Annual Service Charge Adjustment in France: How Tenants Can Check and Challenge It

Every year, a letter from your landlord or letting agent compares the service charge advances you paid with the expenses actually incurred. Pleasant surprise or not, this statement can be checked: here is what the law requires, what you can ask for and how to respond if the amount seems unjustified.

Advances, flat rate, adjustment: what are we talking about?

In an unfurnished letting, the rent almost always comes with a monthly service charge advance (provision sur charges), estimated from the previous year's expenses. At least once a year, the landlord compares these advances with actual expenses. If too much was collected, the difference is refunded; if the advances were too low, you are asked for a top-up. This is the service charge adjustment (régularisation des charges), provided for by Article 23 of the French law of 6 July 1989.

In a furnished letting, the lease may provide either for advances (with the same rules as unfurnished) or for a flat-rate charge (forfait). A flat rate is fixed: there is no refund and no top-up, but it may be reviewed each year under the same conditions as the rent, and it must not be clearly disproportionate. A bail mobilité always uses a flat rate.

What the landlord must provide

• An itemised statement at least one month before the adjustment, broken down by type of charge (water, communal heating, lift, cleaning of common areas, household waste collection tax…);
• the allocation method between the flats in the building (in a co-ownership, usually the share of charges attached to each flat);
• access to supporting documents for six months after the statement is sent: invoices, maintenance contracts, meter readings, the managing agent's accounts.

Which charges can be passed on to you

Only recoverable charges can be charged to the tenant. The list is set by Decree no. 87-713 of 26 August 1987 and it is exhaustive. It includes, among others:

• cold and hot water, communal heating and routine servicing of equipment;
• electricity and cleaning of common areas, upkeep of green spaces;
• routine maintenance and minor repairs of the lift;
• the household waste collection tax (TEOM);
• part of the caretaker's salary: 75% if they both clean the common areas and take out the bins, 40% if they do only one of these tasks.

Other expenses remain the landlord's responsibility, even when the managing agent includes them in its calls for funds: managing agent's fees, major repairs and facade renovation, replacing a lift or boiler, legal costs, building insurance. If they appear on your statement, you can ask for them to be removed.

Checking your statement in five steps

1. Compare the advances declared with those you actually paid, using your rent receipts or bank statements.
2. Check the period: only the months you occupied the flat can be charged to you.
3. Check the allocation key: your flat's share should be consistent from one year to the next.
4. Spot non-recoverable items using the decree's list.
5. Ask in writing for the supporting documents if an item has risen sharply.

Late adjustment? You can pay in instalments

A landlord has three years to claim unpaid charges, and you have the same period to recover an overpayment. But when the adjustment was not made before the end of the calendar year following the year in which the charges were due, you are entitled to spread the payment over twelve months. The request is made by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt. For example, 2024 charges adjusted only in 2026 can be paid in monthly instalments over a year.

If you disagree

Start with a letter to the landlord or agency listing the items you dispute and asking for the supporting documents. Keep paying your usual rent and advances while the discussion goes on.

Without a satisfactory answer, you can refer the matter free of charge to the departmental conciliation commission (commission départementale de conciliation), which handles disputes over service charges, or to a court conciliator. As a last resort, the local court judge decides. The Paris ADIL provides free advice at every stage.

Before signing a lease: anticipate the real cost

During viewings, ask for the amount of the last adjustment and the breakdown of last year's charges, especially with communal heating. An unusually low advance can make an advertised rent look attractive, then turn into a large top-up a year later. See also our article on heating and service charges before winter.

Frequently asked questions

Can the landlord increase my monthly advance?

Yes, if the adjustment shows the advances were too low: the monthly amount can be adjusted to reflect actual expenses.

I have moved out: does the adjustment still concern me?

Yes. The landlord may keep up to 20% of the deposit until the building's accounts are closed, then must settle the adjustment within a month of the accounts being approved. Our guide to the inventory check and deposit explains these rules.

Furnished with a flat rate: can I ask for an adjustment?

No. A flat rate is final: there is no refund and no top-up.

Conclusion

The service charge adjustment is a right of scrutiny as much as an obligation to pay. At APPARTE, we systematically ask for the real charges of the flats we present to our clients, so they know the true monthly cost of their future home. Looking for a home in Paris or Île-de-France? Book an appointment with APPARTE.

This article provides general information that is up to date at the time of publication. For a specific situation, have your rights checked by a professional (ADIL, lawyer or notary).