Bailo
Transferring your lease in Québec: the complete guide
Need to leave your apartment before the lease ends? A lease transfer, legally called an assignment of lease, lets you hand it over to someone else and be released from your obligations. Here is how it works, step by step, under the rules in force since February 2024.
Lease transfer in two sentences
Transferring your lease means handing it over to another person, the assignee, who becomes the tenant in your place, on the same terms and at the same rent, until the lease ends.
From the transfer date, you are released from your obligations towards the landlord (article 1873 of the Civil Code of Québec). That is the key difference from a sublet, where you remain responsible.
Who can transfer a lease
As a rule, any residential tenant can. Three situations are exceptions:
- Low-rental housing: transfers are not allowed.
- Housing rented from an educational institution by a student: not allowed, with limited exceptions.
- Family residence: if the landlord was notified that the dwelling is a family residence, the written consent of the married or civil-union spouse is required.
The steps, in order
- Find someone interested in taking over the lease.
- Review their file and show the apartment.
- Send written notice to the landlord, stating the name and address of the proposed assignee and the planned transfer date. See what the notice must contain.
- Wait for the landlord's answer. They have 15 days from receiving the notice. With no refusal in that time, they are deemed to have consented.
- Complete the transfer and hand over the keys on the agreed date.
What the landlord can answer
- Accept. The assignee becomes the tenant on the planned date.
- Refuse for a serious reason, which must be stated. The lease continues with you, and you can contest the refusal before the Tribunal administratif du logement.
- Refuse for another reason. The lease is then terminated on the transfer date stated in your notice: you are released, but the applicant does not take over the apartment.
More: when the landlord refuses.
What it can cost
A landlord who consents may only require reimbursement of the reasonable expenses resulting from the transfer (article 1872 of the Civil Code).
For your part, you cannot ask for money or any other consideration from the person taking over the lease in exchange for the transfer.
Frequently asked questions
Can a landlord refuse a lease transfer in Québec?
Yes. They can refuse for a serious reason, stated within 15 days, in which case the lease continues with the tenant. Since February 21, 2024, they can also refuse for another reason: the lease is then terminated on the transfer date stated in the notice.
How long does the landlord have to answer?
Fifteen days from receiving the notice. If they do not refuse within that time, they are deemed to have consented.
Am I still responsible for the apartment after the transfer?
No. From the transfer date, the tenant who assigns the lease is released from their obligations towards the landlord. That is the main difference from a sublet.
Read next
Sources
- Tribunal administratif du logement — Cession ou sous-location
- Éducaloi — La cession de bail et la sous-location de logement
- Code civil du Québec, articles 1870 à 1873 et 1978.2
Updated on November 15, 2026. This page provides general information and is not legal advice. For a specific situation, contact the Tribunal administratif du logement or a legal adviser.