, on application by either landlord or tenant, fixes standard rent so that the annual rent equals 15% of the building's market value, calculated in the manner the rules prescribe.[1] Once fixed, it takes effect from the month after the application and may be reviewed every two years on a fresh application.[1]

Any rent above the standard rent is irrecoverable under section 7, subject to two limited additions. Section 8 allows extra rent by agreement where the landlord makes improvements beyond ordinary repair or supplies furniture, and section 9 adds municipal rates or taxes that a tenant pays under the lease.[1] A landlord who knowingly collects more faces a fine of up to twice the excess for a first offence and up to three times for later offences.[1]

How the 15% formula cuts both ways

Few tenancies ever have a standard rent fixed by order, because neither side applies. The formula is also a ceiling, not a floor, and in prime areas it can exceed the market rent. Tenant groups have pointed out that, if a flat is valued at Tk 1 crore, the formula would permit annual rent of Tk 15 lakh, or about Tk 1.25 lakh a month, so periodic revaluation can legitimise steep increases.[11] In older buildings the formula usually helps tenant rights Bangladesh law intends to protect; in new, high-value buildings it may not.

Advance rent, premiums and receipts

Section 10 is the most frequently broken provision in Bangladeshi renting. No person may demand or accept a premium, salami, deposit or any similar sum beyond the rent in connection with granting, renewing or extending a tenancy, and advance rent of more than one month requires the Rent Controller's prior approval.[1] Demanding salami carries a fine of up to Tk 2,000 for a first offence and Tk 5,000 for later offences; taking more than one month's advance without written consent carries a fine of up to twice the excess, rising to three times on repetition.[1]

The single exception, in section 11, covers a long development lease: a building let for at least twenty years for construction or reconstruction, which the landlord cannot cancel at will within the first ten years. There a premium or deposit may lawfully be taken.[1]

Recovering an unlawful advance

A tenant who paid an unlawful premium or excess advance can apply to the Rent Controller, within six months of payment, for a refund or adjustment against rent.[1] The order is enforceable as a decree.

The receipt rule

Section 13 requires the landlord to give a signed receipt, in the prescribed form, immediately on payment, and to keep a counterfoil book.[1] On a tenant's complaint, refusing or failing to give a receipt is punishable by a fine of twice the amount collected.[1] In any later eviction suit the receipt, bank transfer or money order counterfoil is the evidence of payment.

Landlord duties: repairs and essential services

Rental property laws for landlords impose obligations as well as rights, and the Rent Act gives tenants a repair procedure that most never use.

Repairs through the Rent Controller

Where the landlord must repair or maintain essential services such as water, electricity, drainage or a lift, the tenant can seek a repair order. If the landlord does not comply within thirty days of notice, the tenant may obtain permission to do the work and recover the cost from rent, generally capped at one-sixth of that year's rent.[1] Repairs needed to make the building habitable are always the landlord's responsibility and are not subject to the one-sixth cap. For urgent repairs the tenant may serve a 72-hour notice directly and file a copy with the Rent Controller.[1]

Cutting off services is an offence

A landlord cannot use utilities as an eviction tool. Where section 18 protects the tenant, intentionally cutting a service, removing fixtures or interfering with an easement is an offence punishable by a fine of up to Tk 500 for a first offence and Tk 1,000 thereafter.[1] Section 32 lets a tenant take electricity directly from the licensee.[1]

Tenant duties under the general law

Under section 108 of the Transfer of Property Act, unless the contract says otherwise, the tenant must pay rent on time, keep the premises in the condition received (fair wear and tear excepted), allow inspection, use the property only for the agreed purpose, not erect permanent structures without consent, and return possession at the end of the lease.[2] Breach of these duties is also a ground for eviction under the Rent Act.

Tenancy agreements, stamp duty and registration

Section 107 of the Transfer of Property Act provides that a lease from year to year, for a term exceeding one year or reserving a yearly rent can be made only by registered instrument, executed by both parties. Other leases may be made by registered instrument or by oral agreement accompanied by delivery of possession.[2] Section 17(1)(d) of the Registration Act mirrors this by making registration of such leases compulsory.[3]

The eleven-month habit

Market practice is to sign an unregistered agreement for eleven months, or for two years on stamp paper without registration. An unregistered agreement for more than a year cannot operate as a lease for that term, so the agreed term may not be enforceable, a serious risk for a commercial tenant investing in fit-out. For property registration mechanics, see our guide to the property registration process in Bangladesh.

Stamp duty

A lease is chargeable to stamp duty under Schedule I of the Stamp Act 1899. Since the 2022 finance legislation, duty is a percentage of the average annual rent that rises with the term, subject to caps.[14] Counterparts, assignments and surrenders carry their own duties, and an under-stamped document is not admissible in evidence until the deficiency and penalty are paid.

What the agreement should say

A sound agreement states the rent, due date and payment method, the advance and how it will be adjusted, the term and notice period, who bears repairs, utilities and service charges, the permitted use and subletting rules, and the condition of the premises at handover. The DNCC guideline of January 2026 likewise expects a written agreement covering rent, increases, advance and exit terms.[10]

Commercial leases: shops, offices and warehouses

Commercial premises fall within the Rent Act because "building" covers non-residential use, so the advance cap, receipt duty, standard rent mechanism and eviction protection apply to a shop or office as much as to a flat.[1] Large security deposits and multi-year advances are common in shopping centres and office towers, yet they are unlawful unless the Rent Controller has approved them or the section 11 exception applies.

Commercial tenants should register any term over a year, obtain written consent for fit-out and permanent alterations, which section 108(p) of the Transfer of Property Act otherwise bars, and respect the use clause, since misuse breaches section 108(o) and can found an eviction claim.[2] Rent paid by companies also carries tax obligations; our guide to real estate law in Bangladesh covers the tax side.

Landlord's change of ownership

A sale of the building does not end a tenancy. Under section 18(2), neither lease expiry nor transfer of the landlord's interest alone justifies eviction of a tenant willing to pay the lawful rent.[1] Tenants should notify a new owner and keep paying.

Disputes over who should receive rent

In Ali Ahmed Montu v Md Habibur Rahman Sarkar (2026), a shop tenant whose landlord had died faced competing demands from two claimants and deposited the rent with the Rent Controller under section 19(2). The High Court Division held the deposit in time and the Controller a mere conduit; whether the tenant is in default is for the eviction suit to decide.[13]

Eviction grounds under section 18

The heart of tenancy rights and eviction law, and of tenant rights Bangladesh courts enforce, is section 18. So long as the tenant pays the full lawful rent and complies with the lease, no court may make an order or decree for recovery of possession in the landlord's favour, despite anything in the Transfer of Property Act or the Contract Act.[1] The protection falls away only on these grounds:

• breach of the tenant's duties under clauses (m), (o) or (p) of section 108 of the Transfer of Property Act, covering damage and condition, misuse and permanent structures;
• subletting all or part of the premises without the landlord's written consent, unless the contract allows it;
• conduct causing nuisance or annoyance to occupiers of adjoining or neighbouring premises;
• using, or allowing others to use, any part of the building for economic purposes; and
• the landlord's genuine need of the building for construction or reconstruction, for personal occupation or occupation by a person for whose benefit the building is held, or another cause the court considers satisfactory.[1]

Default in rent

Under section 18(5), the tenant loses protection if rent is not paid by the date fixed in the lease or, where no date is fixed, by the fifteenth day of the following month, or if the tenant fails to make the deposits section 19 requires.[1] Most eviction suits are won on default.

Bona fide need and the abuse safeguard

If construction does not begin within two months of vacant possession, the landlord does not occupy, or the premises are re-let to someone else within six months, after a landlord recovers possession for own use or rebuilding, the former tenant may apply within seven months of vacating for restoration, compensation or both.[1]

The eviction process: notice, suit and decree

There is no lawful self-help eviction of a protected tenant. Changing locks, removing belongings or cutting water invites criminal complaints, police action and a possession suit. The lawful route has four stages.

Notice to quit

The Rent Act itself does not fix a notice period. In the absence of a contract or local usage, section 106 of the Transfer of Property Act treats a non-agricultural, non-manufacturing lease as month to month, terminable by fifteen days' notice expiring with the end of a month of the tenancy; leases for agricultural or manufacturing purposes run year to year on six months' notice. Notice must be written, signed and served by post, by hand or, failing that, by affixing it to the premises.[2] The DNCC guideline encourages two months' written notice for residential lettings, but the operative period is whatever the agreement and section 106 provide.[10]

Pre-case mediation in notified districts

Under section 21B of the Legal Aid Services Act 2000, inserted by the Legal Aid Services (Amendment) Act 2026, a party to a scheduled dispute must first seek mediation at the legal aid office and may sue only if it fails; mediation time is excluded from limitation.[6] House rent disputes are one of the nine scheduled categories.[7] By S.R.O. No. 288-Law/2026, the requirement took effect on 31 July 2026 in thirty districts, including Sylhet, Comilla, Jashore and Tangail.[6] Dhaka and Chattogram were not on that list, but coverage is expanding; check before filing. See our legal aid guide.

The eviction suit

If notice and mediation fail, the landlord files a civil suit for eviction and recovery of possession, usually with arrears and mesne profits,. The landlord must plead and prove a section 18 ground. Our guide to civil suit filing in Bangladesh covers pleadings, and our analysis of recovery of possession in Bangladesh deals with possession claims in depth. A landlord's suit to recover possession from a tenant has a twelve-year limitation period running from the end of the tenancy.[5]

Decree and execution

A decree for possession is executed through the court, with bailiffs and, where needed, police assistance. A departing tenant who fails to hand over vacant possession faces a fine of up to ten times the monthly lawful rent.[1] For the execution stage, see our guide to execution cases in Bangladesh.

When the landlord refuses rent: deposit with the Rent Controller

A refused payment is the classic prelude to an eviction suit for default, and section 19 is the tenant's answer. If the landlord refuses rent sent by money order, the tenant may deposit it with the Rent Controller within fifteen days of the money order being returned, and may continue to deposit later instalments, with postage, within fifteen days of each due date unless the landlord gives written notice of willingness to accept.[1] Deposits are also permitted where there is genuine doubt about who is entitled to the rent, or where the landlord has left without an authorised representative.[1]

The application must give the landlord's correct name and address; knowingly giving false details is an offence under section 25.[1] Section 20 protects the landlord in turn: withdrawing a deposit or accepting a money order is not, by itself, an admission of the tenant's particulars or a waiver of any notice to quit.[1]

Practical points on timing

The Ali Ahmed Montu judgment shows how courts calculate time. Where there is no written term fixing the payment date, the tenant has until the fifteenth of the following month to pay, and a further fifteen days to deposit; both courts below had erred in treating the application as late.[13] The safer practice is to deposit the moment a payment is refused.

Security deposit disputes at the end of a tenancy

Deposit disputes are the commonest rent quarrel. The tenant has often paid two to six months' "advance", more than section 10 permits without approval, and the landlord often withholds it all against unproven damage. Neither position is secure.

The tenant can seek a refund of the unlawful excess from the Rent Controller within six months of payment, and sue for any unadjusted lawful advance.[1] The landlord may set off genuine arrears, unpaid utilities and the cost of repairing damage beyond fair wear and tear, because returning the premises in their original condition is a tenant duty under section 108(m).[2] A signed, photographed handover record is the best evidence. In notified districts the dispute goes first to legal aid mediation.[7]

The cleanest solution is contractual: agree in writing that the advance will be adjusted against the final month's rent and how damage will be assessed.

The High Court's 2015 directions and the 2026 DNCC guideline

The leading case on tenant rights Bangladesh courts have considered is the public interest writ filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh in April 2010. On 1 July 2015 a Division Bench of the High Court Division directed the police in all cities to accept tenants' complaints against house owners and to act immediately to protect tenants forcibly evicted or illegally cut off from gas, water or electricity.[8] It also directed the government to form, within six months, a seven-member commission to fix area-based minimum and maximum rents and recommend reform of the 1991 Act, and meanwhile to appoint a rent controller in every city ward, subject to financial ability.[8]

Why the 2015 verdict did not take effect

The full judgment was never released. The presiding judge died on 1 January 2017 before completing it, and by May 2019 a fresh hearing before another bench was required.[9] The directions therefore carry persuasive weight, but should not be pleaded as a binding order without checking the status of the rehearing.

The DNCC house rent guideline, January 2026

On 20 January 2026, Dhaka North City Corporation announced a house rent guideline framed under the 1991 Act. It provides for no increase within two years, with later revisions in June or July; annual rent capped at 15% of market value; rent due by the tenth of each month against a signed receipt; habitable premises with uninterrupted utilities; tenant access to roof and main-gate keys; two months' written notice to end a residential tenancy; and written agreements.[10]

Disputes go first to ward-level landlord and tenant associations and then to the DNCC zonal executive officer.[10] For tenant rights Bangladesh landlords in Dhaka North must now observe, the guideline is the practical benchmark.

Legal status and the advance-rent conflict

The guideline is administrative guidance, not legislation, and it does not override the Act. That matters on one point in particular. The guideline speaks of advance rent of one to three months, while section 10 of the Act caps advance rent at one month without the Rent Controller's prior approval and section 23 penalises the excess.[1] [10] Commentators, including counsel in the 2010 writ, have questioned its legal basis.[11] We found no equivalent guideline published by Dhaka South City Corporation as at the date of this article; DNCC's document applies only in its own area.

Tenant information registration with the police

Dhaka landlords are expected to register tenants with the police. The Dhaka Metropolitan Police Citizen Information Management System began in 2016, covered all Dhaka stations from 2017 and by July 2026 held data on more than five million residents.[12] The form is collected from, and returned to, the local police station or outpost; residents should keep a photocopy and re-register on moving.[12]

The DMP's 2026 appeal urged landlords, tenants and mess residents to register but cited no statutory penalty.[12] Landlords should store copies securely, because the forms carry identity and family details.

Land rent laws and agricultural tenancies

"Land rent" means something different from house rent. Under the State Acquisition and Tenancy Act 1950, landholders hold directly under the state, and the old rent payable to the state has become land development tax, now governed by the Land Development Tax Act 2023. Leases of non-agricultural land are governed by the Non-Agricultural Tenancy Act 1949, and agricultural or manufacturing leases default to year-to-year tenancies on six months' notice.[2] These regimes are covered in our guide to the land law framework in Bangladesh.

Step-by-step remedies for tenants and landlords

This sequence works for most disputes, on either side.

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Tenants should never stop paying because of a dispute, and should deposit with the Rent Controller within fifteen days of any refusal. If utilities are cut or you are locked out, report it to the police at once and consider a suit under section 9 of the Specific Relief Act, which lets a person dispossessed without consent and otherwise than by due process recover possession regardless of title. No appeal or review lies against the decree, and the suit must be filed within six months of dispossession.[4] [5] Where urgent protection is needed pending trial, a temporary injunction may be available.

Landlords should keep a written agreement, receipt counterfoils and written notices. Do not take more than one month's advance without approval, and never cut services or change locks. Serve a valid notice to quit, mediate where compulsory, then sue on a clearly pleaded section 18 ground. Self-help invites criminal complaints and a possessory suit that cannot be appealed.

Comparing the main routes

Common mistakes that cost tenants and landlords

Tenants most often withhold rent to force repairs, miss the fifteen-day deposit window, pay cash without receipts or let the six-month refund limit expire. Landlords most often take several months' advance, issue no receipts, rely on an "eleven-month" agreement instead of a statutory ground, cut utilities or sue without compulsory mediation.

Each of these mistakes is avoidable with a written agreement, a payment trail and an understanding that tenant rights Bangladesh statutes confer cannot be contracted away. Our real estate disputes practice acts for landlords, tenants, developers and institutional owners.

What to watch on tenant rights Bangladesh in 2026 and 2027

Three developments will shape the next year. First, the roll-out of mandatory legal aid mediation beyond the thirty districts notified in July 2026; if Dhaka and Chattogram are added, mediation will become the default first step for most urban rent disputes.[6] Second, whether DNCC's guideline produces area-based rent benchmarks and whether other city corporations follow. Third, any move by the elected government towards the comprehensive reform of the 1991 Act that the High Court urged in 2015.[8]

Until then, the 1991 Act's rules on advances, receipts, standard rent, deposits and eviction grounds remain the starting point for every tenant rights Bangladesh question.

Frequently asked questions

What are the basic tenant rights in Bangladesh?

Under the Premises Rent Control Act 1991: rent no higher than the standard rent, an advance of no more than one month without approval, a receipt for every payment, essential repairs, and no eviction while paying and complying, except on statutory grounds.[1]

How much advance rent can a landlord take in Bangladesh?

One month's rent, unless the Rent Controller gives prior approval for more. Taking more without approval is punishable by a fine of up to twice the excess, and the tenant can apply for a refund within six months.[1]

Can a landlord increase rent every year?

Rent cannot lawfully exceed the standard rent, which is reviewable every two years. DNCC's January 2026 guideline also says rent should not be increased within two years.[1] [10]

How is standard rent calculated?

The Rent Controller fixes it on application so that annual rent equals 15% of the building's market value, assessed in the manner the rules prescribe.[1]

On what grounds can a tenant be evicted?

Default in rent, breach of key tenant duties, unauthorised subletting, nuisance to neighbours, use for economic purposes, or the landlord's genuine need to rebuild or occupy.[1]

What notice must a landlord give before eviction?

Whatever the agreement provides; otherwise, for a monthly tenancy, fifteen days' written notice expiring at the end of a tenancy month under section 106 of the Transfer of Property Act.[2]

What should a tenant do if the landlord refuses to accept rent?

Send the rent by money order and, if it is returned, deposit it with the Rent Controller within fifteen days, then keep depositing each month.[1] [13]

Does a tenancy agreement need to be registered?

Yes, if it is for more than one year, from year to year or reserves a yearly rent. Every lease document must also be properly stamped.[2] [3] [14]

Is mediation compulsory for house rent disputes?

In the thirty districts notified from 31 July 2026, yes. House rent disputes must go to the district legal aid office for mediation before a case can be filed.[6] [7]

Do landlords in Dhaka have to register tenants with the police?

The Dhaka Metropolitan Police asks landlords and tenants to register through its Citizen Information Management System at the local police station.[12]