Housing

Steps

1. Look for your home and view it in person (or have someone you know on the spot do so) before paying anything.
2. Sign a written lease (üürileping). A lease of more than one year that is not in writing is treated as an indefinite-term lease, which cannot be terminated so that it ends less than one year after you move in (§ 274).
3. Choose the term: fixed-term (it ends at its end date, but a lease of at least 2 years becomes indefinite-term if no one notifies, at least 2 months before the end date, that they do not want to extend it, § 310), or indefinite-term (terminable with notice). For a fixed-term lease, a periodic rent increase is only valid if the lease lasts at least 3 years, at most one increase a year, and with a specific amount, percentage or index.
4. Pay the security deposit (tagatisraha): 3 months' rent at most. You can pay it in equal instalments, spread over 3 months, the first after signing the lease. The landlord must place it in a separate bank account, and the interest belongs to you.
5. Do a written inventory check, with dated photos, when you move in and when you leave (a prudent tip: the law does not require it, but it will help you in a dispute over the deposit).
6. Register your residence with your municipality using your lease (see EE-SEJOUR-TOUS-001).
7. In case of a dispute, first talk to the landlord in writing. In Tallinn, you can apply to the rental disputes committee (üürikomisjon); elsewhere, to the county court (maakohus).

Documents

• Identity document (passport or identity card).
• Written lease signed by both parties (digital signature possible with an Estonian identity card, Mobiil-ID or Smart-ID).
• Proof of payment of the security deposit.
• Inventory check and furniture inventory.
• To apply to the üürikomisjon: your application with the facts, the lease and your written evidence.

Costs and timelines

• Security deposit: 3 months' rent at most. If the landlord has reported no claim within 2 months after the end of the lease, you can demand its return, with interest.
• Notice (indefinite-term lease): 3 months for a home, 1 month for a furnished room or a parking space rented on its own; valid in both directions.
• Rent increase (indefinite-term lease): once a year at most, announced in writing at least 30 days before, with its reasons. An "excessive" increase can be contested, within 30 days of being informed of it (§ 303); it is justified in particular if it follows the average rent in the neighbourhood, the rise in the landlord's costs or improvement works. You can also ask for a reduction if the bases for calculating the rent have changed significantly (§ 302).
• Unpaid rent: the landlord may terminate the lease if you are two consecutive payments behind or if the arrears exceed 2 months' rent; in principle, they must first give you in writing an additional period of at least 14 days, with a warning (§ 316).
• Compulsory extension: if the end of the lease would have serious consequences for you or your family, you can ask the landlord for an extension of up to 3 years, then the üürikomisjon or the court if they refuse. Deadline: 30 days after receiving the landlord's termination; for a fixed-term lease, at the latest 60 days before its end date (§ 329).
• Rental disputes committee: it does not handle money claims of more than €3,200. Its decision becomes enforceable; if you disagree, you have 20 days to apply to the county court. The filing fees are set by the city committee: ask the city of Tallinn.
• Agency fees: no rule on agency commission appears in the texts consulted; it is negotiated case by case.
• Local tax: land tax (maamaks) is due by the owner of the land, not by the tenant, and the law puts taxes linked to the property on the landlord unless otherwise agreed in the lease (§ 293); read the clause before signing (see EE-IMPOTS-TOUS-001).

Common pitfalls

• Paying before viewing. An advert that looks too good, a "landlord abroad" who asks for a transfer to send the keys: this is the classic scam pattern. Pay nothing without a viewing and a signed lease. If you are a victim, file a complaint with the police (PPA).
• A deposit higher than 3 months. The law caps the deposit at 3 months' rent; a clause that is unfavourable to you compared with the law has no effect for a residential lease.
• Penalties in the lease. A clause imposing a contractual penalty on you for breach of a monetary obligation, such as unpaid rent, is void for a home (§ 287 of the Act). But the lease may provide in writing for late-payment interest higher than the statutory rate, up to 3 times that rate (§ 287¹); for another breach, a specific written penalty is allowed, at most 10% of the monthly rent per breach and 20% per month (§ 287).
• A badly announced rent increase. It is void if the landlord does not notify it in writing 30 days before, with the amount, the date, the reasons, the calculation and how to contest it, or if they threaten to terminate your lease if you contest it (§ 299).
• The "short" holiday lease. Rentals of at most 3 months in tourist accommodation are not protected by the residential lease rules.
• No lease, no registered address. Without a lease or the owner's written consent, you cannot register your residence, and therefore cannot obtain your personal identification code.
• Believing the üürikomisjon exists everywhere. According to the e-Justice portal (2023), only Tallinn has set one up; elsewhere, it is the court (to be checked for Tartu and the other cities).

What changes by country of origin

• EU, EEA and Swiss citizens: same rules as Estonians; the lease is used to register your residence and your right of residence.
• British citizens (Scotland included): same rental rules; you first need a residence permit (see EE-SEJOUR-TOUS-001).
• All: tenancy law does not depend on nationality; read carefully a lease drafted in Estonian, or ask for an English version signed by both parties.