Can a domestic violence victim end a lease early in Minnesota?
In Minnesota, a tenant who fears imminent violence after the tenant or another authorized occupant was subjected to domestic abuse, criminal sexual conduct, sexual extortion or harassment may end a lease without penalty by giving the landlord signed, dated advance written notice of the termination date together with a qualifying document. The notice must state that the tenant fears imminent violence from a person named in a qualifying document if the tenant or authorized occupant stays, state that the tenant needs to terminate, give the termination date, and give written instructions for any personal property left behind; it may be delivered by mail, in person or by the written method the tenant regularly uses with the landlord. A qualifying document is a valid order for protection, a no contact order in effect, a writing signed by a court official or by a city, county, state or Tribal law enforcement official documenting the abuse and naming the perpetrator if known, or a statement in the statutory form by a licensed health care professional, domestic abuse advocate or sexual assault counselor. A sole tenant owes rent for the full month in which the tenancy terminates, gives up all claims to the security deposit, and is relieved of rent and other charges for the rest of the lease; where there are several tenants, the lease for all of them ends at the later of the end of the month or the end of the rent interval, and all of them owe that month’s rent. Rent that was already delinquent before the termination is still owed. The landlord may ask for the perpetrator’s name but may not make disclosure a condition of terminating, must not disclose the notice, the qualifying document, the tenant’s new address or the tenant’s status as a victim, and is liable for $2,000 in statutory damages plus reasonable attorney fees and costs for a violation. The landlord may not start an eviction action against a tenant who terminated under this section, except as section 504B.285 provides. This is Minn. Stat. § 504B.206.
| What | Minnesota |
|---|---|
| Ending the lease early | Advance written notice; rent owed for the final month |
What the statute says
“A tenant to a residential lease may terminate a lease agreement in the manner provided in this section without penalty or liability, if the tenant or another authorized occupant fears imminent violence after being subjected to …”
Quoted word for word from the section’s text.
Source
Minn. Stat. § 504B.206
Read the statute in the Minnesota Statutes (Office of the Revisor of Statutes): revisor.mn.gov.
Checked against the statute on November 15, 2026.
This is a summary of a published statute, not legal advice. Rules change, local ordinances can add to them, and the terms of a specific lease may differ. Check the citation and speak to a lawyer before acting.
How Seayora uses this rule
Seayora keeps every lease’s term, rent and signers in one record and dates every change to it. This page states the state’s rule so a lease’s own early-termination and sublet clauses can be checked against it before the lease is signed.
Guides on this rule
- Breaking a Lease for Domestic Violence: Laws by State — How a domestic violence victim can end a lease early, with the notice, documents and rent rule in each of the 39 jurisdictions with a statute.
Compare this rule in every state
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- Every Minnesota rule on one page
The same question in other states
- Arizona
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Kentucky