Renting in Suriname: the Huurwet Woonruimte 2020 and what belongs in your contract

Which rules apply when you rent in Suriname? Those of the Huurwet Woonruimte 2020, the law of 26 February 2020 that regulates the renting of living space and establishes a Rent Commission. The finding at the source is that the law is stricter than practice suggests: notice is always required, even with an oral contract, it must be in writing and by registered letter, and a notice that does not meet the periods is void. The pitfall is the rent: the law prescribes SRD, but makes an exception for tenants with a demonstrable fixed income in a foreign currency, and that is you. Anyone renting in euros therefore records the rate themselves.

What is in the law?

Subject	What the Huurwet Woonruimte 2020 says
Giving notice	always required, in writing by registered letter or bailiff's writ; to both spouses separately
Period on a fixed term	at least three months before the end of the rental period, for both parties
Period on an indefinite term or oral	landlord at least six months, tenant at least three
Rent	in SRD; in foreign currency for a non-resident or a resident with fixed foreign-currency income
Rent increase	not within a year of the agreement; after that with three months' notice, for an unchanged home only by the ABS annual inflation
Defects	report in writing; if the landlord does not remedy them within thirty days, the tenant may have them repaired with three quotes and set off the costs
Death of the tenant	the co-tenant continues the tenancy; without a co-tenant the tenancy ends at the end of the second month
Eviction	only after a statement from the Rent Commission, with a notification three weeks in advance

How do you give notice, and when may the landlord?

For a fixed-term contract both parties have a notice period of at least three months before the end of the agreed rental period. For an indefinite-term contract, or an oral tenancy, the landlord has six months and the tenant three. If a party gives too little notice, the tenancy under the law continues until three months after the date on which it should have ended. A tenant who through no fault of their own finds no other living space can, on an indefinite term, ask once for thirty days' postponement, and that postponement can be extended once.

The landlord may in any case terminate for rent arrears of at least two months, for serious damage through improper use and for serious misconduct; for physical violence against the landlord or the neighbours he may terminate immediately. Further, the law forbids him to deliberately harm the enjoyment of the home, and a forced eviction runs through the Rent Commission, a bailiff and the police.

Register your partner in the population register too. The spouse or the partner with a lasting joint household of at least two years is co-tenant by law, but only if he or she is registered at the address of the home in the population register. Without that registration the tenancy ends on the death of the tenant at the end of the second month, also for the survivor.

What may the rent do?

The rent is set in SRD, with the exception for non-residents and residents with a fixed income in a foreign currency; how the rates run is in money, bank and exchange rate in Suriname. An increase is not allowed within a year of the agreement, and after that only with a written proposal three months before the effective date, with the current price, the percentage or amount, the new price, the date and the grounds. If nothing has changed about the home, the increase may not exceed the inflation percentage published by the General Bureau of Statistics. If you disagree, you object to the landlord within two weeks, and after that either party can ask the Rent Commission for advice within a month.

What if something is broken?

Defects that affect habitability, safety or health you report in writing. If the landlord does not remedy them within thirty days of that notice, you may have them repaired yourself, with at least three quotes from registered companies, and set off the costs against the rent over at least two instalments. These provisions cannot be deviated from to the tenant's detriment, whatever the contract says.

What do you record before you sign?

The currency and the rate, the term, who pays which utility bills, and the condition of the home with photos. Take a contract that follows the law and do not be tempted into an oral agreement: the law protects you then too, but the proof is then your problem. You do not buy in the first year; why, and what land lease means, is in land and housing in Suriname. The whole journey is in the step-by-step plan for Suriname.

In Vertrekklaar this is phase 4 of 5 of the journey, step 4.5: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Suriname or go straight to step 4.5 in the open plan.