Where to report illegal rental of an apartment and what the punishment is?

If you know where to report the illegal rental of an apartment located on the same staircase, then you can praise yourself for your breadth of outlook.
If you don’t know where to run and what to do, and the residents next door are your headache, then these tips are for you. If the people living nearby do not cause you any problems, do not give up. At any moment, everything can change dramatically and the information obtained from the article will become very useful. Multi-channel free hotline Legal advice on criminal law. Every day from 9.00 to 21.00

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Neighbors are renting out an apartment, where to file a complaint?

After a hard day at work, come home and there are leaks on the walls, the ceiling is blistered, or the noise is incredible? You fly down two flights of stairs in one breath, knock on the door.

The door opens, and new faces appear in the opening? They don't think they are making noise at all. And they don’t know that someone else’s home has been flooded for the fourth time in a year, and the owners have long ago blacklisted your phone.

Frequently changing tenants are evidence that the owners of the rental housing most likely do not enter into an agreement; relations with tenants are not advertised anywhere. There are often cases when housing is rented out on a daily basis.

First of all, you need to contact:

1. To the chairman of the HOA, residential complex or housing cooperative (homeowners' association, housing construction or housing cooperative), as well as to the management company servicing your home. If your home has been damaged in any way by careless tenants, then in any case it is better to start with them. They have collected data from homeowners, this will help if it is impossible to reach an amicable agreement.
2. If the HOA has not provided real assistance, the next step will be the local commissioner.

When checking individuals in a specified location, they may discover new circumstances that will speed up the solution of the problem (for example, it turns out that a brothel or brothel is being set up in the specified location).

Where and how to report illegal rental of an apartment

You can leave a complaint to the management company, police department, migration service, Rospotrebnadzor. You can also send an appeal to the tax office. It is this authority that will be able to exert maximum influence on violators.

It is necessary to submit a complaint with a requirement to conduct an inspection and take measures established by law in writing. The complaint must include:

• name of the body receiving the appeal;
• applicant's passport details;
• a detailed statement of the essence of the problem;
• evidence of violation.

A collective complaint may be filed. In this case, neighbors who wish to participate must leave their passport and contact information, as well as sign the document being handed over.

How to make a complaint correctly and where to send it

When the question arises: neighbors are renting out an apartment illegally, where should I complain?
First, you should contact other residents who live in the immediate vicinity. Perhaps you are not alone in your problem. If you decide to start a fight, then you will have to draw up a written complaint containing the following points in the text:

1. The name of the person to whom the complaint is being submitted.
2. Your contact details, address, phone number (if several people are applying, then indicate the details of all applicants).
3. Description of the problem, a detailed statement of all the facts of violation of the rules of living in the house.
4. Information about the tenants of the rented living space (when they were found out) and the owner.
5. Confirmation of these facts, that is, evidence of violations.
6. Date and signature (signed by all applicants, preferably with a transcript of the signature).

When writing a complaint, refrain from making assumptions and getting personal, state only the facts, this way you will avoid the label of a gossip - an envious person with the corresponding attitude of officials.

After talking with the owner or contacting the HOA, housing complex, housing cooperative, the violations of peace and order did not stop, which means the next step will be the following government bodies:

• district commissioner;
• in case of unsatisfactory work of the district police officer - the district prosecutor's office;
• tenants do not have registration or even have citizenship of another state - Migration Department (police unit);
• management of Rospotrebnadzor when establishing unsanitary conditions, if the actions of persons cause discontent of others;
• in the event of damage to your home, a sample application to the court can be found on the Internet, but for an effective appeal it is better to resort to qualified legal assistance to draw up a claim.

By working together we can achieve great results. As practice shows, collective appeals do not go unnoticed.

How to write a complaint to the tax office

There is no legally prescribed form developed, so you can write an appeal in free form. But you need to adhere to an official business style of speech, not use colloquial expressions, and avoid excessive emotionality.

What information should be included in a complaint to the Federal Tax Service:

1. Addressee's name. Here you need to indicate the full name and address of the Federal Tax Service where the complaint is being sent.
2. Who is this complaint from? For an individual, indicate full name, place of residence, telephone number. The individual entrepreneur adds OGRNIP to this information. The legal entity must write the name of the organization, its details, and the full name of the person applying on behalf of the company.
3. Name of the document (complaint, appeal).
4. The essence of the appeal. They talk about the fact of violation of tax legislation: who and how conducts illegal business activities, what articles of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation he violates.
5. Request. As a rule, here they are asked to take the necessary measures.
6. How does the applicant prefer to receive the result of the complaint consideration and verification (in person, by mail, by e-mail).
7. Attachments to the appeal. If there is any documentary evidence of illegal business activity, then these papers are attached to the complaint, and their name and number of sheets are indicated in the attachment.

The complaint must be signed and dated.

Important! The department has the right not to consider anonymous requests. The Federal Tax Service only accepts applications that contain personal data.

What to do if the apartment is rented out by the owners on a daily basis

Residents accommodated on a daily basis cause particular inconvenience.
This is a popular business today, in which property owners may not even be directly involved, entrusting interaction with clients to realtors. To prevent such incidents, you need to perform a number of simple steps:

1. Record the fact that new people are in the house each time. CCTV cameras will help you with this, as well as confirmation from neighbors who will not refuse to testify about this both to the local police officer and in court. Some entrances have concierges; they will also help track the appearance of strangers who have access to the entrance and a specific home.
2. During loud celebrations or rows, do not wait for the local police officer to arrive, call the police immediately. Police reports are strong evidence, especially if they involve new people each time.
3. Collect evidence, if there is enough evidence (at least two), apply for protection of your rights to the appropriate authorities.

This situation is more difficult to resolve, since by the time officials check, behind closed doors there will be emptiness, cleanliness and order, indicating the groundlessness of the accusations.

How they view

The superior organization has a month to resolve protests from the moment they are received if they relate to decisions of tax authorities on liability for an offense or refusal to do so. If necessary, the period is extended (maximum by 30 days). For other protests, a similar period is 15 days, which will be extended in the same way. If there is no response to the claim within the specified periods, it will be appealed in court. Let us recall that in Art. 139.3 of the Tax Code there are cases when a protest is not considered.

When an act or action is appealed to a higher authority, it is suspended (until a decision is made on the claim only on the relevant application). Moreover, such a suspension is possible when an effective prosecution for a tax violation or refusal to do so is being challenged. The application is submitted together with a petition and a bank guarantee, which must comply with clause 5 of Art. 74.1 of the Tax Code and other conditions from clause 5 of Art. 138 NK. According to it, the bank undertakes to repay the obligatory payment under the controversial decision.

The neighbors let the tenants in, but they are migrants

In advertisements for the rental of residential real estate, one often comes across the phrase “I will rent only to Russians.”
What kind of discrimination based on nationality? There is no discrimination here. People who respect the interests of their neighbors will not allow a whole camp of migrants to settle nearby. As a rule, citizens of the former Soviet republics, as well as immigrants from the Celestial Empire, prefer to live in extremely cramped conditions, in large groups, to save money.

If you are unlucky and similar companies have settled in your neighborhood, which are also disturbing the order, do not hesitate, report this to the appropriate place:

1. To the police department - the Migration Department (the presence of migrants in most cases is illegal, they will not only be evicted from their ill-fated home, but also forcibly expelled from the country).
2. To the sanitary and epidemiological station if insects or rodents appear on you or others living in the house.

After inspection by the supervisory authority, the owner of the premises will have to carry out a thorough cleaning.

If the tenants are migrants

The fact that apartments can be rented out to migrants will probably not be news. As a rule, they agree to live in a small apartment with more people than may cause inconvenience to their closest neighbors. After all, it’s one thing when 2 or 3 people live in an apartment and they are talking, and another thing when there are about 20 of them.

If such a fact becomes clear, then you need to report this to the migration service, since most likely they are living illegally. In this case, only this service can evict them.

In addition, tenants may not care about common areas, for example, the staircase or corridor. In this case, you can also contact epidemiological surveillance. Upon receiving a complaint, they will have to conduct an inspection, after which the owner of the apartment will be obliged to carry out sanitization of the living space.

The apartment next door has turned into a brothel, what to do?

“Night butterflies” can be peaceful residents, but the clients who come to them may turn out to be drunk, scandalous and dubious individuals.
If you see them on the street, you can try to get around them, but in the entrance you can’t escape. Or even in the middle of the night they will mix up the doors and scare respectable residents. If at a certain moment it turns out that the contingent of rented housing is girls of easy virtue, get ready to act as follows:

1. Try to talk with the owner of the property, express your complaints, and also inform him about criminal liability under Art. 241 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for maintaining a brothel or permanently providing the premises for prostitution.
2. If the situation repeats, notify the local commissioner.
3. If, after the raids, “things are still there,” bring in the heavy artillery, the so-called “morality police.”

Currently, Russian legislation does not distinguish such a division, but in fact, the departments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs contain departments dealing with issues of public morality. These departments conduct raids to identify brothels and persons organizing such businesses. Therefore, informing them about the brothel will make their work easier.

Punishment and fine

The tax service may impose a fine on the apartment owner. Among the reasons:

• lack of individual entrepreneur status;
• the citizen does not pay taxes on the profit received;
• a declaration reflecting the facts of receipt of income is not provided.

If the amount of income received from illegal activities is classified as large - from 900 thousand rubles and more than 10% of taxes on the amount have not been paid, or especially large - from 4.5 million rubles in the absence of paid taxes in the amount of at least 20%, then a criminal case may be initiated against the owner.

Liability is determined depending on the financial damage caused to the state.

How can you evict tenants from a rental apartment?

When illegal tenants poison the lives of neighbors, they begin to attempt to evict the “poisoners.” What to do in such a situation?

As mentioned earlier, if those living near you are “illegal immigrants”, they will be dealt with by the relevant police department for migration issues. They will be deported and are unlikely to be able to return.

It is extremely difficult to evict fellow citizens from the premises. This process is carried out only after a court decision has been made.

In order for the decision to be positive, it is necessary to attach to the statement of claim as much evidence as possible of violation of the rules of residence, namely:

• copies of complaints from residents of the house to the HOA or management company, to the district police officer and copies of responses;
• copies of reports drawn up during emergency calls to the police;
• notifications or lists of attachments in registered letters by which the owner of real estate is notified of all violations;
• copies of SES conclusions on the condition of the home and others.

The law provides for the possibility of eviction of citizens renting housing if the plaintiff proves the fact of mismanagement of housing, non-compliance with the rights and legitimate interests of neighbors, violation of the rules for the use of residential premises, as well as rules for the maintenance of common property.

You need to know that when housing is provided by the municipality, eviction awaits not only the people actually living, but also the tenant himself.

✅ Rental legislation

According to the Civil Code and Housing Code of the Russian Federation, when renting out housing, it is necessary to draw up an agreement with the tenant (if the apartment is rented by an individual) or with the tenant (if it is a legal entity). The correctness of the document's execution, including terminology (landlord/tenant, landlord/tenant), influences whether it will be recognized by the court as valid in the event of a conflict situation. The contract is concluded for any period (starting from several hours). The document is not subject to state registration if the lease duration is less than 1 year . When concluding an agreement for a period of one year or more, it is required (Article 651 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

If the parties sign an agreement for an indefinite period or enter into an agreement for 11 months with the possibility of automatic renewal, then there is no need for registration (in the first case it is impossible to determine the final lease period, and in the second the agreement is “updated” every 11 months).

Landlords and renters receive payment for the provision of real estate (the law requires a receipt for the transfer of funds indicating the payment period, amount, passport details of the tenant, signature of the owner of the living space). They are required to pay tax on their income, the amount of which depends on the legal status of the owner. For individuals (citizens of the Russian Federation) it is 13% , for foreigners – 30% , for individual entrepreneurs (according to the simplified system) – 6% . If an individual entrepreneur issues a patent, he will also pay 6% , but the estimated income is taken into account (the cost of the patent is tied to the market price of the apartment).

On October 1, 2019, the changes made to Art. 17 Housing Code of the Russian Federation (N 59-FZ dated April 15, 19). In accordance with them, residential premises in apartment buildings cannot be used to provide hotel services (hostels can be organized only after the premises have been transferred to non-residential use).

Is it possible to prohibit the owner of a residential property from renting it out?

If it was possible to establish the illegal business of renting out an apartment, is it possible to somehow prevent this in the future?
Are there any tools that make it possible to impose a ban on the owner from renting out his property? The law protects the rights of owners. The owner cannot be limited in any way in his civil rights; he decides for himself what he will do with the property he owns, including renting it out or not.

Possible impact options:

• force the owner to bring common areas into proper condition, make repairs or sanitize the premises;
• anonymously report to the tax office about illegal activities in the provision of housing for rent.

A hotline has been specially launched for especially vigilant citizens.

✅ Is it possible to rent out a room without the consent of the neighbors?

Do I need to obtain permission from neighbors when planning to rent out an apartment for daily or long-term rent? If it is in state (municipal) ownership, then subletting is not prohibited by law (clause 2, clause 1, article 67 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation), but the tenant must first obtain written permission from all neighbors registered in the apartment, and then issue a written contacting the landlord (in accordance with Article 76 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the decision on the possibility of subletting is made by the state/municipal body).

Homeowners dispose of their property independently (Article 228 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). They are not required to ask permission to rent it out.

What sanctions are imposed on individuals who rent out an apartment illegally?

What are the consequences of illegally renting out an apartment? The punishment provided for by law for an unlawful act includes the following types:

1. Administrative penalty.
2. Criminal liability (this is a fine, arrest, forced labor or imprisonment).

In addition to these sanctions, eviction from municipal housing of the tenant with whom the contract has been concluded can be considered punishment. And the tenant living in it, when guilt in organizing illegal activities is proven.

Pay attention to the occupation of the owner of the property leased, for example, government officials and law enforcement officers are required to annually report on the property and income received. Providing a declaration with deliberately distorted data threatens inspections and dismissal, which will be severe punishment, especially for high-ranking officials.

Sanctions for the owner of an apartment if he rents it out illegally

It will be difficult to prove whether the tenants live in the apartment legally or not. But if such a fact is revealed, then you need to contact the tax authority with a complaint. If it is proven that the apartment is being rented out illegally, the following measures may be applied to the owner of the apartment:

• Fine;
• Seizure;
• Involvement in forced labor;
• Deprivation of liberty, but this is an extreme measure and is rarely used.

Thus, before filing a complaint against your neighbors about the fact that they are renting out an apartment, it is worth resolving the issue peacefully. If this cannot be done, then you can proceed to filing a complaint. Moreover, it is better to do this collectively, by all residents of the house.

Responsibility

“Ignorance of the law does not excuse one from responsibility,” says one of the main tenets of jurisprudence. If the fact of illegal residence of people on the owner’s territory is proven, he faces real punishment.

Fine

The fine for illegally renting out an apartment is imposed in accordance with Article 122 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (Tax Code).
Failure to pay taxes to the tax office entails a fine of 20% of the amounts that the person renting out the living space had to pay as tax. Intentional non-payment involves an increase in the fine to 40%. Article 119 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation provides for penalties for those who “forgot” to submit a declaration indicating rental income. Such a forgetful citizen will pay to the budget from 5 to 30% of the tax amount not paid within the deadline established by the legislation on taxes and fees.

The offender is guaranteed to pay at least 1 thousand rubles to the treasury. At the same time, he will also be required to pay all unpaid fees for the entire rental period.

In addition, Art. 114 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation prescribes an increase in the amount of the penalty by 100% if the offense is repeated. As a result of the application of sanctions, you will have to pay an impressive amount of money.

Criminal

The liability prescribed by the Criminal Code for an illegal landlord may arise for several offenses, that is, the actions of the preliminary investigation and the court may be regarded as several crimes.

They may be called to account for committing the following criminal acts:

1. Illegal entrepreneurship (Article 171 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), the punishment for committing which is: a large fine, restriction of freedom, arrest and imprisonment. If a crime is committed on a particularly large scale, the amounts and terms increase, the term of imprisonment is up to 5 years.
2. Tax evasion by an individual (Article 198 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). A crime will differ from an offense in the amount of hidden income. It also provides for fines, arrest, forced labor and imprisonment.
3. Maintaining a brothel or systematically providing premises for prostitution (Article 241 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The sanction of the article provides for alternative punishments, one of which is imprisonment for up to 5 years.

Quite severe punishment awaits the guilty persons. But if you want to live in a civilized society, the requirements of the law must be fulfilled.

Possible reasons for residents' requests

Settlement of migrants

Where to go if migrants have settled illegally in your neighborhood? An effective way to evict such tenants from a rental apartment is to complain to the migration service (GUVM MIA). There are three ways to submit your application:

1. Call the hotline.
2. Personally submit a written complaint to the territorial department.
3. Send an application through the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation by going to the “Receiving Applications” section.

The most reliable way is to submit a written application in person . In this case, the applicant can expect to receive a response to his appeal.

Housing for daily rent

Frequently changing tenants create even more problems for owners living on the same landing. If the apartment is rented daily, then this premises is equivalent to a mini-hotel or hostel.

According to the law, a premises used as a hotel must be on the ground floor, have a separate entrance and have non-residential status. This is stated in Art. 288 Civil Code of the Russian Federation. If, in order to legally rent out an apartment on a daily basis, the latter does not comply with construction, environmental and sanitary standards applicable to hotel-type premises, then where to complain in such cases? To the SES or the prosecutor's office.

The landlord does not pay taxes

Illegal rental of housing is prosecuted by law. According to Article 208 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, rental income is subject to taxes. Most owners are not afraid of the authorities and avoid paying mandatory payments. You can complain about the violating owner to the tax service. You can submit an application on the website in the “Electronic Services” section. If you contact the authority in person, you must make a written application. What you need to indicate:

1. In the header of the application is the address and name of the territorial Federal Tax Service.
2. Your personal data (optional).
3. The main part of the document indicates the essence of handling data about the owner and address of the apartment.
4. Request to conduct an investigation into the violator.
5. Date and signature.

Attention! If the tax authority reveals the fact of illegal housing rental, he will face punishment: a fine or imprisonment.

Noisy tenants

Who can you complain to in order to get rid of noisy guests disturbing public peace? The first authority is the local police officer or the police. If there is systematic noise, shouting or drinking of alcohol in the apartment, then the authorities are obliged to take action. The owner will be notified of the problem, which may ultimately lead to the termination of the tenancy agreement with him and the noisy tenant. If illegal migrants live in the living space, law enforcement agencies will notify the migration service.

How to write a complaint against tenants and evict troublemakers? First you need to talk to the owner of the apartment. The owner has no need for proceedings with the authorities, so he himself can terminate the contract with the tenant through the court, if the rental of housing was legal. If the owner does not respond to the comments of the other owners of the premises, then they can sue him , providing evidence of systematic violation of order and silence:

• copies of law enforcement reports;
• copies of complaints filed with various authorities and responses to them;
• testimony of residents, etc.

Along with the evidence, a statement of claim is submitted to the court, which indicates the details of the property owner, the essence of the problem, the facts and a request to take action.

Important! If migrants are living in the apartment illegally, the eviction procedure will be simpler - just call the migration service.

Evidence base

It is extremely difficult to prove illegal rental of real estate. No one will show you the agreement and receipts; nothing obliges them to do this. It’s another matter when a police officer makes such a request.

Any sane landlord will say that the citizens renting the living space are distant relatives or friends who live for free. In this case, he is not doing anything illegal. Therefore, previously reviewed documents accepted as evidence must be painstakingly collected before starting legal proceedings.

For example, to prove daily change, it is better to act like this:

1. Neighbors, under the guise of clients, direct their acquaintances, whom they can trust, to rent living space.
2. Clients, in turn, take all possible documents from the owner (receipts) confirming the rental for a short period of time and receipt of money (profit).
3. Documentary recording.

Carrying out such actions two or more times will indicate the systematic actions of the landlord, which is what the opponents are trying to achieve in this case.

Any complaint is subject to consideration.

You need to calculate the timing:

1. If the document is marked as having been received by a body or official, from that moment 30 calendar days are counted, provided for by law for consideration of the complaint.
2. After receiving an application from an individual, a criminal case is initiated within 3 days.

If there is no response to the complaint within the specified period, the inaction of the body or official can be reported to the district prosecutor's office.

How to prove the fact of illegal housing rental

The evidence base regarding the fact of illegal housing rental may differ depending on who is filing the complaint. If these are tenants who were “annoyed” by the owner of the apartment in some way (for example, he evicted them early or did not return the deposit), then they can present the lease agreement signed with them and the receipts received for the rent received or bank account statements. But usually, tenants are not interested in complaining to the owner.

Neighbors can file a collective complaint and indicate that strangers or people of a different nationality constantly appear in the specified apartment. Witness testimony is also evidence.

When contacting the district police officer, you can simply present your arguments without additional evidence. In this case, he will have to check for himself whether there is an illegal surrender.

Video and audio materials may serve as evidence , which will confirm that new people regularly come to the apartment. If residents are making noise, then you should regularly call the police: the drawn up protocols can become a powerful argument.

Actions of government structures

Since rental relations are mostly in the shadows, the budget is missing a large part of taxes. Therefore, the authorities are fighting shadow schemes, counting on the support of conscious citizens.

For this procedure the following are provided:

• hotlines in supervisory authorities, where you only need to send an anonymous message, and the verification mechanism will be launched;
• the ability to apply directly with a written application.

The authorities make it clear to the citizen that legally owned property will be protected only if they take reciprocal actions - pay taxes. Otherwise, the tenants may become his problem, but no one will rush to the rescue. They will accuse you of committing illegal acts.

Not everyone can afford to live in comfortable conditions in their own home, so urban residential real estate must also meet the conditions of comfort. Achieving such quality is only possible if all residents are willing to comply with the rules of cohabitation. To avoid conflicts among neighbors, it is necessary to respect the interests of others, and when placing tenants, raise the issue of maintaining order, fixing it in the contract.

Neighbors rent an apartment without a contract - where can I complain?

By law, when renting out an apartment, you must enter into a lease agreement, which will spell out the guarantees and responsibilities of both parties. Such an agreement indicates the inviolability of the owner’s personal property and guarantees the safety of the residential premises.

But if the agreement is concluded, the owner will be required to pay taxes on amounts received from tenants.

Therefore, for the sake of greater profit, many owners ignore the conclusion of a formal contract.

In the event of a complaint against tenants during unofficial rental housing, the owner of the apartment will bear responsibility for illegally obtaining benefits.

If there is information confirming that tenants are renting living space without concluding a rental agreement, you can complain directly to the owner who rents out the housing.