Apartment Rental Agreement in Ukraine: What to Include and How to Check the Landlord

The Civil Code calls it a contract of lease of housing (naim zhytla): the owner (landlord) gives the home to the tenant to live in for a set term and for payment (Art. 810). People usually say orenda, and Chapter 59 itself is titled Lease (Rent) of Housing, so both terms are fine.

The contract must be in writing (Art. 811(1)). Without a written contract the deal is not automatically void, but you cannot prove it with witness testimony (Art. 218(1)). The Law on the Fundamentals of Housing Policy No. 4751-IX of 13 January 2026, now in force, confirms that leases follow the Civil Code and that eviction from private housing is only possible by court decision.

For a standard apartment lease a notary is not required. Chapter 59 of the Civil Code requires notarisation only for a lease with an option to buy (Art. 811). Either party may still ask for notarisation (Art. 209(4)), as the Ministry of Justice noted in November 2022. A written contract signed by both sides is legally valid without a notary.

Many English-language guides say a notary is mandatory for leases over three years. It is not that clear-cut. The three-year rule sits in a different chapter (Art. 793(2)) and covers leases of a building or other permanent structure; the law does not say directly whether it applies to an apartment. If you plan a multi-year lease, ask a lawyer or simply have it notarised.

The law sets no mandatory template, but Chapter 59 implies a minimum without which the lease protects neither you nor the landlord. Make sure each point below is written concretely, not as by agreement.

• Parties: full names and ID details of landlord and tenant; if someone other than the owner signs, the power of attorney details.
• Property: address, number of rooms, floor area and the document proving the landlord's ownership.
• Term. If none is stated, the lease is deemed to run for five years (Art. 821). A lease under one year is short-term, so several rules do not apply to it, including the tenant's priority right to renew (Art. 822) and the rules on temporary occupants (Art. 818) and subletting (Art. 823).
• Rent and payment terms: amount, due date, method. If no due date is set, rent is monthly. Rent cannot be changed unilaterally unless the contract or the law provides otherwise (Art. 820).
• Who will live with the tenant. They have equal rights, and the tenant is responsible to the landlord for them (Art. 816).
• Utilities. By law the tenant pays them unless the contract says otherwise (Art. 815).
• Repairs. Routine repairs are the tenant's, major repairs the landlord's, unless agreed otherwise (Art. 819).

Many tenant–landlord disputes come not from what the law says but from what the contract leaves out. The Civil Code does not define a security deposit, so spell out the amount, when it is returned and on what conditions. A payment not expressly called an earnest payment is treated as an advance (Art. 570), so state clearly that it is a deposit and what it may be used for.

• Deposit: The security deposit of UAH ___ is returned to the tenant within ___ days after the apartment is handed back under the handover act, minus documented damage and unpaid bills.
• Pets: species, number, who covers any damage and the condition in which the flat is returned.
• Landlord visits: how often and with how much notice.
• Subletting and guests: subletting needs the landlord's consent (Art. 823); temporary occupants may stay after notifying the landlord (Art. 818). These articles do not apply to short-term leases, so write the rules into the contract.
• Termination. The tenant may end the lease with three months' written notice (Art. 825(1)). The landlord can terminate only through court on grounds set by law, such as non-payment or damage, and eviction requires a court decision (Arts. 825–826).

Only the owner or a person authorised by the owner may lease the property (Art. 761). Before signing or paying anything, ask to see originals and check that the names, address and floor area match across the documents, the register and the contract.

• The owner's passport. OLX recommends checking its validity through the State Migration Service online tool.
• Proof of ownership: a purchase contract, certificate of inheritance, ownership certificate (including one issued after privatisation), a court decision and so on.
• The technical passport and recent utility bills, which OLX also advises checking for long-term rentals.
• A power of attorney if a representative signs on the owner's behalf.
• Co-owners' consent if the flat is jointly owned: joint property is managed with the co-owners' agreement (Civil Code Arts. 358, 369).

Ownership and encumbrances are recorded in the State Register of Property Rights to Real Estate. The information is open, public and paid (Art. 32 of Law No. 1952-IV) and online extracts are issued in real time. You can search someone else's property by address or other property details, or by the person's details. The register also shows encumbrances such as an arrest (seizure), a mortgage or a ban on sale.

You can order the information via Diia (a qualified electronic signature is required) or the Ministry of Justice e-services cabinet. The 2026 fee under the law is UAH 40 online and UAH 80 on paper; Diia notes the amount may vary with the volume of information. The Diia report also covers the older Register of Ownership Rights to Real Estate. If the name in the extract does not match the passport of the person renting out the flat, or there are encumbrances, stop and find out why before signing.

We found no rule that specifically requires a handover act for a housing lease, but in practice it helps a lot in deposit disputes. Cedos research found that a common problem is deposits not being returned, often on the pretext of waiting for the last utility bills. An act with meter readings and photos helps prevent these arguments.

• Handover date and number of key sets.
• All meter readings with photos.
• A list of furniture and appliances with the condition of each item.
• Existing defects: scratches, stains, faults.
• Both parties' signatures on every page.

You must declare or register a new address within 30 days (Law No. 1871-IX, Art. 5). At an administrative services centre (TsNAP) a lease can serve as proof of your right to live there; online in Diia a tenant can declare the address only with the owner's electronic consent. Registration itself gives no right to use the home; that right comes from the lease.

Income tax on rent (18% personal income tax plus 5% military levy) is paid by the owner when the tenant is a private individual rather than a sole trader; if the tenant is a sole trader or a company, the tenant withholds it as a tax agent. An estate agent who brokers a lease must by law report it to the tax authority. Renting through an agency, your landlord is still the owner or their authorised representative; ask the manager who drafts the lease and which documents are checked.