You can ask for an extension of up to three months and maybe longer. Under emergency legislation enacted due to the Covid-19 pandemic, rental contracts (leases) can be extended for three months, until 1 September 2020 at the most, and potentially another three months.
The Emergency Act applies to temporary rental agreements of fewer than two years for regular living space and five years for room rental. It relates to the rental period that expires between 31 March 2020 and 1 July 2020.
The landlord can terminate a temporary rental contract by informing the tenant in writing one to three months before the end date. The tenant also has the right to terminate the contract prematurely.
Under the Emergency Act, there are several possibilities, depending on when the landlord informs the tenant:
- If the landlord had informed the tenant before 12 March 2020, the lease can only be extended if the landlord and tenant agree in writing. The extension can be for one to three months, at the latest until 1 September 2020. If the parties cannot agree, the original end date applies.
- If the landlord informed the tenant in the legally prescribed manner after the Emergency Act came into effect, he must also inform the tenant about the possibility of extension under the Emergency Act. Within one week of the landlord’s notification, the tenant can request an extension of the contract in writing for one to three months, maximum until 1 September 2020.
The landlord has one week to refuse the request, but only for the following reasons. The landlord:
- has sold the property to a third party and has undertaken to transfer the property to a third party free of rent and use
- has re-rented the property and the lease commences
- wants to live in the property himself and no longer has any other accommodation
- wants to renovate the property, which is not possible without termination of the rental, and has undertaken with third parties to make the house available for rental and use
- wants to demolish the property and has undertaken with third parties to make the house available for rental and use for that purpose on a date that is before the expiry of the extension requested by the tenant and the landlord has entered into the obligation before 1 April 2020.
The landlord can also refuse the request for an extension if the tenant has not behaved as a good tenant.
The emergency law provides for the possibility of extending rental contracts after 1 September 2020 so that already extended contracts can be extended once more.
Source:
www.gmw.nl/en/temporary-law-to-extend-fixed-term-leases-a-solution-for-landlords-and-tenants-during-the-corona-pandemic/
Additional information about legal matters and housing:
access-nl.org/relocating-to-netherlands/legal-matters/
access-nl.org/housing-netherlands/