Minnesota Eviction Rules After the Moratorium Ended

The Minnesota eviction process begins with a written notice from the landlord, moves to a court filing in the county where the property sits, and can end with a sheriff lockout roughly four to six weeks after that first notice. For unpaid rent, state law requires at least 14 days of written notice before anything is filed, a court hearing is set 7 to 14 days after the summons issues, and a tenant who pays everything owed can halt the case at almost any point before the sheriff arrives.

What a Landlord Can File On

Minnesota landlords can bring an eviction action in three situations: a tenant holds over after a lease ends or is terminated, a tenant breaks a condition of the lease, or rent goes unpaid.¹ Unpaid rent is the most common trigger and has its own notice procedure. Lease violations such as unauthorized occupants, property damage, or illegal activity on the premises can also justify removal.

One limit worth knowing: a landlord cannot evict a tenant solely because the tenant was a victim of domestic violence or other crimes listed in section 504B.206, even if the criminal activity caused a disturbance at the property.¹

The 14-Day Written Notice for Unpaid Rent

Before suing over unpaid rent, the landlord must deliver a written notice and wait at least 14 days.² This notice controls when the eviction can actually begin, and getting it wrong gets the case dismissed.

The notice has to include the total amount due, an itemized breakdown separating unpaid rent from late fees and other lease charges, and the name and address of the person authorized to accept rent. It also has to carry two specific statements: one telling the tenant they can seek free legal help through Legal Aid or LawHelpMN.org, and one directing the tenant to their county or Tribal social services office, MNBenefits.mn.gov, or the United Way information line at 2-1-1.²

Delivery can be by first-class mail or by handing it directly to the tenant.² If the tenant pays the full balance during the 14-day window, the landlord cannot move forward. That window is the tenant’s best chance to keep the dispute off the public court record entirely.

When a City Requires a Longer Notice

State law lets cities require a longer pre-filing notice than the 14-day floor. Saint Paul passed an ordinance temporarily extending its pre-eviction notice to 60 days, effective May 14 through December 31, 2026, after which it reverts to 30 days.³ Where a local rule applies, the landlord has to follow it. Filing before the local period expires gets the case dismissed just as surely as missing the state deadline.

Filing the Case in District Court

After the notice period runs and the tenant has neither paid nor moved out, the landlord files a Summons and Complaint in the district court for the county where the property is located. The base filing fee is $310, with county law library surcharges on top. In Hennepin County, filing an eviction action costs $322.⁴

Attorneys must use Minnesota’s electronic File and Serve system in all 87 counties. Self-represented landlords and tenants can file paper copies at the courthouse or by mail.⁵ Once the clerk accepts the filing, the case gets a number and a hearing date, and the matter becomes part of the public court record.

Service and the Hearing Date

After filing, the court issues a summons that must be physically served on the tenant at least seven days before the hearing. The hearing is scheduled between 7 and 14 days after the summons issues.² Minnesota treats evictions as fast-track disputes for both sides.

An expedited track exists for cases involving serious lease violations or safety concerns. Under that procedure, the hearing can be set as soon as five days after the summons issues, and service must happen within 24 hours of issuance.²

What Happens at the Hearing

Showing up matters. A tenant who doesn’t appear almost always loses by default. A tenant who does appear can raise defenses that either defeat the eviction or buy time.

Retaliation is one. If the eviction was filed within 90 days of the tenant reporting a code violation to a government authority, or within 90 days of the tenant trying to enforce rights under the lease or the law, the burden shifts to the landlord to prove the eviction was not retaliatory.¹ A separate tenant-protection statute makes it unlawful to evict, raise rent, or cut services as punishment for a housing complaint, with the same 90-day burden shift.⁶

A retaliatory rent increase can also be a defense to a nonpayment case, but the tenant has to tender the original rent amount to the court.¹ And a defective notice is one of the most common defenses in practice. If the landlord left out the itemized breakdown, used the wrong delivery method, or omitted the required legal aid or financial assistance statements, the court should dismiss.

The Right of Redemption

This is the lever that catches people off guard. In a nonpayment case where the landlord has not also alleged a material lease violation, the tenant can stop the eviction at any point before the sheriff actually delivers possession by paying all overdue rent, interest, court costs, and a statutory attorney’s fee capped at $5.⁷ The tenant is restored to possession as if the eviction never happened.

A tenant who can cover the rent but not the fees and costs can ask the court for additional time to pay those amounts. The statute also recognizes written payment guarantees from government agencies and qualifying nonprofits that administer rental assistance programs.⁷ A pending rental assistance application with confirmed funding can sometimes halt the case.

The Writ of Recovery and Sheriff Lockout

When the court rules for the landlord and no redemption occurs, the judge issues a writ of recovery. This is the document that authorizes the sheriff to physically remove the tenant. The fee for issuing the writ is $55.⁸

The landlord delivers the writ to the local sheriff’s office, and a deputy serves it on the tenant with a demand to leave within 24 hours, taking personal property and family members. The landlord also has to notify the tenant by first-class mail of the scheduled removal date and make a good-faith effort to reach the tenant by phone.⁹

If the tenant refuses to leave after the 24-hour period, the deputy carries out the removal and the landlord is placed in possession.⁹

Belongings Left Behind

Whatever the tenant leaves becomes a separate legal problem for the landlord. Minnesota requires the landlord to store the abandoned property and care for it, and reasonable storage costs can be charged back to the tenant. Nothing can simply be thrown away.¹⁰

The earliest the landlord can sell or dispose of the property is 28 days after learning of the abandonment or 28 days after abandonment reasonably appears to have occurred, whichever is later. Before any sale, the landlord must make reasonable efforts to notify the tenant at least 14 days in advance, using both first-class and certified mail to the last known address and posting notice on the premises.¹⁰

If a tenant demands their belongings back in writing and the landlord fails to return them within 24 hours, the tenant can recover punitive damages of up to twice the actual damages or $1,000, whichever is greater, plus attorney’s fees. The window extends to 48 hours, excluding weekends and holidays, when the property was moved to an off-site storage location.¹⁰

Clearing the Eviction From Your Record

An eviction filing shows up in public court records and can follow a tenant for years, making it harder to rent elsewhere. If the tenant wins the case, the court is required to expunge the record at the time it enters judgment for the tenant.¹¹ A tenant can also file a motion for expungement after judgment if it was not done automatically. Even where the landlord won, courts retain inherent authority to expunge in certain circumstances, though that is a harder argument. Tenants who settle before a final ruling should ask for expungement as part of the deal, because the filing itself is often the most lasting harm.

1
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.285 – Recovery of Premises
2
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.321 – Complaint and Summons
3
City of Saint Paul. Saint Paul City Council Passes Ordinance Extending Pre-Eviction Filing Notice to 60 Days
4
Minnesota Judicial Branch. Hennepin County District Court Fees
5
Minnesota Judicial Branch. eFile in a District Trial Court
6
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.441 – Tenant’s Right; Penalty
7
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.291 – Eviction Action for Nonpayment
8
Minnesota Judicial Branch. District Court Fees
9
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.365 – Execution of the Writ of Recovery of Premises and Order to Vacate
10
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.271 – Tenant’s Personal Property Remaining in Premises
11
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.345 – Verdict, Judgment, Execution, Expungement