An eviction claim for unpaid rent
The office of lawyer Ali Barakat in Baghdad sets out the rule on requesting eviction of a property for unpaid rent, under Real Estate Rent Law No. 87 of 1979, published in the Iraqi Official Gazette, issue 2719, of 30/6/1979. The page is limited to the ground in article 17, first paragraph, and does not address the other eviction grounds.
The scope of the law, and this ground alone
The provisions of this law apply to built properties let for housing to Iraqis and situated within the limits of the Mayoralty of Baghdad and the municipalities, under article 1, first paragraph, subject to the exceptions set out in the same article, whose letting is governed by the Civil Code or by their special laws. Eviction under article 17 of this law is not requested for a property that falls outside that scope. Commercial shop leases are dealt with on a separate page, because a commercial shop is not within the application of article 1 to housing properties.
A lessor may not request eviction of a property subject to the law except on one of the grounds listed in article 17. This page presents only the ground relating to failure to pay a rent instalment in paragraph 1. The other grounds in the same article are not the subject of this page.
The periods in article 17, first paragraph, and the method of paying rent
If the tenant does not pay the rent instalment despite seven days having passed after it fell due, and the lessor, after those seven days have ended, has the tenant warned through a notary to pay within eight days from the date of service of the warning, eviction may be requested on this ground. The costs of the warning and of the deposit in that case fall on the tenant. The tenant benefits from this protection only once in the single year that begins with the last warning. After that, the lessor may request eviction if the tenant does not pay the instalment due within fifteen days from the date it fell due, under article 17, first paragraph.
Rent for properties subject to this law is paid in advance in monthly instalments, regardless of the term of the lease, and any agreement to the contrary is void, subject to a special rule where the lessor is the State or a public legal person, under article 10, first paragraph. Rent may be paid through a notary, or by a bank or postal transfer to the lessor's account, under paragraph 2. If the lessor refuses to receive the instalment due, the tenant may deposit it with the notary in the city where the property lies within fifteen days from the date it fell due; the lessor bears the costs of the warning and the deposit, which are deducted from the instalment deposited, under paragraph 3.
The nature of the claim and the period of grace in enforcement
Claims arising from the application of this law are treated as urgent claims, and they may not be challenged by the path of correction of the cassation decision, under article 22, first paragraph. Enforcement departments must grant the person against whom an eviction judgment is given a period of grace not exceeding ninety days from the date enforcement of the judgment is commenced with them, and a cassation challenge to the decision of the Head of Enforcement does not affect the running of that period, under paragraph 2.
| Article | Period |
|---|---|
| 17, first paragraph | Seven days after the due date before the warning is given, then eight days from service of the warning in which to pay |
| 17, first paragraph | After the once-a-year protection has been used: fifteen days from the due date |
| 10, third paragraph | Fifteen days from the due date to deposit the instalment with the notary if the lessor refuses to receive it |
| 22, second paragraph | A period of grace in enforcement not exceeding ninety days from the date enforcement of the eviction judgment is commenced |
Legal basis and sources
Frequently asked questions
May eviction be requested on the day after a rent instalment is late?
Not under article 17, first paragraph, in a year in which the protection has not yet been used: this ground is not requested unless seven days have passed after the due date without payment, and the tenant has then been warned through a notary and has not paid within eight days of service. After that protection has been used once in the year, the request may be made if the instalment is not paid within fifteen days of the due date.
What may the tenant do if the lessor refuses to receive the instalment?
The tenant may deposit the instalment with the notary in the city where the property lies within fifteen days from the date it fell due; the lessor bears the costs of the warning and the deposit, which are deducted from the instalment deposited, under article 10, third paragraph.
Is an eviction judgment enforced on the same day?
Enforcement departments must grant the person against whom the eviction judgment is given a period of grace not exceeding ninety days from the date enforcement of the judgment is commenced with them, and a cassation challenge to the decision of the Head of Enforcement does not affect the running of that period, under article 22, second paragraph. Claims arising under this law are urgent claims, and they may not be challenged by correction of the cassation decision, under paragraph 1.
Related topics and articles
- 01What a landlord reviews before and after a lease in BaghdadWhat a Baghdad landlord reviews before and after a lease under Rent Law 87/1979 and the Civil Code.
- 02Commercial shop lease and key money (khuluw / jadak)A commercial shop lease in Iraq under the Civil Code lease rules, and khuluw (jadak) as a contractual bargain, with the scope of Law 87/1979 stated.
- 03Sale or mortgage and the real-estate tax step in governorates not organised in a regionSale or mortgage and the real-estate tax step in governorates not organised in a region, under Law 162/1959 and Land Registration Law 43/1971.
- 04Ending co-ownership of shared propertyHow co-ownership of property ends under the Civil Code: agreed partition by registration, a First Instance claim, or sale if it cannot be divided.
- 05Acquisitive possession of property and the passage of timeWhen an ownership claim against a possessor of unregistered property is not heard: fifteen years, or five with good faith and just title (art. 1158).