Subletting 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
If your lease lets your landlord approve or disapprove a subtenant, Va. Code § 55.1-1204(G) gives them 10 business days to answer, counted from receipt of your subtenant's written application on the landlord's own form. Silence past that is evidence of approval. The Richmond sections we read set no city deadline, though an affordable dwelling unit lease must ban subleasing (City Code § 16-28(g)). Ask for the form in writing and keep proof of the date it arrived.
Copy the request for the sublet formWhat is your situation?
I want to sublet my place
If your lease lets the landlord approve or disapprove subtenants, Va. Code § 55.1-1204(G) gives the landlord 10 business days from receiving your subtenant's written application on the landlord's form, so ask for that form in writing. Two Richmond checks: an affordable dwelling unit lease must ban subleasing (City Code § 16-28(g)), and anyone responsible for city gas, water or wastewater charges must notify the Director before subletting (§ 28-2(a)(18)).
Copy the request for the sublet formMy landlord refused my sublet
Virginia's rule is a clock: the landlord must approve or disapprove within 10 business days of receiving the written application (Va. Code § 55.1-1204(G)). The sublet terms come from your lease, which may carry any term not prohibited by law (§ 55.1-1204(A)). Richmond's fair housing article reaches subleases: City Code § 17-20 defines "To rent" to include "to sublease". If the refusal seems tied to who the subtenant is, ask a tenant attorney.
Read the Richmond rulesI'm subletting from another tenant
Virginia's Act defines "Landlord" to include a sublessor (Va. Code § 55.1-1200), so read that definition before you agree terms. If the main lease lets the landlord approve subtenants, your written application on the landlord's form starts a 10 business day clock (§ 55.1-1204(G)); keep a dated copy and every reply. An affordable dwelling unit lease must ban subleasing (City Code § 16-28(g)), so ask whether the unit is in that program.
Read the Virginia law sectionMy sublet tenant stopped paying
The sections on this page do not set a rule for a subtenant who stops paying you, so your lease and any written sublease decide it. What Virginia's Act does say: its definition of "Landlord" includes a sublessor (Va. Code § 55.1-1200), a definition the sections we read quote without applying to a particular sublet. Keep the sublease and every reply, and ask a local tenant attorney before you act.
See what to do nextI'm the landlord and got a sublet request
If your lease lets you approve or disapprove subtenants, Va. Code § 55.1-1204(G) requires you to approve or disapprove within 10 business days of receiving the subtenant's written application on a form you provide, and a failure to act in time is evidence of approval. In Richmond, an affordable dwelling unit lease must include a ban on subleasing (City Code § 16-28(g)), and the fair housing article reaches subleases (§ 17-20).
Read the Virginia law sectionQuick summary: 5 key points
- If the lease gives an approval right, landlords get 10 business days to answer sublet requests (§ 55.1-1204(G)).
- The count starts when the landlord receives the subtenant's written application on the landlord's own form.
- If the landlord does not act in time, the statute calls that "evidence of his approval."
- Leases in Richmond's affordable dwelling unit program must include a ban on subleasing (City Code § 16-28(g)).
- Responsible for city gas, water or wastewater charges? Notify the Director before subletting (§ 28-2(a)(18)).
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Copy and send: As soon as you have a subtenant in mind, by email so the date is recorded
Ask for the sublet application form
Fill in the brackets and keep a copy of what you send.
How Virginia compares
Landlord's deadline to answer a written sublet request, state by state
10 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 Subletting Clause
This page is for Richmond renters who want to sublet, or who are about to sign a lease with a subletting clause. Virginia sets a clock for the landlord's answer, but only if your lease gives the landlord a right to approve or disapprove a subtenant, and only once a written application on the landlord's form arrives.
Richmond adds limits in two settings: leases in the city's affordable dwelling unit program, and renters legally responsible for city utility charges.
What renters assume
Once 10 business days pass without an answer, the sublet is automatically approved, whatever the lease says.
What is actually true
§ 55.1-1204(G) says a failure to act "is evidence of his approval." The word is evidence, and no other section we read in Chapter 12 says more. The clock also needs an approval provision in your lease and a written application on the landlord's form.
The comparison on this page draws 28 rows, each measuring a landlord's deadline to answer a written sublet request. Two of them carry a figure: New York City at 30 days and Richmond at 10 business days. The other 26 rows are blank.
Read those two bars with their units. New York's row reaches buildings with four or more units and a certified-mail request.
Richmond's counts business days from a written application on the landlord's form, where the lease carries an approval provision, so the shorter bar measures a different clock.
Of the 26 blank rows, eleven read no statute, and five read no set deadline: Charlotte, Baltimore, Minneapolis, Indianapolis and Louisville. Chicago and Portland read no deadline, Kansas City and Oklahoma City read no deadline; written assent required, and Washington, DC, Columbus, Newark, Detroit, Milwaukee and Salt Lake City each carry a label of their own.
Sublet Clause Example - What the Wording Looks Like in Richmond, VA
The sample clause below comes from a New York 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.
18. (A) Assignment, subletting.—Except as provided by § 226-b of the Real Property Law of New York, the Tenant shall not assign the lease, nor sublet the Apartment, or permit the Apartment or any part thereof to be used by any one other than Tenant or members of the immediate family of Tenant, without the prior written consent of Owner in each case, if the Lease is assigned, or if the Apartment is sublet or occupied by anybody other than Tenant or Tenant’s immediate family.
Quoted from the published opinion in Conrad v. Third Sutton Realty Co., 81 A.D.2d 50 (1st Dep't 1981). 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
“assign the lease, nor sublet”
The lease bars two different moves, and Virginia's statute names the person behind each of them. Va. Code § 55.1-1204(G) reaches “a sublessee or assignee of the tenant”, so a Richmond lease worded like this one puts both an assignment and a sublet on the same clock. In Conrad the clause gave way to New York's § 226-b by its own opening words. Where a Richmond lease carries an approval right, subsection (G) supplies the timetable for answering it.
See the example
“part thereof to be used by any one other than”
This phrase reaches past a formal sublet to anyone using any part of the apartment, which in Richmond touches the city's fair housing article. Richmond City Code § 17-20 defines “To rent” to include “to lease, to sublease, to let or otherwise to grant for a consideration the right to occupy premises not owned by the occupant.” Letting a room for money is the kind of grant those words describe.
See the example
“written consent of Owner in each”
A consent requirement like this is the trigger Virginia writes into the statute: “any provision allowing the landlord to approve or disapprove a sublessee or assignee of the tenant”. Once a lease carries one, the landlord shall approve or disapprove within 10 business days of receipt of the written application. Business days are the statute's own unit, and the count runs from the day the landlord receives the application, not the day it was sent.
See the example
“Lease is assigned, or if the Apartment is sublet”
The clause ends on the event itself, and the case turned on what a landlord's response to it meant. The New York court held that a landlord who refused without stating any valid reason was deemed to have consented under § 226-b. Virginia writes its own rule for a landlord who does nothing: “Failure of the landlord to act within 10 business days is evidence of his approval.” The word is evidence, and we read no other section of Chapter 12 that says more about what a missed deadline does.
See the example
A landlord who gives no reason is treated as having said yes. The tenant proposed a documented sublessee; the managing agent's reply gave no reason at all - only that permission would not be granted, with an offer to let her terminate the lease instead. The Appellate Division held that a landlord who rejects a residential sublease without stating any valid reason is deemed to have consented under Real Property Law § 226-b, and that the tenant may compel acceptance of a bona fide sublessee. The court rejected the argument that release from the lease was the tenant's only remedy: in a housing shortage, that reading would leave a tenant with a meaningless right to surrender. Read the panel accurately - a divided panel affirmed, three judges adopting the rationale below, while two concurred separately on a narrower reading of § 226-b (2) and expressly declined to say what happens when a landlord does state reasons that turn out to be unreasonable. One of them noted that this lease carried no provision that consent would not unreasonably be withheld, which is why the statute had to do all the work. Read it with its date, too: this construes § 226-b before its substantial 1983 amendment. The deemed-consent result still tracks current § 226-b (2) (c), but today's statute also expressly lets a tenant sublet where consent is unreasonably withheld - the very question the concurrence reserved. The unit was a Manhattan apartment; the words rent control and stabilization appear nowhere in the opinion. Printed above is the first sentence of paragraph 18(A); the paragraph runs on for another 107 words of non-waiver boilerplate that is not reproduced here.
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 Subletting Clause
- The clock starts with a written application on the landlord's own form.
Read the law's words
Va. Code § 55.1-1204(G) provides: "If the rental agreement contains any provision allowing the landlord to approve or disapprove a sublessee or assignee of the tenant, the landlord shall, within 10 business days of receipt of the written application of the prospective sublessee or assignee on a form to be provided by the landlord, approve or disapprove the sublessee or assignee." The application is the prospective sublessee's, and the count is in business days. - Silence has a stated consequence.
Read the law's words
The same subsection ends: "Failure of the landlord to act within 10 business days is evidence of his approval." The word the statute uses is evidence; we read no other section of Chapter 12 that says more about what a missed deadline does. - The rule is conditional on the lease.
Read the law's words
Subsection (G) operates only where the rental agreement contains a provision allowing the landlord to approve or disapprove a sublessee or assignee, and § 55.1-1204(A) lets the parties include terms "not prohibited by this chapter or other rule of law". There are two versions of § 55.1-1204, one effective until July 1, 2027 and one effective July 1, 2027, and subsection (G) reads the same in both. - The Act's definition of a landlord includes a sublessor.
Read the law's words
Va. Code § 55.1-1200 defines "Landlord" as "the owner, lessor, or sublessor of the dwelling unit or the building of which such dwelling unit is a part", and § 55.1-1201(A) says the chapter "shall apply to all jurisdictions in the Commonwealth and may not be waived or otherwise modified, in whole or in part, by the governing body of any locality".
Sources include Va. Code § 55.1-1204(G); Va. Code § 55.1-1204(A); Va. Code § 55.1-1200; Va. Code § 55.1-1201(A), (E); Richmond City Code § 16-28(g); Richmond City Code § 16-19; Richmond City Code § 28-2(a)(18); Richmond City Code § 17-20 - statutes change; verify the current text for your situation.
Read the full state law section
Va. Code § 55.1-1204(G) sets the rule for a sublet request:
- When it applies. Only where your rental agreement lets the landlord approve or disapprove a sublessee or assignee.
- The application. Your proposed subtenant makes a written application "on a form to be provided by the landlord".
- The deadline. The landlord must approve or disapprove within 10 business days of receiving it. The count is in business days, not calendar days, and runs from receipt, so keep dated proof of delivery.
- Silence. "Failure of the landlord to act within 10 business days is evidence of his approval." No other section we read in Chapter 12 says more about a missed deadline.
§ 55.1-1204(A) lets a lease include terms "not prohibited by this chapter or other rule of law". § 55.1-1200 names a sublessor in its definition of "Landlord". § 55.1-1201(A) says no locality may waive or modify the Act, and § 55.1-1201(E) says it "shall supersede all other local ordinances or regulations concerning landlord and tenant relations and the leasing of residential property".
What's Specific to Richmond
Our record of the Richmond City Code finds no city deadline for answering a sublet request. § 16-28(g) requires leases in the voluntary affordable dwelling unit program to "include a prohibition against the tenant subleasing the unit." § 28-2(a)(18) bars a person legally responsible for city gas, water or wastewater charges from subletting until they notify the Director. § 17-20 defines "To rent" to include "to sublease" in the city's fair housing article. We take no position on how § 55.1-1201(E) applies to these sections. Newer ordinances may not appear in the code yet.
If it does, § 55.1-1204(G) gives the landlord 10 business days to answer a written application.
The clock runs from receipt of the application "on a form to be provided by the landlord". Ask for the form in writing.
Those leases must "include a prohibition against the tenant subleasing the unit" (§ 16-28(g)).
Notify the Director of your intention to sublet before you do it (§ 28-2(a)(18)).
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 § 55.1-1204(G); Va. Code § 55.1-1204(A); Va. Code § 55.1-1200; Va. Code § 55.1-1201(A), (E); Richmond City Code § 16-28(g); Richmond City Code § 16-19; Richmond City Code § 28-2(a)(18); Richmond City Code § 17-20, read on law.lis.virginia.gov. Read on the Virginia General Assembly's Legislative Information System, whose page for § 55.1-1204 shows the version effective until July 1, 2027 with a history line ending 2026, cc. 722, 723, beside a version effective July 1, 2027 whose subsection G is worded the same; the Richmond City Code was read on Municode as a recodification codified through Ordinance No. 2025-207, adopted October 14, 2025.
Red Flags to Watch Out For
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A sublet request made by phone or text
The 10 business days run from receipt of a written application on the landlord's form. A call or a text gives the count nothing to start from.
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A landlord who never supplies the form
Subsection (G) refers to "a form to be provided by the landlord". Ask for it in writing; no section we read says what follows if none arrives.
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A clause that reads silence as a refusal
The statute says silence "is evidence of his approval." Compare the clause with § 55.1-1204(A), which allows terms "not prohibited by this chapter or other rule of law".
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Counting calendar days
§ 55.1-1204(G) counts business days, from the day the landlord received the application, not the day you sent it.
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Assuming fair housing stops at the main lease
Richmond's fair housing article reaches subleases. § 17-20 defines "To rent" to include "to lease, to sublease, to let".
Your Rights as a Richmond Tenant
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An answer on a clock
Where the lease gives the landlord an approval right, § 55.1-1204(G) requires approval or disapproval within 10 business days of receiving the written application.
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Silence counts for something
Under the same subsection, "Failure of the landlord to act within 10 business days is evidence of his approval."
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A state Act no locality can waive
§ 55.1-1201(A) says the Act applies in all Virginia jurisdictions and may not be waived or modified by any locality.
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Fair housing reaches subleases
Richmond City Code § 17-20 defines "To rent" to include "to lease, to sublease, to let" in the city's fair housing article.
What To Do - Step by Step
Read your sublet clause
Check whether it lets the landlord approve or disapprove a subtenant. If it does, § 55.1-1204(G) attaches a deadline of 10 business days.
Check the two Richmond settings
An affordable dwelling unit lease must ban subleasing (§ 16-28(g)). Responsibility for city utility charges means notice to the Director first (§ 28-2(a)(18)).
Ask for the landlord's form in writing
The clock runs from a written application "on a form to be provided by the landlord". Email gives you a dated copy.
Deliver it so receipt can be proved
Count the 10 business days from the day the landlord received the application, not the day you sent it.
Keep the file if the deadline passes
A failure to act in time "is evidence of his approval." Keep the dated application, the proof of receipt and every reply.
Check the current text
Read § 55.1-1204, which has a version effective July 1, 2027 with the same subsection (G), and the Richmond sections in the current city code.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Subletting rules near Virginia
The same clause in the nearest states we cover.