Lending a house or an apartment free of charge to a relative or a friend is a comodato or préstamo de uso (loan for use, free of charge). It is governed by the Código Civil (Civil Code; Gaceta Oficial No. 2.990 Extraordinario, July 26, 1982), arts. 1.724 to 1.734. It is not a lease, but getting the home back can take time if the occupant uses it as their main home.
What the Código Civil says about the comodato
Art. 1.724 defines it as the contract by which one party delivers to the other "gratuitamente una cosa para que se sirva de ella, por tiempo o para uso determinados, con cargo de restituir la misma cosa" (a thing free of charge so that they may make use of it, for a specified time or use, with the obligation to return the same thing).
The comodatario (borrower, the one who receives the home) must:
The comodante (lender, the one who lends the home) pays any extraordinary expense that was necessary and so urgent that the lender could not be notified (art. 1.733), and is liable for damage caused by defects the lender knew of and did not warn about (art. 1.734).
| Situation | When you can ask for the home back | Article |
|---|---|---|
| A term was agreed | When the term ends | 1.731 |
| No term, but an agreed use | When the comodatario has used it as agreed, or after a suitable period | 1.731 |
| No term, and none can be inferred from the object of the loan | At any time | 1.731 |
| Before the term | If you are faced with a "necesidad urgente e imprevista" (urgent and unforeseen need) to use it | 1.732 |
If the loan was made solely in consideration of the comodatario as a person, their heirs cannot continue using the home (art. 1.725).
Does the lease law apply?
Neither of the two lease laws mentions the comodato. The Ley del Régimen Especial de Arrendamiento de Inmuebles Destinados a Vivienda (Special Regime Law for Residential Leases; Gaceta Oficial No. 7.065 Extraordinario, August 7, 2026) creates a regime "de arrendamiento" (of leasing) (art. 1), applies to "las relaciones de arrendamiento" (lease relationships) agreed or formalized after its entry into force (art. 2) and defines the contract by the payment of "un determinado canon" (a specified rent) (art. 7). The Ley para la Regularización y Control de los Arrendamientos de Vivienda (Law for the Regularization and Control of Housing Leases; Gaceta Oficial No. 6.053 Extraordinario, November 12, 2011) also regulates only leasing (art. 1).
The anti-eviction decree does mention it. Decreto No. 8.190 (Gaceta Oficial No. 39.668, May 6, 2011) protects "comodatarios" (borrowers) who occupy the property as their main home (arts. 1 and 2). The 2026 law excludes the decree only for leases under its own regime (Disposición Transitoria Única, its sole transitional provision), has no repealing provision and does not address comodatos. Our reading: the decree still protects the comodatario who lives there, whatever the date of the loan.
A "comodato" with payments. On March 16, 2022 (case file AA20-C-2018-000041), in a case about the premises of a supermarket and a pharmacy, the Sala de Casación Civil (civil cassation chamber) said that if "falta la gratuidad establecida en la norma" (the gratuitousness established by the rule is missing) there is not, strictly speaking, a comodato, and it classified the contract by its clauses (there, an innominate contract, not a lease). If the occupant pays you to use the home, the contract comes closer to a lease, which art. 1.579 of the Código Civil defines by "un precio determinado" (a specified price). In that case, consult a lawyer.
How to get the home back
If you owe the occupant money, they cannot offset it against the return (art. 1.335 of the Código Civil).
Why a written, notarized contract with a term is advisable
Without paperwork, proving the loan is difficult. On March 14, 2000 (case file 99-312), the Sala de Casación Civil did not admit witnesses to prove an oral comodato over a property, because its value exceeded the limit of art. 1.387 of the Código Civil. And with a term, the return is due when it ends (art. 1.731).
What the notaría (notary office) adds compared with a private document is explained in the guide on the notarized lease contract.
Risks: usucapión (adverse possession), utilities and condominium
Usucapión. Without title or good faith, the prescription period is 20 years (art. 1.977) and requires legitimate possession (art. 1.953), with the "intención de tener la cosa como suya propia" (intention to hold the thing as one's own) (art. 772). The comodatario receives the home "con cargo de restituir" (with the obligation to return it) (art. 1.724), and you possess through whoever holds it in your name (art. 771). Those who possess in another's name "no pueden jamás prescribirla" (can never acquire it by prescription), unless their title changes because of a third party or through their own opposition to the owner's right (art. 1.961), and no one can change the cause of their own possession by themselves (art. 1.963). Art. 1.961 does not name the comodatario; that it covers them is our reading of arts. 771 and 1.724.
The risk lies in the proof. Art. 773 presumes that a person possesses as owner unless it is proven that possession began in another's name, and art. 774 presumes that whoever began that way continues the same way. The written contract is that proof. More in the guide on usucapión.
Utilities and condominium. Arts. 1.724 to 1.734 do not say who pays utilities or condominium fees, so put it in the contract. The Ley de Propiedad Horizontal (Condominium Law; Gaceta Oficial No. 3.241 Extraordinario, August 18, 1983) obliges owners to pay common expenses (art. 12) and says the debt always follows the property (art. 13). If the occupant does not pay, the administrator can collect from you (arts. 12 and 14). We did not find a rule or judgment that says whether agreeing that the occupant pays those expenses affects the gratuitousness.
What the contract should say and how much it costs
If you live abroad, you can sign through an apoderado (attorney-in-fact) whose poder (power of attorney) expressly authorizes it; see the guide to renting out a property from abroad.
Notaría fee. Providencia Administrativa (administrative order) No. 004 of the SAREN (the national registries and notaries service; Gaceta Oficial No. 42.301) has no line item for the comodato. Our reading (not a written rule) is that it is charged as an authenticated document: 0.10 PTR (petros) for processing (art. 5 num. 1), plus 0.20 PTR for the first page and 0.02 PTR for each additional page (art. 5 num. 6). It is paid in bolívares at the value of the petro (art. 3), and as of October 27, 2026 no published unit replaces it: use the amount on the SAREN form. The fee of the lawyer who drafts the document is separate.