Early Termination Clause
in Your Lease
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Statutes verified against primary state sources
Every statute cited here was read in its published text before this page went live: on the state's own site where that site can be reached, otherwise on a republished copy of the code. Court decisions are quoted from the published opinion and linked to it, so you can read the original yourself.
Primary sourcesNot legal advice
Content verified against primary state statutes before publicationLast updated: October 2026
What it actually means, what Virginia law says, what's specific to Richmond - and exactly what to do. In plain English.
Short answer for Richmond
In Virginia, a victim of family abuse, sexual abuse or other criminal sexual assault, stalking, or trafficking with a qualifying protective order or charging document can end the lease by written notice effective 28 days after service (Va. Code § 55.1-1236). Rent stays due until then, but no liquidated damages may be charged. Qualifying military orders end the lease at least 30 days after the next rent due date (§ 55.1-1235). Otherwise, your lease clause decides the cost.
Estimate what leaving early costsWhat is your situation?
I need to break my lease
Virginia's exits turn on a situation: abuse, assault, stalking or trafficking backed by a court paper (§ 55.1-1236), qualifying military orders (§ 55.1-1235), or a problem on the landlord's side, such as a material noncompliance not remedied in 21 days (§ 55.1-1234). No Richmond code section we read adds one. Where none fits, the clause you signed decides the cost, so read its fee and notice period closely.
Estimate what leaving early costsMy lease has an early termination fee
On the survivor route, § 55.1-1236(D) says the landlord may not charge any liquidated damages, though rent stays due on the normal schedule through the end date; § 55.1-1235(C) bars them on the military route. The sections we read do not extend that bar to the Act's other exits, so read the fee against the route you are using. Where no Virginia route fits, the fee your clause names decides.
Read the Richmond rulesI have a legal reason to leave
As a survivor, serve written notice with your protective order or charging document attached, effective 28 days after service (§ 55.1-1236(B)). With qualifying military orders, name an end date at least 30 days after the next rent due date and give a copy of the orders or a commanding officer's signed letter first (§ 55.1-1235). A landlord's material noncompliance not remedied in 21 days is another exit (§ 55.1-1234).
Copy the survivor termination noticeMy landlord isn't trying to re-rent
No section we read in Virginia law sets a duty for your landlord to re-rent. On a survivor exit, rent stays due only through the termination date, and no liquidated damages may be charged (§ 55.1-1236(C), (D)); the military route bars them too (§ 55.1-1235(C)). Take the lease, your notice and proof of service to a Richmond tenant lawyer or legal aid office before you agree to any fee.
See what to do nextI'm the landlord and my tenant left early
A survivor's written notice with a copy of the order or charging document ends the lease 28 days after service, and rent stays due through that date (§ 55.1-1236). Neither that route nor the military route allows liquidated damages (§ 55.1-1236(D); § 55.1-1235(C)). Co-tenants stay responsible for the rent for the rest of the term. A lease term waiving these rights is unenforceable (§ 55.1-1208(B)).
Read the Virginia law sectionQuick summary: 5 key points
- § 55.1-1236: a survivor's written notice ends the lease 28 days after it is served on the landlord.
- Serve it with a copy of the protective order, or the conviction order, warrant, summons, information or indictment.
- Rent stays due on the normal schedule until then, and the landlord may not charge liquidated damages.
- § 55.1-1235: qualifying military orders end the lease at least 30 days after the next rent due date.
- § 55.1-1208(B) makes a lease term waiving rights under the Act unenforceable.
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Count it for your dates
28 days: when does it end?
What it means: Your notice takes effect on this date; rent stays payable on the lease's normal schedule through it, and the landlord may not charge any liquidated damages. Applies to a tenant who is a victim of family abuse, sexual abuse or other criminal sexual assault, stalking, or trafficking and holds a protective order obtained during the lease (with notice given while it or any extension runs), or a conviction order, warrant, summons, information, or indictment charging such a crime during that term; co-tenants stay responsible for the rent for the rest of the term, and the military route in § 55.1-1235 counts from the next rent due date instead (Va. Code § 55.1-1236(B)). Calendar arithmetic only; check how the section counts days before you rely on a date.
Copy and send: When you decide to leave, with your order or charging document attached
Survivor lease termination notice
Fill in the brackets and keep a copy of what you send.
How Virginia compares
Wait before a statutory exit, state by state
0 days7 days14 days28 days30 daysNo figureGuide coming soonYou are here
See all 28 cities as a chart
Figures are the state rule, or the stronger city ordinance where one exists. Verify the current law for your own situation before relying on it.
Understanding the Early Termination Clause
This page is for Richmond renters who want to leave a lease before its end date, or who are checking the early termination clause before they sign. Each Virginia exit we found turns on a situation, not on a wish to move: abuse, assault, stalking or trafficking backed by a court paper, qualifying military orders, or a problem on the landlord's side.
Where none fits, the clause you signed decides the cost, so read its fee and notice period closely.
What renters assume
The chart shows Richmond at 28 days, so any Virginia tenant can give four weeks' notice and owe nothing more.
What is actually true
That 28 days belongs to the survivor route in § 55.1-1236, which needs a qualifying protective order or charging document. Military orders use § 55.1-1235. Where no route fits, the clause you signed decides.
Richmond's row reads 28 days (survivors). Twelve of the 28 rows in the comparison on this page read 30 days, twelve carry no advance wait, two read 14 days, in Portland and Washington, and Miami's reads 7 days.
Richmond's figure is a fixed count from the day of service. The thirties beside it do not all mean the same thing: Austin's label reads "30 days (survivors; military)", Phoenix and Nashville read "Up to 30 days (by agreement)", and Columbus's thirty is a landlord's repair window.
The bar leaves out Virginia's military route. Under § 55.1-1235 the end date is not less than 30 days after the first date on which the next rent payment is due after the notice.
That clock counts from a rent date rather than from the notice, and it is not the figure drawn here.
Early Termination Clause Example - What the Wording Looks Like in Richmond, VA
The sample clause below comes from a Tennessee court case, and the notes explain what Virginia law says about each part. It is real lease language - a court quoted it word for word, and then ruled on it. What the judge decided is at the bottom of this block.
Find the equivalent paragraph in your own lease and read the two side by side. The wording will differ; the moving parts rarely do.
21. EARLY TERMINATION FEES: If this agreement terminates for nonpayment or other listed defaults, other than a Landlord approved written termination from Tenant, Tenant agrees to pay [$1,000.00], in addition to all other fees, charges, and damages allowed, as an Early Termination Fee (hereinafter referred to as ‘Early Termination Fee’).
The Early Termination Fee is not a penalty, but rather a charge to compensate Landlord for Tenant’s failure to satisfy the terms of the agreement.
Quoted from the published opinion in Tennessee Homes v. Welch, No. M2021-01383-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Aug. 12, 2022). Judicial opinions are not subject to copyright; the lease language is reproduced in limited part for commentary under 17 U.S.C. § 107.
What the 4 highlighted phrases mean
“a Landlord approved written termination”
This is the clause's fee-free door, and the landlord holds the key to it. The two early-termination sections in our Virginia record do not pass through that door. Under § 55.1-1236(B) a qualifying survivor serves a written notice that takes effect 28 days after service. Under § 55.1-1235(B) a qualifying service member's notice names a date not less than 30 days after the first date on which the next rent payment is due after the notice. Landlord approval is not among the steps our record lists for either route.
See the example
“in addition to all other fees, charges, and damages allowed”
Here the fee is stacked on top of everything else the lease can collect. Virginia's survivor section says what keeps running until a survivor's exit takes effect. Under § 55.1-1236(C) rent stays payable on the lease's normal schedule “through the effective date of the termination”, and under § 55.1-1236(E) the tenant's upkeep duties under § 55.1-1227 run to that date as well.
See the example
“as an Early Termination Fee”
Here the lease files the charge under a name of its own. Tennessee Homes held that the name does not decide the question: the court treated this fee as liquidated damages although the clause never used that phrase, because “the parties' choice of language does not determine the nature of the provision.” The two early-termination sections in our Virginia record address that category by name. § 55.1-1236(D) says “The landlord may not charge any liquidated damages”, and § 55.1-1235(C) bars them on the military route.
See the example
“rather a charge to compensate Landlord for Tenant’s”
The clause frames the fee as compensation for the tenant's failure. Virginia's survivor section names who answers when the survivor leaves and the perpetrator stays: if the perpetrator is the remaining sole tenant, the landlord may end the lease and claim actual damages from the perpetrator under § 55.1-1251. The Act also runs the other way, where the failure is the landlord's.
See the example
Enforced - but the label did not do the work. The court held this was a liquidated-damages provision even though it never used that phrase, because “the parties' choice of language does not determine the nature of the provision.” It then upheld the figure: judged at signing, $1,000 was a reasonable estimate of the loss on an $865-a-month annual lease.
How this state's law treats this clause
One court, one lease, one state. That answer is not automatically yours, and your lease may be worded to land differently. Use this to know what to look for and what to ask - your state's tenant hotline or a local tenant attorney can answer it for your document.
Virginia Law on Early Termination Clause
- Who qualifies for the 28-day exit is set by the paperwork.
Read the law's words
Section 55.1-1236(A) covers a tenant who is a victim of family abuse as defined by § 16.1-228, sexual abuse or other criminal sexual assault, stalking in violation of § 18.2-60.3, or trafficking, and who has either a protective order under § 16.1-253.1, § 16.1-279.1, § 19.2-152.9 or § 19.2-152.10 obtained "during the term of an active and current rental agreement", with the notice given during the period of the order or any extension, or a conviction order, warrant, summons, information, or indictment charging such a crime against the victim during that term. Under § 55.1-1236(B) the notice is "to be effective 28 days after the tenant serves the termination notice on the landlord", and the tenant must also give the landlord a copy of the order, warrant, summons, information, or indictment. - What the tenant still owes is limited.
Read the law's words
Section 55.1-1236(C) keeps rent payable on the lease's normal schedule "through the effective date of the termination", § 55.1-1236(D) says "The landlord may not charge any liquidated damages", and § 55.1-1236(E) keeps the tenant's upkeep duties under § 55.1-1227 running to that date. Co-tenants on the lease stay responsible for the rent for the rest of the term, and if the perpetrator is the remaining sole tenant, the landlord may end the lease and claim actual damages from the perpetrator under § 55.1-1251. - The military route counts from a rent date, not from the notice.
Read the law's words
Section 55.1-1235(A) covers a member of the Armed Forces of the United States or of the National Guard serving on full-time duty or as a civil service technician with the National Guard who has permanent change of station orders, temporary duty orders of more than three months, a discharge or release, orders to government-supplied quarters that forfeit the basic allowance for quarters, or a stop movement order of indefinite length or at least 30 days that keeps the member from living in the unit. Under § 55.1-1235(B) the termination date must be "not less than 30 days after the first date on which the next rental payment is due and payable after the date on which the written notice is given", and before that date the tenant must give the landlord a copy of the orders or a signed letter from the commanding officer confirming them. Section 55.1-1235(C) bars liquidated damages. - Other exits in the same Act run on different clocks.
Read the law's words
Under § 55.1-1234, for a material noncompliance by the landlord, the tenant's written notice states that the lease will end on a date not less than 30 days after the landlord receives it if the breach is not remedied in 21 days. Section 55.1-1234.1 lets a tenant end the lease, with a full refund of deposits and rent, for a fire hazard or serious threat to life, health, or safety existing at the start of the tenancy, by written notice within seven days of the date possession was to transfer. Section 55.1-1238 allows termination on at least five days' written notice where the landlord willfully fails to deliver possession, and § 55.1-1237(B) allows it on written notice at least five business days before the termination date where the landlord of a unit used as a single-family residence fails to give the foreclosure notice § 55.1-1237(A) requires. Under § 55.1-1240, after fire or casualty damage, the tenant may vacate and serve written notice within 14 days, a period the version effective January 1, 2027 sets at 21 days, and the lease ends as of the date of vacating. - A lease cannot sign these rights away, and the Act has limits on who it covers.
Read the law's words
Section 55.1-1208(A)(1) bars a rental agreement provision by which the tenant agrees "to waive or forgo rights or remedies under this chapter", § 55.1-1208(A)(8) bars a waiver of Servicemembers Civil Relief Act rights before a dispute arises, and § 55.1-1208(B) makes such a provision unenforceable. Section 55.1-1201(C) lists occupancies that are not residential tenancies under the Act, among them residence at an institution incidental to medical, educational or similar services, occupancy by a tenant who pays no rent, and occupancy under a contract of sale by the purchaser, and § 55.1-1201(D) leaves out transient lodging that is not a person's primary residence and a primary residence in such lodging for 90 consecutive days or less.
Sources include Va. Code § 55.1-1236; Va. Code § 55.1-1235; Va. Code § 55.1-1234; Va. Code § 55.1-1234.1; Va. Code § 55.1-1237; Va. Code § 55.1-1238; Va. Code § 55.1-1240; Va. Code § 55.1-1208; Va. Code § 55.1-1201 - statutes change; verify the current text for your situation.
Read the full state law section
- Survivors, § 55.1-1236. A victim of family abuse, sexual abuse or other criminal sexual assault, stalking, or trafficking who holds a protective order obtained during the lease, with notice given while it or any extension runs, or a conviction order, warrant, summons, information or indictment for such a crime during that term. Written notice with a copy ends the lease 28 days after service. Rent and § 55.1-1227 upkeep duties continue to that date.
- Military, § 55.1-1235. A member of the Armed Forces, or of the National Guard on full-time duty or as a civil service technician, with permanent change of station orders, temporary duty orders of more than three months, a discharge or release, orders to government-supplied quarters that forfeit the basic allowance for quarters, or a stop movement order of indefinite length or at least 30 days that keeps the member out of the unit. The end date is at least 30 days after the first rent due date following the notice, with a copy of the orders or a commanding officer's signed letter given before then. Our military lease guide covers the federal exit.
- Landlord's breach, § 55.1-1234. If a material noncompliance is not remedied in 21 days, your notice ends the lease at least 30 days after the landlord receives it.
What's Specific to Richmond
Our record of the Code of the City of Richmond, covering Chapter 16 (Housing) and Chapter 17 (Human Rights) in full, finds no provision that lets a tenant end a lease early or sets an early termination notice period. Va. Code § 55.1-1201(E) says the state Act supersedes other local landlord and tenant ordinances, except a reconciliatory mediation commission and property maintenance ordinances.
In the city's affordable dwelling unit program, Richmond Code § 16-28 has the lease treat a yearly affidavit missed by 30 days, or ineligible income, as a material breach.
§ 55.1-1236(B) counts the survivor's notice period from the day you serve the landlord, so a notice address tells you where to serve it.
The military end date counts from the first rent due date after your notice, under § 55.1-1235(B).
The survivor and military sections ask for your written notice and papers, and § 55.1-1208(A)(1) bars waiving rights or remedies under the Act.
Where no Virginia route fits, the clause you signed decides the cost, so a stated fee and notice period let you price leaving.
Sources
The law this guide relies on, and where to read it. Statutes change, so confirm the current text before you act on it.
- Va. Code § 55.1-1236; Va. Code § 55.1-1235; Va. Code § 55.1-1234; Va. Code § 55.1-1234.1; Va. Code § 55.1-1237; Va. Code § 55.1-1238; Va. Code § 55.1-1240; Va. Code § 55.1-1208; Va. Code § 55.1-1201, read on law.lis.virginia.gov. Read on law.lis.virginia.gov, the Virginia General Assembly's Legislative Information System, which prints § 55.1-1236 with the history line "2013, c. 531, § 55-248.21:2; 2019, c. 712; 2024, c. 302; 2025, c. 593" and § 55.1-1235 with a history line ending "2024, cc. 28, 154; 2026, cc. 82, 83".
Red Flags to Watch Out For
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One fee for every early move-out
A clause charging the same fee for any early exit ignores § 55.1-1236(D) and § 55.1-1235(C), which bar liquidated damages on the survivor and military routes.
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A blanket waiver of statutory exits
§ 55.1-1208(A)(1) bars a provision by which the tenant agrees "to waive or forgo rights or remedies under this chapter", and § 55.1-1208(B) makes it unenforceable.
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A servicemember waiver signed up front
§ 55.1-1208(A)(8) bars a lease provision waiving Servicemembers Civil Relief Act rights before a dispute arises.
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An end date on the lease's own clock
The survivor notice runs from service and the military date from the next rent due date. A clause with its own notice period reads a different clock.
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Co-tenants told the lease ended with you
Under § 55.1-1236, co-tenants on the lease stay responsible for the rent for the rest of the term. Tell them before you serve notice.
Your Rights as a Richmond Tenant
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Leave on a survivor's notice
With a qualifying protective order or charging document, your written notice under § 55.1-1236 ends the lease. The steps it lists do not include the landlord's approval.
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Pay rent only to the end date
§ 55.1-1236(C) keeps rent payable on the lease's normal schedule "through the effective date of the termination".
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A military route that counts from rent day
§ 55.1-1235 sets the end date from the next rent due date after your notice, not from the notice itself.
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Leave with a full refund if unsafe at move-in
For a fire hazard or serious threat to life, health, or safety at move-in, give written notice under § 55.1-1234.1 within seven days of the date possession was to transfer.
What To Do - Step by Step
Match your situation to a route
Survivors use § 55.1-1236, qualifying military orders § 55.1-1235, and a landlord's material noncompliance § 55.1-1234. If none fits, your clause decides.
Gather the papers the section names
A survivor needs the protective order or charging document. A service member needs a copy of the orders or a commanding officer's signed letter confirming them.
Serve the notice in writing and keep proof
Use a form that shows the day of service, since the survivor's count starts that day.
Work out what you still owe
Rent stays due on the normal schedule through the end date. Note the fee your clause names before anyone asks you to pay it.
Check the statute text today
Read the current text of § 55.1-1236 and § 55.1-1235 on law.lis.virginia.gov before you serve notice.
Get local advice before paying a fee
Take the lease, your notice and proof of service to a Richmond tenant lawyer or legal aid office before you agree to any fee.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Early Termination rules near Virginia
The same clause in the nearest states we cover.