Winter truce 2026-2027: what landlords need to know
6 minutes
The 2026-2027 winter truce runs from November 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027. For 151 days, no tenant eviction can be carried out — even with a court judgment in hand, even with six months of unpaid rent. For buy-to-let landlords, this period is often experienced as an imposed constraint. However, it can also become a period of action if anticipated correctly.
This guide reviews what the truce suspends, what it does not suspend, the exceptions that exist, and above all what you must do before November 1st to avoid losing months of rent.
The exact dates and what they imply
Event | Date |
|---|---|
Start of the winter truce | November 1, 2026 (Saturday) |
End of the winter truce | March 31, 2027 (Tuesday) |
Possible resumption of evictions | From April 1, 2027 |
Total duration | 151 days |
During this entire period, law enforcement remains unavailable. No prefectural requisition, no bailiff, even if the order to leave the premises dates back to September.
⚠️ What the truce suspends: the physical execution of evictions. What it does not suspend: legal proceedings, orders to pay, formal notices, and the accumulation of rental debts.
What the truce does not suspend: take action during the winter
This is the most common misunderstanding among landlords. The winter truce freezes the eviction — not the steps leading up to it. The landlord retains their right to act and initiate legal proceedings. In particular, they can send a formal order to pay in case of unpaid rent, petition the judicial court to initiate or continue eviction proceedings, and involve a justice commissioner to serve documents.
In practice, landlords who initiate their proceedings during the truce — and obtain a judgment before March 31 — are in a position to have the eviction executed as early as April 1, without waiting for a new procedural cycle.
What you can do during the truce | What is suspended |
|---|---|
Send a formal order to pay | Physical execution of the eviction |
Petition the judicial court | Intervention of law enforcement |
Obtain an eviction judgment | Application of the judgment (postponed to April 1) |
Activate unpaid rent insurance (GLI) | — |
Serve documents via a justice commissioner | — |
Negotiate a payment plan with the tenant | — |
Exceptions to the truce: who can be evicted in winter?
The winter truce does not apply to squatters. Since the Kasbarian-Bergé law (no. 2023-668 of July 27, 2023), occupants without right or title — meaning those who have entered a property without the landlord's permission — can be subject to an accelerated procedure at any time of the year, including during the truce.
Other cases of eviction authorized during the truce:
Situation | Eviction possible in winter? |
|---|---|
Tenant with a lease, unpaid rent | No — suspension until March 31 |
Squatter (without right or title, illegal entry) | Yes — accelerated procedure under the Kasbarian law |
Violent spouse ordered by the family court judge (JAF) | Yes — urgent protection measure |
Housing in a state of imminent danger | Yes — danger order, immediate evacuation |
Suitable rehousing offered to the tenant | Yes — under express judicial decision |
💡 Important distinction: a tenant who is no longer paying rent but occupies the property under a signed lease is protected by the truce. An occupant who entered without a lease and without permission is not — and can be evicted at any time via the forced evacuation procedure.
Protection against energy disconnections
The winter truce features a second aspect that is often less familiar to landlords: no energy supplier (electricity or natural gas) is allowed to cut off supply to a household, even in the event of unpaid bills, from November 1 to March 31. Instead, a minimum service (reduced power) can be maintained to ensure auxiliary heating and the lighting necessary for daily life.
The ban on disconnections does not apply to secondary residences or premises that are not occupied as a primary residence. For landlords whose property is rented as a primary residence, this rule does not create any direct obligation — it applies to energy suppliers, not to landlords.
The scenario to avoid: waiting until November 1st to act
A landlord who wants to avoid getting bogged down must act early. Imagine: a judgment obtained in October 2026. The bailiff can then notify the order to leave the premises as early as February or March 2027, and then request law enforcement assistance starting April 1. Without this anticipation, the timeline stretches out — a hearing in January, a judgment in March, an order in April, eviction in June or July. This effectively means a year of rent gone up in smoke.
The ideal timeline for a landlord facing unpaid rent:
Step | Action | Recommended timeframe |
|---|---|---|
1 | Written reminder to the tenant | From the first month of unpaid rent |
2 | Formal demand (registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt) | Month 2 |
3 | Formal order to pay (justice commissioner) | Month 2-3 |
4 | Petition to the judicial court | Before October 31 |
5 | Hearing and judgment | Ideally before the end of October |
6 | Order to leave the premises | During the truce (Feb/March) |
7 | Physical eviction with law enforcement | From April 1, 2027 |
⚠️ Limitation period: Article 7-1 of the Law of July 6, 1989 is clear: three years is the time limit for initiating legal proceedings. After that, the debt is erased. Each month of unpaid rent must therefore trigger a written reminder — doing nothing means risking seeing the debt written off due to lack of proceedings initiated within the time limits.
Read also: Top 5 most frequent rental disputes
The winter truce suspends eviction, not the debt
This is a point that tenants in financial difficulty sometimes underestimate. Unpaid rent during the truce remains fully due. The landlord can request a daily court penalty (e.g., €50 per day of delay) as soon as the court is petitioned. The truce postpones the physical eviction — it does not erase any debt.
For a property rented at €1,200/month, five months without payment represents €6,000 in arrears, to which prior arrears, unpaid utility charges, and legal fees may be added. This amount is legally recoverable — provided the steps were initiated in a timely manner.
Unpaid Rent Insurance (GLI): the tool that changes everything during the truce
The winter truce is often the moment when uncovered landlords realize the risk they carry alone. An unpaid rent insurance (GLI) policy activated before the start of the unpaid rent covers uncollected rents, legal fees, and, depending on the contract, damage to the property.
Its cost generally represents 2 to 3.5% of the annual rent — a marginal investment considering the covered risk, especially in a context where eviction procedures can drag on for 12 to 18 months.
💡 For landlords working with BAUVAUT: we integrate a rigorous verification of tenant solvency before each lease — checked files, documented income, alignment of the profile with the rent. The best protection against the winter truce is to never have to face it.
Sanctions for landlords who do not respect the truce
Disregarding the winter truce constitutes an offense for the landlord. This infraction is punishable by up to three years in prison and a fine of 30,000 euros.
Concretely, this means that a landlord attempting to force a tenant to leave their home during the truce — by changing the locks, cutting off heating or water, or creating unlivable conditions — exposes themselves to criminal prosecution. Such behaviors constitute unlawful physical action and can result in significant convictions.
Do you want to secure your rental investment in Paris?
BAUVAUT rigorously selects tenants beforehand — file verification, documented solvency, qualified profiles from our relocation and corporate partner network. The best way to navigate the winter truce serenely is to never have to endure it. Contact us for a free initial consultation.
