TRW & Co · Land & Property
Landlord and Tenant Lawyer in Chittagong (Chattogram)
Chattogram runs on rented flats, shops and warehouses, mostly let on informal terms. A landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong drafts leases that hold up, handles rent and advance disputes before the Rent Controller, and runs eviction or possession cases in the civil courts, for landlords, tenants and probashi owners alike.
Key pointA lease for more than one year must be registered. If it is not, the tenant's long term and the landlord's lock-in may both be unenforceable, leaving a tenancy that can end on short statutory notice.
At a glance
Rent Controller decides deposits
Where a landlord refuses rent, the tenant can deposit it with the Rent Controller, usually the Senior Assistant Judge, within strict statutory time limits.
Advance beyond one month
Taking more than one month's rent in advance without the Rent Controller's written consent is a fine-able offence under the Premises Rent Control Act 1991.
Register long leases
Leases from year to year, for more than a year, or reserving a yearly rent must be registered under the Registration Act 1908.
No self-help eviction
Landlords must end the tenancy by notice and sue for possession; a dispossessed tenant can sue under section 9 of the Specific Relief Act within six months.
Mediation is spreading
Mandatory pre-case mediation for rent disputes applies in listed districts under the Legal Aid Services (Amendment) Act 2026; check whether Chattogram is covered yet.
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What a landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong handles
A landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong advises on the whole life of a lease: the written agreement, rent and advance, repairs and utilities, renewal and rent increases, and the exit, whether that is a negotiated surrender, a notice to quit or an eviction suit. The same lawyer acts when the relationship breaks down and one side needs a court or the Rent Controller.
Chattogram has an unusually wide spread of tenancies. Families rent flats in Nasirabad, Khulshi, Panchlaish, Halishahar and the CDA residential areas. Shop and office leases cluster around Agrabad, GEC, Jubilee Road and the Oxygen and Bayazid corridor. Importers, freight forwarders and manufacturers take warehouses and yards near the port, along the Dhaka Trunk Road and towards Sitakunda and Patiya.
Most of these tenancies run on informal terms: a short agreement drafted by a broker, a large advance, and an understanding about increases. That works until it does not. When rent stops, a landlord wants the premises back, or a tenant is locked out, the paperwork usually decides who has the stronger position.
Who we act for
- Landlords and families letting flats or whole houses in the city.
- Tenants facing unlawful rent increases, refusals to accept rent or threats of eviction.
- Businesses leasing shops, showrooms, offices and warehouses.
- Probashi owners who let property in Chattogram while living in the Gulf, the UK or Singapore.
- Investors and occupiers negotiating long commercial leases for logistics or industrial use.
The legal framework for leases in Bangladesh
Three bodies of law shape almost every tenancy in Chattogram. A landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong reads them together, because each answers a different question.
Premises Rent Control Act 1991
The Premises Rent Control Act 1991 (বাড়ি ভাড়া নিয়ন্ত্রণ আইন) regulates rent for urban premises. It is built around the idea of a "standard rent": rent above the standard rent is, as a rule, irrecoverable even if the tenant agreed to it, and increases are tied to specific grounds such as improvements by the landlord. In practice the standard-rent machinery is rarely invoked, but it remains law and can be raised in a dispute.
The Act also limits advances. Taking more than one month's rent in advance without the written consent of the Rent Controller is an offence punishable by fine, as is demanding a premium or "salami" beyond the rent. Large advances are common in Chattogram, so this point matters when a landlord later tries to keep the advance or a tenant wants it back.
The Rent Controller is a judicial officer, usually the Senior Assistant Judge. The Controller can receive rent deposits, hear complaints about standard rent and, in some cases, inspect premises. Orders can be appealed to the District Judge's level of the civil courts.
Transfer of Property Act 1882
Chapter V of the Transfer of Property Act 1882 sets the general law of leases: what a lease is, the default rights and duties of lessor and lessee, and how a lease ends. Section 106 supplies default notice periods where the contract is silent. A lease for agricultural or manufacturing purposes is treated as year to year and ends on six months' notice; any other lease is month to month and ends on fifteen days' notice. A well-drafted agreement overrides these defaults.
Registration Act 1908 and stamp duty
Under the Registration Act 1908, a lease of immovable property from year to year, for more than one year, or reserving a yearly rent must be registered. An unregistered long lease is not void as a contract, but it cannot be relied on to prove the lease terms or a right to occupy for the full period. Stamp duty is also payable on the instrument. Many commercial tenants in Chattogram discover this only when they try to enforce a renewal clause.
A ten-year warehouse lease that was never registered is, in court, a monthly tenancy with an argument attached.
Rent, advance and receipts: where disputes start
Most landlord and tenant disputes in Chattogram start with money rather than possession. The pattern is familiar: an advance of several months, an informal annual increase, cash payments without receipts, and then a disagreement about arrears.
When rent falls due and what to do if it is refused
Where there is no written contract fixing a payment date, the Act treats rent as payable by the fifteenth day of the following month. If a landlord refuses to accept rent, often as a prelude to an eviction claim for default, the tenant can tender it and then deposit it with the Rent Controller within the statutory time.
The High Court Division applied these rules in Civil Revision No. 3078 of 2025 (judgment of 26 February 2026). It held that a tenant's deposit application was in time because, with no written contract, the January rent was payable by 15 February, and it read section 19(2) of the Act together with section 18(5). It also held that the Controller acts as a conduit for the deposit; whether the tenant was in default is decided in the landlord's eviction suit.
If your landlord refuses rent, do not simply stop paying. Keep proof of the tender and deposit the rent with the Rent Controller in time. A tenant who lets arrears build up hands the landlord the strongest ground for eviction.
Rent increases
Annual increases written into an agreement are common. Whether they are enforceable beyond the standard rent is a separate question under the 1991 Act. In Dhaka, the Dhaka North City Corporation issued a house rent guideline in January 2026 that, among other things, keeps rent fixed for two years. That guideline applies only to its own area; we are not aware of an equivalent Chattogram City Corporation guideline, so Chattogram tenancies turn on the Act and the agreement.
Eviction, notice and recovering possession
A landlord cannot lawfully evict a tenant by changing the locks, cutting utilities or removing belongings. Possession is recovered by ending the tenancy properly and, if the tenant does not leave, by a suit in the civil court. A landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong will usually start with the notice, because a defective notice can defeat an otherwise strong case.
Grounds a landlord commonly relies on
- Default in paying rent.
- Subletting or parting with possession in breach of the agreement.
- Use of the premises for a different purpose, or conduct amounting to a nuisance to neighbours.
- Unauthorised structural alterations or damage.
- The landlord's genuine need of the premises for occupation or rebuilding.
- Expiry of the lease term or a valid notice to quit.
When the tenant is the victim
Tenants also have strong remedies. A tenant dispossessed without due process can sue to recover possession under section 9 of the Specific Relief Act 1877, which offers a quicker route if the suit is brought within six months of dispossession. Where a dispute threatens a breach of the peace, a magistrate can be asked to intervene. Our possession recovery lawyers handle both sides of these cases, and our injunction practice can seek urgent orders to stop a lockout or a demolition.
| Issue | Forum | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Rent refused; deposit of rent | Rent Controller (Senior Assistant Judge) | Strict time limits for deposit |
| Standard rent or excess advance | Rent Controller | Excess advance can also be a fine-able offence |
| Eviction of a tenant | Civil court (Assistant or Senior Assistant Judge, by value) | Follows a valid notice ending the tenancy |
| Unlawful dispossession of a tenant | Civil court, with injunction | Section 9 suit within six months |
| Breach of a commercial lease | Civil court or the new Commercial Courts | Depends on the dispute and its value |
| Appeals and revisions | District Judge's courts; High Court Division | Revision on points of law |
Mediation, the courts and the 2026 reforms
Bangladesh is shifting rent disputes towards mediation. Under the Legal Aid Services (Amendment) Act 2026, parties in specified districts must try mediation through the District Legal Aid Office before filing certain civil and family cases, and the Premises Rent Control Act is among the covered categories. When the scheme was extended in July 2026, Chattogram district was not on the list, and the government said it planned to extend it to the remaining districts. Check the current position with the National Legal Aid Services Organization before filing.
Business tenancies may also be affected by the commercial courts created in 2026. Under the Commercial Courts Act 2026, passed on 7 April 2026, the official cause-list portal lists two commercial courts for Chattogram Metropolitan and one for the district; readers should check the Act's current text for any pre-suit mediation step and adjournment rules. Whether a particular lease dispute qualifies depends on how the dispute is framed, and our commercial litigation team advises on forum before anything is filed.
Ordinary eviction and rent suits are heard in the civil courts of the Chattogram judgeship, mostly in the Court Hill area. For a broader view of how these courts fit together, see our civil litigation practice.
How a landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong runs a dispute
- Collect the paper. Agreement, receipts or bank records, advance acknowledgements, correspondence, photographs and any registration details. We build a payment ledger from them.
- Diagnose the tenancy. Is it registered? Monthly or for a term? Residential or commercial? Each answer changes the notice period, the forum and the leverage.
- Fix the immediate risk. For a tenant, that may mean tendering and depositing rent. For a landlord, it may mean stopping arrears from growing or preventing unauthorised works.
- Serve a proper notice. A notice to quit, a demand for arrears or a legal notice stating the breach, served so that service can be proved.
- Negotiate or mediate. Many disputes end with an agreed exit date, a set-off against the advance and a written settlement.
- Litigate if necessary. Eviction suit, rent deposit proceedings, a suit for arrears or recovery of the advance, with an injunction where needed.
- Enforce. A decree for possession or money is executed through the court, with the bailiff and, if necessary, police assistance.
Documents to assemble
Good records shorten disputes. Before you instruct a landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong, gather what you can:
- The lease or rent agreement, including any renewals and addenda.
- Proof of ownership or authority to let: deed, khatian, mutation and holding tax receipts, or a power of attorney.
- Rent receipts, bank transfers, mobile financial service records and acknowledgements of the advance.
- Correspondence, messages and notices exchanged.
- Photographs and inventories at the start and end of the tenancy.
- Utility bills and service charge statements.
- For businesses: trade licence, VAT records and any landlord consents for fit-out or signage.
Landlords should also check that they are the right person to sue. Inherited property let by one heir, or a flat let by an attorney for a probashi owner, often raises authority questions. Our property lawyers check title and authority before proceedings start.
Risks and common mistakes
Relying on an unregistered long lease
A lease for more than a year that has not been registered cannot be used to prove its terms in the usual way. A tenant who paid a large advance against a five-year term may find the landlord treating the tenancy as monthly and serving a short notice. Landlords face the mirror image: a long lock-in for the tenant may be unenforceable. If the lease is meant to bind for years, register it and pay the stamp duty. If it was not registered, take advice before relying on its renewal, rent or lock-in clauses.
Self-help eviction
Cutting electricity, water or gas, changing locks or removing a tenant's goods is unlawful, even where the tenant owes rent. It exposes the landlord to a possession suit, injunctions and potential criminal complaints, and it weakens the landlord's position in any eviction suit. The lawful route is notice, then suit, then execution through the court. It is slower, but it ends with a decree that cannot be undone. If you are a tenant facing a lockout, act quickly: the six-month window for a summary possession suit runs from dispossession.
Taking or paying a large advance without recording it
Advances of several months are common in Chattogram, but the 1991 Act restricts advances beyond one month without the Rent Controller's written consent. Even setting that aside, an unrecorded advance produces a dispute at the end of the tenancy about how much was paid and what can be set off. Record the advance in the agreement, acknowledge receipt in writing, and state how it will be adjusted against rent or returned on exit.
Missing the rent deposit deadline
Tenants whose rent is refused often wait, hoping the landlord will relent. Meanwhile the time for depositing rent with the Controller runs, and the landlord builds a default case. The deposit rules are strict and the courts apply them closely, as the High Court Division's February 2026 decision shows. If rent is refused, tender it in a provable way and file the deposit application in time.
Ignoring tax on commercial rent
Commercial leases carry tax consequences that residential lets usually do not. Rent for business premises can attract VAT, and some tenants must withhold tax or VAT at source when paying rent. Getting this wrong creates exposure for both sides and can sour the relationship. Our VAT lawyers review the rent clause so that the tax position is clear before the lease is signed.
Commercial, warehouse and industrial leases
Commercial tenancies in Chattogram follow the same statutes but need more careful drafting. A logistics company leasing a yard near the port, or a manufacturer taking a factory shed outside the city, is committing capital to fit-out and equipment. The lease must protect that investment, and a landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong negotiating for either side focuses on four areas.
Term and renewal
A registered term with defined renewal options, so the tenant cannot be put on a monthly footing after spending on fit-out. Renewal rent should follow a formula, not a negotiation from scratch.
Use and permits
A clear permitted use, with the landlord's cooperation on trade licence, fire safety, environmental and other permits. Industrial use near residential areas can raise planning and Department of Environment questions.
Repairs and structure
Who repairs the roof, structure and drainage, and what happens after waterlogging or a fire. Chattogram's monsoon flooding makes this a real commercial risk in low-lying areas.
Exit and reinstatement
Notice periods, break rights, return of the advance and the condition in which the premises must be handed back. Unclear reinstatement clauses are a frequent source of end-of-lease disputes.
For leases connected with export processing or economic zones, the zone authority's own rules sit on top of the general law. Our BEPZA lawyers advise where premises are within CEPZ, KEPZ or other zones.
Probashi landlords and foreign tenants
Many Chattogram flats are owned by families working in the Gulf, the UK, Singapore or Malaysia and are let through relatives or caretakers. That arrangement works until the caretaker collects rent without accounting, the tenant stops paying, or a relative treats the flat as their own. A landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong can act on a properly executed power of attorney, serve notices, file suits and attend hearings while the owner stays abroad.
A power of attorney signed abroad has to be executed and authenticated correctly before it is accepted in Bangladesh. Our power of attorney team handles that process, and our NRB property lawyers deal with relatives who refuse to give up possession.
Foreign companies and expatriate staff leasing offices or homes in Chattogram often expect a lease in the form used in Singapore, Dubai or London. TRW & Co's offices in those cities can review commercial terms with the parent company while the Chattogram team makes sure the document works under Bangladesh law and is registered where it needs to be.
How TRW & Co helps as your landlord and tenant lawyer in Chittagong
Our Chattogram office at Court Hill is in the district court complex, where many of these disputes are heard. The firm's Bangladesh advocates appear before the Rent Controller, the civil courts of the Chattogram judgeship and, on revision or writ, the High Court Division.
- Drafting and review: residential agreements, commercial and warehouse leases, renewals and surrenders.
- Registration: preparing long leases for registration and stamping at the sub-registry.
- Notices: notices to quit, demands for arrears and replies to landlords' notices, served so that service can be proved.
- Rent Controller work: rent deposit applications and standard rent or advance complaints.
- Litigation: eviction suits, possession suits, arrears and advance recovery, injunctions and execution.
- Settlement: negotiated exits with agreed dates, set-off of the advance and written settlement terms.
We do not promise outcomes; we explain the realistic options, the time each is likely to take and the evidence each needs. You can see our other practice areas on our practices page or the Chattogram office overview.
Checklist before you sign or sue
- Is the person letting the property the owner, or authorised in writing by all owners?
- Is the lease for more than a year? If so, has it been registered and stamped?
- Are the rent, payment date, advance and its adjustment written down?
- Are increases tied to a formula and dates, rather than left to negotiation?
- Is the permitted use clear, and are the necessary licences in place?
- Do you have receipts or bank records for every payment?
- If rent has been refused, have you tendered it and deposited it with the Rent Controller in time?
- If you want possession, has a valid notice been served and can you prove service?
- Have you checked whether pre-case mediation applies before filing?
To discuss a tenancy, write to info@trw.co, call +880 1779 127165, or use our contact page to arrange a meeting at Room 4022, Annex 2, District and Sessions Judge Court Building, Court Hill (Porir Pahar), Kotwali, Chattogram 4000.
Frequently asked questions
01Can my landlord in Chattogram evict me without going to court?
No. A landlord must end the tenancy with a valid notice and, if you do not leave, file an eviction suit in the civil court and execute the decree through the court. Changing locks, cutting utilities or removing belongings is unlawful. If you are dispossessed without due process, you can sue to recover possession under section 9 of the Specific Relief Act 1877, which provides a quicker route if you file within six months. Keep evidence of the lockout and seek advice quickly, because urgent injunctions are often needed.
02My landlord is refusing to accept rent. What should I do?
Do not stop paying. Tender the rent in a way you can prove, and if it is refused, apply to deposit it with the Rent Controller within the statutory time. Where there is no written contract fixing a date, rent is payable by the fifteenth of the following month, and the deposit deadline runs from there. The High Court Division applied these rules in a February 2026 judgment. Depositing in time protects you against a later claim that you defaulted.
03How much advance can a landlord legally take?
The Premises Rent Control Act 1991 makes it an offence to take more than one month's rent in advance without the Rent Controller's written consent, and to demand premiums or salami beyond the rent. Larger advances remain common in Chattogram, but they carry legal risk for the landlord and evidential risk for both parties. Whatever is paid, record it in the agreement, acknowledge receipt in writing, and state how it will be adjusted against rent or returned when the tenancy ends.
04Does my rent agreement need to be registered?
If the lease is from year to year, for a term of more than one year, or reserves a yearly rent, it must be registered under the Registration Act 1908, and stamp duty is payable. A monthly residential tenancy usually is not registered. An unregistered long lease can leave both sides exposed: the tenant may lose the benefit of the term, and the landlord may be unable to enforce a lock-in. We prepare long leases so they can be registered at the sub-registry.
05How much notice must a landlord or tenant give?
The agreement usually decides. Where it is silent, section 106 of the Transfer of Property Act 1882 applies: a lease for agricultural or manufacturing purposes runs year to year and ends on six months' notice, and other leases run month to month and end on fifteen days' notice. The notice must be correctly framed and served, and you must be able to prove service. A defective notice is one of the most common reasons eviction suits fail.
06Can a landlord increase the rent every year?
Many agreements provide for annual increases, and tenants often accept them. Under the Premises Rent Control Act 1991, however, rent above the standard rent is generally irrecoverable and increases are linked to specific grounds. In practice, disputes turn on the agreement, the history of payments and whether either side raises the Act. The January 2026 Dhaka North City Corporation guideline fixing rent for two years applies only in that city corporation's area, not in Chattogram.
07I live abroad and my tenant in Chattogram has stopped paying. Can you act?
Yes. With a properly executed and authenticated power of attorney, or direct instructions where the law allows, we can review the tenancy, serve notices, deposit or claim rent, file suits and attend hearings while you remain abroad. We also deal with caretakers or relatives who collect rent without accounting. We report in writing at each stage so that you can make decisions from the Gulf, the UK or Singapore without travelling for every hearing.
Sources and official materials
- The Transfer of Property Act, 1882 — General law of leases, notice to quit (section 106)
- The Registration Act, 1908 — Compulsory registration of leases over one year
- Specific Relief Act 1877 — Recovery of possession, injunctions
- High Court Division, Civil Revision No. 3078 of 2025 — Rent deposit with the Rent Controller, sections 18(5) and 19(2)
- National Legal Aid Services Organization — Pre-case mediation through district legal aid offices
- Chattogram District Judiciary — Chattogram civil courts and cause lists
General information only, current as at 2 November 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create an advocate–client relationship. It reflects the law of Bangladesh unless stated otherwise, and the law, court practice and official fees change frequently. Check current official sources and take advice on the facts of your matter.
