How many months without paying are needed to seek eviction?

If the tenant did not already occupy the home on August 7, 2026, three consecutive periods without paying the rent, which unless otherwise agreed is monthly (articles 14 and 23 of the 2026 law). If they already occupied it, four rent payments without justified cause (article 91 of the 2011 law).

Can I take the overdue rent out of the deposit?

The 2026 law does not provide for it. It assigns the guarantee to the upkeep of the property and to overdue services (article 16), and at the end of the contract it only provides for deducting duly proven repairs and overdue services (article 18).

Can I change the lock or cut off services if the tenant does not pay me?

No. In new leases only a tribunal de municipio or a tribunal arbitral can order eviction (article 27 of the 2026 law), and the Código Civil requires the landlord to keep the tenant in peaceful enjoyment (article 1.585). If the tenant already occupied the home, Decreto No. 8.190 prohibits vacating through coercion or duress, and the 2011 law requires basic services to be preserved and fines arbitrary evictions 1,000 unidades tributarias.

Do I have to go to SUNAVI first?

Only if the tenant already occupied the home before August 7, 2026. In that case the procedure before SUNAVI is mandatory before suing for eviction, performance or termination of the contract (articles 94 to 96 of the 2011 law). The 2026 law does not require it.

What can the tenant do if the owner will not accept payment?

If the tenant already occupied the home before August 7, 2026, payment goes into the landlord's current account, and if the landlord closes it the tenant is not in arrears (article 68 of the 2011 law). The 2026 law does not regulate consignación; the Código Civil, applying on a supplementary basis, provides for the ofrecimiento real and deposit (articles 1.306 and 1.307). Consult a lawyer before using that route.

Tenant not paying rent: what to do

When a tenant stops paying, what the owner can do depends on which law governs the lease. Under no circumstances can the owner remove the tenant on their own. To sue, consult a lawyer.

First: which law governs your contract

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) only applies to housing leases agreed or formalized after it took effect (article 2). It excludes homes the tenant already occupied under a lease on that date, "mientras persista esa posesión" (for as long as that possession continues). Those contracts are still governed by the Ley para la Regularización y Control de los Arrendamientos de Vivienda (Law for the Regularization and Control of Housing Leases, 2011) and by Decreto No. 8.190 contra el desalojo (the anti-eviction decree, 2011).

Renewing the contract, or signing a new one, with a tenant who already occupied the home before August 7, 2026 does not by itself move it to the 2026 law. That law does not expressly say what happens when those contracts are renewed: its article 13 mentions "prórroga o renovación" (extension or renewal) only for the rent adjustment. Consult a lawyer.

New leases from August 7, 2026

Only if the tenant did not already occupy the home on that date.

When non-payment becomes a ground

Unless otherwise agreed, the rent is paid monthly (article 14). Article 23, numeral 1, allows the landlord to sue or to request early rescission of the contract for "incumplimiento del pago del canon de arrendamiento durante tres períodos consecutivos" (failure to pay the rent for three consecutive periods). With monthly rent, that is three months in a row without paying. If the competent authority declares the ground, that "dará lugar al desalojo" (will give rise to eviction).

Failure to pay public utilities for three consecutive months is also a ground (numeral 2). The contract can also provide its own grounds (numeral 7). Agreements are valid "siempre que no contradigan lo establecido en esta Ley" (provided they do not contradict what this Law establishes) (article 6), which is orden público (public policy) (article 5). The law does not say whether a clause can set a non-payment period shorter than three periods; consult a lawyer.

Before reaching three periods

Keep a written record. The 2026 law does not require a prior demand for this ground, but a written claim with proof of receipt serves as evidence.

Check the contract. It must state the amount of the rent, the method of payment and who pays the public utilities (article 8). See which costs the tenant pays and which the owner pays.

The law does not assign the deposit to the rent

Under article 16, the guarantee (a deposit of up to three months' rent, or an insurance policy) is agreed to guarantee "la conservación" (the upkeep) of the property and "el pago de servicios en mora" (the payment of overdue services). Article 18 orders the deposit to be returned within the 15 calendar days following the end of the relationship, and only provides for deducting duly proven repairs and overdue services. Neither mentions overdue rent: collecting the rent from the deposit is not provided for in the law. More details in the security deposit.

Conciliation, arbitration or court

Article 25 gives three routes for breach of contract and other disputes:

Conciliation, mediation or other alternative means.

Institutional arbitration, arbitration agreed in the contract, or the arbitramento (arbitration procedure) of the Código de Procedimiento Civil (Code of Civil Procedure).

The tribunales de municipio (municipal courts) of the place where the property is located, through the juicio breve (summary proceeding) of that Code, regardless of the amount at stake.

Only a tribunal de municipio or a tribunal arbitral (arbitral tribunal) can order eviction (article 27). There is no prior step before SUNAVI (the national housing-lease authority): the Disposición Transitoria Única (sole transitional provision) declares that the 2011 law and the anti-eviction decree do not apply to these contracts. See the eviction guide.

Tenants who already occupied the home: 2011 law and Decreto 8.190

The ground. Article 91, numeral 1, of the 2011 law (Gaceta Oficial No. 6.053 Extraordinario, November 12, 2011) allows eviction when the tenant "haya dejado de pagar cuatro cánones de arrendamiento sin causa justificada" (has failed to pay four rent payments without justified cause), according to the criteria defined by the Superintendencia Nacional de Arrendamiento de Vivienda (SUNAVI). The text does not say they must be consecutive. The article begins with "sólo procederá el desalojo" (eviction shall proceed only) on five grounds, but its last paragraph preserves court actions on other grounds or under general law (derecho común); how these fit together is a matter for a lawyer.

How the rent is paid. The rent is monthly and is paid within the first five business days after each month falls due (article 67). Payment goes into a current account that the landlord must open and cannot close during the relationship. If the landlord closes it, the tenant is not considered in arrears and the landlord cannot sue for non-payment until reopening it (article 68).

The mandatory prior step. Before suing for eviction, performance or termination of the contract, the landlord must go through a procedure before SUNAVI (articles 94 to 96), which is the one in articles 7 to 10 of Decreto No. 8.190. Without that procedure the courts cannot be approached (article 10 of the decree), and eviction "sólo podrá ejecutarse por orden judicial" (may only be carried out by court order) (article 9).

The payment agreement. Once the tenant's insolvency is proven, the tenant can settle with the landlord through a signed record before the competent administrative body, and that payment "no se tendrá como extemporáneo" (shall not be considered late) (article 92). If, once the administrative and judicial routes are exhausted, the non-payment turns out to be entirely attributable to the tenant, the tenant loses all the rights that law grants.

What the owner cannot do

Tenant who already occupied the home. Decreto No. 8.190 prohibits forced evictions or the vacating of homes "mediante coacción o constreñimiento" (through coercion or duress) without following its procedures (article 4). The 2011 law punishes the owner's arbitrary evictions with a fine of 1,000 unidades tributarias (tax units) (article 142), and requires the landlord to preserve basic services (article 35) and to guarantee the use and enjoyment of the home during the contract (article 41).

New leases. Only a tribunal de municipio or a tribunal arbitral can order eviction (article 27). The 2026 law sets no fines of its own and does not mention locks or service cutoffs, but it leaves no other route to recover the home. The Código Civil (Civil Code), which applies on a supplementary basis (article 6), requires the landlord to keep the tenant "en el goce pacífico" (in peaceful enjoyment) during the contract (article 1.585).

Changing the locks, cutting off the water or electricity, or removing the tenant without a court order is not a legal route in any case.

If the owner refuses to accept payment

2011 law. It has no chapter on consignación (court deposit) of the rent. Payment is made into the landlord's current account, and if the landlord closes it, the tenant is not in arrears (article 68). If the landlord does not appear or is not identified, SUNAVI and the tenant sign the payment agreement in favor of the owner or the owner's heirs (article 71).

2026 law. It does not regulate consignación of the rent either. The Código Civil applies on a supplementary basis (article 6), and it allows the debtor, when the creditor refuses to accept payment, to be released through the ofrecimiento real (formal tender) and deposit of what is owed; from the legally made deposit, interest stops running (article 1.306). Among the requirements for the tender is that it be made through a judge (article 1.307).

Keep the receipts for each payment or payment attempt, and consult a lawyer before using these routes.

Summary

Topic	2026 law (new leases)	2011 law and Decreto 8.190 (tenant who already occupied the home)
Non-payment that is a ground	Three consecutive periods (art. 23, num. 1)	Four rent payments without justified cause (art. 91, num. 1)
Prior step	None; conciliation or mediation are optional (art. 25)	Mandatory procedure before SUNAVI (arts. 94 to 96)
Who orders the eviction	Tribunal de municipio or tribunal arbitral (art. 27)	A court, after the SUNAVI procedure
What the deposit is for	Repairs and overdue services (arts. 16 and 18)	The 2011 law has no rules on the deposit
If the owner refuses payment	Ofrecimiento real and deposit under the Código Civil	Payment into the landlord's account; agreement before SUNAVI (arts. 68 and 71)
Eviction by the owner's own hand	Not a legal route (art. 27; Código Civil, art. 1.585)	Prohibited (decree, art. 4); fine of 1,000 UT (art. 142)

The tenant is not paying: what the owner can do in Venezuela