Squat: the real risk for a Paris apartment, and what a lease with an operator changes

“What if the operator hands back the keys? What if the apartment sits empty? What if someone moves in?” Since a handful of highly publicized cases, the word “squat” has become the first fear of many owners who entrust their property to someone else. Here is what the law has said since 2023, where the real risk lies, and what a lease signed with an operator changes — and does not change.

Squatter, tenant who stays on, guest: three different situations

The word “squat” gets used for everything. Legally, these are distinct situations:

• Squatting: entering a home without any right or title, through maneuvers, threats, assault, or coercion. It is unlawful entry into a home (violation de domicile), a criminal offense;
• A tenant who stays on after the lease ends: the law specifies that such a person is not a squatter. They are an occupant whose departure falls under the eviction rules, not the anti-squat procedure;
• Unpaid rent: this is a separate issue, handled through the termination clause (clause résolutoire) and the formal payment demand (commandement de payer), as explained in our article on the new standard lease.

Confusing them creates fear for the wrong reasons, and prevents you from protecting yourself for the right ones.

What the law of July 27, 2023 changed

Law No. 2023-668 of July 27, 2023 “aimed at protecting homes against unlawful occupation” toughened the regime. According to Service-Public.gouv.fr and ANIL:

• Unlawful entry into a home is now punishable by 3 years' imprisonment and a €45,000 fine, up from one year and €15,000 previously;
• The notion of home has been broadened: it now covers secondary residences, and any residential premises containing furniture belonging to the person;
• A new offense of fraudulent occupation (Article 315-1 of the Criminal Code) punishes entering residential, commercial, agricultural, or professional premises through maneuvers, threats, assault, or coercion: 2 years' imprisonment and a €30,000 fine;
• An administrative eviction procedure ordered by the prefect makes it possible to act without going through a judge first, on filing a complaint, with proof that the dwelling is indeed the person's home and an official report establishing the unlawful occupation;
• The winter eviction moratorium (trêve hivernale) does not protect squatters who entered through maneuvers, threats, assault, or coercion;
• An occupant who stays more than two months after a final eviction decision faces a €7,500 fine.

The detailed procedure is set out in the circular of May 2, 2024 addressed to the prefects.

Where the real risk lies

In practice, it is unoccupied dwellings that are exposed: the apartment sitting empty between two occupants, or the one whose keys have just been returned. That is precisely the situation that worries an owner whose operator ends the lease and hands back the keys.

Two risks therefore need to be distinguished:

• The end of the contract with the operator: a lease can come to an end, with notice. No serious contract guarantees that it will last forever;
• The period when the home stays empty: this is what creates the exposure, hence the importance of re-renting quickly and protecting the home in the meantime.

Six steps to take when a home becomes vacant again

1. Carry out a joint move-out inspection when the keys are handed over, together with an inventory of the furniture.
2. Change the locks the same day: the old keys may exist in several copies.
3. Don't leave the home empty: every week without an occupant also means lost rent (see rental vacancy in Paris: what it really costs).
4. Inform the building caretaker, the managing agent (syndic), or a trusted neighbor, and have the mail collected.
5. Visit regularly, and keep a record of each visit.
6. In case of intrusion: call the police, file a complaint immediately, and never take the law into your own hands.

What the Belvie standard contract provides

We do not promise “zero risk”: no contract can prevent it. Here, however, is what our standard contract provides, which you can read before any commitment:

• A fixed rent paid in full every month, regardless of the home's occupancy rate (Article 4): we have every interest in making sure the apartment never sits empty;
• Occupants who are professionals on assignment in Paris, under Belvie's sole responsibility toward you (Article 8);
• A joint inspection and furniture inventory, at move-in as at move-out (Article 6);
• A multi-risk home insurance policy taken out by Belvie, with proof available at any time (Article 9);
• A renewable one-year term, with one month's notice for each party (Article 3).

This last point deserves to be stated clearly: the contract can end, like any lease, with notice. What changes is that the home is continuously occupied for the duration of the contract, and that the exit is structured around a joint move-out inspection.

Questions to ask any operator

1. What is the notice period, for you and for me?
2. Who actually occupies the apartment (tourists, professionals, students), and for how long? We cover this question in guaranteed rent in Paris: tourists or professionals.
3. What happens at the end of the contract: who gets the occupants to leave, who does the move-out inspection, who hands back the keys, and when?
4. Which insurance covers the home, and can I obtain the certificate?
5. Who remains responsible for the home until the keys are actually handed back?

Key takeaways

1. A squatter is not a tenant who stays on: the law distinguishes between them.
2. The 2023 law toughened the penalties: 3 years and €45,000 for unlawful entry into a home, plus an eviction procedure ordered by the prefect.
3. The risk is concentrated on empty homes: re-rent quickly and protect the home between two occupants.
4. No contract prevents a termination: read the notice period and the exit clause before signing.

This article is for informational purposes and does not replace legal advice. In the event of unlawful occupation, contact the police or gendarmerie immediately, then a lawyer or your ADIL for the steps suited to your situation.

Official sources

• Protections for owners who are victims of squatters or unpaid rent — Service-Public.gouv.fr (in French)
• Law aimed at protecting homes against unlawful occupation — ANIL (in French)
• Law No. 2023-668 of July 27, 2023 — Légifrance (in French)
• Circular of May 2, 2024 on the forced eviction procedure — Légifrance (in French)