UNMARRIED PARTNER AND LANDLORD´S OPPOSITION TO LEASE RENEWAL

The Constitutional Court has clarified a sensitive issue in the context of the urban lease regime: the interpretation that the landlord's notice of opposition to the renewal of the lease does not need to be addressed to the person living in a de facto union with the tenant, as long as they have not signed the contract, is not unconstitutional.

In its Ruling no. 47/2025, this Court upheld the view that the Constitution does not impose a full equivalence between the legal effects of marriage and those of unmarried partnerships. In this regard, it highlighted the differences between the regimes, such as the need to register that occurs in marriage and the greater informality (including documental) of the de facto union, concluding that to equate the situations would impose an excessive burden of diligence, compelling the Landlord to verify the existence and identifying elements of the de facto union.


The Landlord's position:

This interpretation, considered constitutionally compliant as it does not violate the principles of equality and legal certainty, brings clarity for all involved and facilitates the contractual management of the Landlord, who can oppose the renewal of the lease, without having to (verify) and notify the unmarried partner, as long as they are not a party to the lease.


The Tenant's position:

In this scenario, the Tenants' unmarried partners are in a more vulnerable situation, as it may happen that the unmarried partner, who did not sign the contract, is unaware of the Landlord's opposition to the renewal and, as a result, loses the benefit of the prior notice to look for a new home and ends up, unexpectedly, without a home. This is the opposite of what happens with married tenants, where the notice must be sent individually to each spouse.


To sum up:

This ruling reflects the constitutional distinction between marriage and de facto unions, and guarantees procedural certainty and security with regard to the Landlord's communication of opposition to the renewal of tenancy agreements.