Under Texas Property Code Section 92.016, a tenant who is a victim of family violence — or whose household occupant is a victim — can end a lease early by delivering written notice and qualifying documentation to the landlord. The lease then terminates no later than the 30th day after delivery, and the landlord cannot charge an early-termination fee or penalty. The right applies no matter how much time is left on the lease.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence
Who Can Use This Statute
The statute uses the definition of “family violence” from Texas Family Code Section 71.004, which generally covers physical harm, threats of harm, or abuse by a family member, household member, or current or former dating partner. You can invoke Section 92.016 when you are the victim, and you can also invoke it when an occupant of the dwelling is the victim. An occupant here is someone who lives in the unit with the landlord’s consent but has no obligation to pay rent, such as a child or dependent relative.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence You do not have to be the person who was abused; protecting someone in your household is enough.
One boundary matters up front. Section 92.016 covers family violence only. It does not reach stalking by a stranger, workplace harassment, or sexual assault by someone outside the Family Code’s categories. If you live in federally subsidized housing, the Violence Against Women Act provides a separate set of rights for survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, including protection from eviction, emergency transfers, and lease bifurcation.2HUD.gov. Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) That is a different track from the Texas statute described here.
Documentation You Must Attach
You cannot simply tell the landlord you are leaving. The statute requires you to attach a copy of at least one qualifying document, from one of two categories.
A Qualifying Court Order
Any of the following orders works, as long as it protects the tenant or an occupant of the dwelling:
- A temporary injunction issued under Subchapter F, Chapter 6 of the Family Code
- A temporary ex parte order issued under Chapter 83 of the Family Code
- A protective order issued under Chapter 85 of the Family Code
- An emergency protection order issued under Article 17.292 of the Code of Criminal Procedure
The order must be currently effective or issued no more than 30 days before the date you give it to the landlord.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence An expired order from six months ago will not qualify. If yours is close to lapsing, renew it or move quickly before delivering the notice.
A Professional Certification
If you do not have a court order, the statute accepts documentation from any of three professionals:
- A licensed health care provider who examined the victim
- A licensed mental health services provider who examined or evaluated the victim
- An advocate, as defined by Texas Family Code Section 93.001, who assisted the victim
Under the Family Code, an advocate is a person with at least 20 hours of training in assisting family violence victims who works or volunteers at a family violence center. That third option is useful because it does not require a medical appointment or a court filing. If you have been working with a local shelter or family violence organization, a qualified advocate there may already be able to sign the documentation.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence
When a health care or mental health provider signs the certification, the statute requires the document to include the provider’s name, professional license number, and professional signature, together with a statement that the provider examined the tenant and identified the tenant as a victim of family violence.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence Any missing element gives a landlord room to argue the certification is deficient. Check it before you send it.
Writing and Delivering the Notice
The notice itself is short. The statute requires three things:
- A statement that you are terminating the lease because of family violence
- The date by which you will vacate the unit
- A copy of your qualifying documentation attached
That is the entire list. You do not have to cite the statute number, and there is no state-issued form. A signed, dated letter covering those three points is legally sufficient.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence
The statute does not require any particular delivery method. Certified mail with return receipt is the safer choice, because a signed receipt ends any dispute about whether the landlord got it. If you hand-deliver, ask the landlord to sign and date a copy for your records. The delivery date is what starts the termination clock, so pin it down.
When the Lease Actually Ends
The lease terminates no later than the 30th day after you deliver the notice and documentation. You owe rent through that 30-day window but nothing after it. If you move out sooner, termination becomes effective on the date you actually vacate, and you stop owing rent then.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence
Many tenants misread this as a mandatory waiting period. It is not. The 30 days is a ceiling. If your safety demands leaving the day after you send notice, you can, and the lease ends that day. You are only on the hook for rent up to the date you leave.
Fees, Back Rent, and Your Security Deposit
Terminating under Section 92.016 does not wipe out debts that already exist. Unpaid rent or other charges that accrued before the termination date remain owed. What the statute eliminates is liability for future rent and any other charges that would have come due after termination.
The landlord cannot charge you any fee, penalty, or other charge for ending the lease early, regardless of what your lease says.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence If your lease contains a clause requiring, say, two months’ rent for early termination, that clause does not apply when you terminate under this section.
Your security deposit follows the ordinary rule under Texas Property Code Section 92.103. The landlord must return it, less lawful deductions for unpaid rent or actual physical damage beyond normal wear, within 30 days after you surrender the unit.3Texas State Law Library. Security Deposits Using the family violence termination is not itself a lawful reason to withhold the deposit. If a landlord retains it in bad faith, Section 92.109 exposes them to a penalty of $100 plus three times the amount wrongfully withheld, plus your reasonable attorney’s fees.
What Happens If the Landlord Refuses
A landlord who ignores a valid termination, charges a prohibited early-termination fee, or otherwise violates Section 92.016 is liable to the tenant for actual damages, a civil penalty of one month’s rent plus $500, and the tenant’s attorney’s fees.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code 92.016 – Right to Vacate and Avoid Liability Following Family Violence The attorney’s fee provision matters practically: it makes it possible to find a lawyer who will take the case without payment up front. A landlord who tries to collect future rent, report you for breaking the lease, or block your release is running real financial risk.
The statute also draws a line the other way. The landlord is not liable to you for damages or losses you suffer as a result of terminating the lease early, such as moving costs or paying more in rent at a new place.