What to do when squatters occupy a home?

Verified 28 July 2023 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

Squatter is the act of entering a place by break and enter (after having forced a lock, broken a window...), deception, threat or violence, to occupy it without the authorization of its owner. If your primary or secondary residence (furnished) is squatted, you should not force squatters to free the house on your own. You must take steps to obtain their eviction or forced evacuation. We explain how to do it.

Please note

A tenant who stays in the dwelling after the end of the lease and without the agreement of the owner is not a squatter. The same shall apply to a person who refuses to leave the premises after having been accommodated there by the person living there.

Squatting in a principal residence or a secondary residence (furnished) is punishable:

  • For entering the dwelling, 3 years imprisonment and €45,000 fine
  • And for occupying this dwelling, 3 years imprisonment and €45,000 fine

For squatters, the winter break does not apply. Their eviction or forced evacuation can take place at any time of the year.

Reminder

In the case of an uninhabitable dwelling (garage, non-residential premises, land), the steps to be taken are different. These approaches are not presented on this page.

2 types of steps are possible:

Accelerated procedure

FYI  

The person whose home is squatted (tenant or owner-occupier), or a person acting on his behalf, or the owner of the squatted dwelling, may request forced evacuation squatters.

To do so, it must:

  • File a complaint for home invasion at the police station or gendarmerie
  • Prove that the dwelling is his home or property, for example by means of invoices, tax documents, a certificate provided by a neighbor
  • Have a judicial police officer, or the mayor, or a commissioner of justice (formerly a bailiff) make a declaration that the housing is squatted

FYI  

If the owner cannot prove his right of ownership because he no longer has access to his dwelling, the State representative in the department, within 72 hours, asks the tax administration to indicate to him who owns the squatted dwelling.

Who shall I contact

Next, he must ask the state representative in the department to give formal notice squatters to leave the house. He can instruct a lawyer to draft the request to the state representative in the department.

The State representative in the department makes his decision taking into account the personal and family situation of the squatter. The decision must be made within 48 hours of receipt of the application.

FYI  

In the event of a refusal, the State representative in the department must state the reason for the refusal.

The formal notice is:

  • notified squatters, who have at least 24 hours to leave the house
  • displayed in the town hall and on the building concerned
  • notified to the applicant (optional).

If the squatters do not vacate the premises within the prescribed period, the State representative in the department must evacuate the dwelling without delay by the police, unless the applicant has objected.

Reminder

For squatters, the winter break does not apply. Their forced evacuation can take place throughout the year.

Procedure before the judge

The owner can ask the squatters' expulsion.

To do so, it must:

  • Take a lawyer to refer the case to the judge (ask the judge to authorize the eviction of the squatters and order them to pay compensation for occupancy of the premises)
  • Prove that the accommodation belongs to him (title, tax documents, invoices...).
  • Prove that the house is squatted. To do this, it is recommended that you load a Commissioner of Justice to go to the site to make an observation and identify if possible at least 1 of the squatters (by questioning them, by noting their name on the mailbox...).
Who shall I contact

The lawyer must seize in interlocutory proceedings the protection litigation judge on whom the squatted dwelling depends.

FYI  

If no squatter is known (a very rare situation), the lawyer can refer the case to the judge by request.

A Justice Commissioner must then send the squatters a summons to the hearing (subpoena).

Please note

At the hearing, the landlord has the right to obtain the eviction of the squatters, without entering into a discussion about the right to respect for their private and family life, or their right to occupy decent housing.

Squatters must be informed of the judge's judgment by means of a significance.

If the squatters don't leave the house within one month of serviceHowever, they need a commissioner of justice to issue them a command to leave.

Once the Commissioner of Justice has issued the command to leaveHowever, squatters must leave the accommodation, they cannot benefit from any delay.

In the event that the squatters remain in the dwelling, the Commissioner of Justice must ask the State representative in the department for the assistance of the police to evict them from the dwelling. The winter break does not apply to squatters.

Reminder

For squatters, the winter break does not apply. Their expulsion can take place throughout the year.

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