Rights and obligations of temporarily absent tenants of residential premises under a social tenancy agreement and members of his family

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The residential complex provides certain guarantees.

The social rent agreement is one of the most successful mechanisms for providing Russian citizens with apartments that have optimal living conditions. That is why questions that relate to the fundamental rights and obligations of citizens within the framework of this legal field occupy the minds of practicing lawyers, and even ordinary individuals. In particular, an interesting topic concerns guarantees of the rights of temporarily absent employers and their families under a social tenancy agreement.

Guarantee of maintaining the status of a tenant temporarily absent from the premises

If we turn to modern legislation in force in the Russian Federation, we can conclude that, for example, the Housing Code provides certain guarantees for participants under a social tenancy agreement, even in cases where they are forced to be absent from their place of permanent residence. However, despite this, in the practice of lawyers, processes very often arise that affect the interests and rights of participants in legal relations in the temporary absence of the employer or representatives of his family.

Such problems arise due to the fact that the state cannot provide all citizens in need with comfortable housing, since there are not enough financial resources for this, as well as real estate included in the social housing stock. That is why the legislator has provided for certain time frames, implying the preservation of the status of the tenant, even if the person is absent, after which the housing can be transferred to third parties.

The temporary absence of a tenant of residential premises, which is provided to him under a social tenancy agreement, for a period of up to 6 months implies full guarantees of respect for the rights and interests of the individual, as well as all members of his family.

If the participants in the social tenancy agreement are absent from their place of residence for more than six months, the period can be extended only if there is an objective reason. To do this, family members of the tenant of the residential premises or the tenant himself must write a statement of the established form to the landlord, which will stipulate the need to increase the period. If a conflict situation arises between the individual tenant and the landlord in this matter, the dispute is resolved through judicial proceedings.

Guarantees of preserving the rights of tenants under a social tenancy agreement are regulated by Art. 60 and art. 136 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, as well as other legal acts that operate on the territory of Russia. Objective reasons that allow for the preservation of the full rights of temporarily absent citizens are spelled out in Art. 60 Housing Code of the Russian Federation. However, the court may take into account other arguments that will be provided by the defendant in each specific case.

Temporary absence of consumers in residential premises - recalculation procedure for 2021

The majority of citizens living in their own or municipal apartments periodically, due to certain circumstances, leave their apartments for a while. During the period of their absence, the management company still charges them a fee for “allegedly” provided utility services.

In order to avoid paying for utilities during the period of absence from housing, property owners use their legal rights to recalculate.

The legislation that operates within the territory of the Russian Federation regulates the holding of such events, taking into account which residents have an excellent opportunity to reduce one of their housing expenses.

If you want to find out how to solve your specific problem, please contact the online consultant form on the right. It's fast and free! Or call us at :

What are the grounds for recalculation for utility services provided:

Temporary absence of citizens living in the apartment;
The duration of the break in the provision of a certain service, with the condition that such a break will exceed the period established by the Housing Code of the Russian Federation;
Provision of a utility service by an organization of inadequate quality;
Carrying out a change in the form of home ownership.

In any of the mentioned cases, there is a clear sequence that is followed when registering the recalculation. But you should start by writing and submitting a separate application for recalculation to the management company. A sample of it can be found here.

What is the procedure for recalculating utility services in the event of temporary absence?

If the absence lasts for five days, residents have the right to initiate a recalculation for utilities. However, in this case, a prerequisite must be the absence of metering devices.

Error in housing and communal services receipt: recalculation of utility fees.

Read about the procedure for recalculating utility bills here.

This means that it will be possible to recalculate the amount of payment for water, as well as natural gas, and only in the absence of meters. Under other circumstances, the accounting of the consumed service will be recorded by the readings of the specified devices. From the list of standardly counted services, the removal of household waste and the use of an elevator should be indicated.

When you go on vacation, go on another long business trip, or are hospitalized, you should take care to notify the management company.

Documents certifying the fact of temporary absence are attached to the application. The ideal option involves submitting an application in advance. In this case, the mechanic will simply shut off and seal the gas and water supply systems.

Then there will definitely be no point in proving it. If it was not possible to carry out these actions in advance, then you can ask for a recalculation of the amount presented for utilities when you return home.

A period of 30 days is allotted for this purpose. Services such as maintenance of a residential building and heating are paid regardless of the presence of the owner in the housing.

The very procedure for recalculating utility services is determined by government decree No. 354 of May 6, 2011 (section 4) “On approval of the procedure for recalculating the amount of payment for certain types of utility services for the period of temporary absence of consumers in occupied residential premises that are not equipped with individual/common metering device."

According to this regulatory act, a written application (with documents confirming the applicant’s absence from the housing) must be submitted to the accounting department of the company managing the house.

Clause 90 of the mentioned Procedure provides for the accounting department’s obligation to recalculate the amount of payment for utilities in proportion to the number of days during which consumers were absent from housing.

The total number of days of absence is determined by full calendar days, excluding the day of departure from housing and the day of return to the apartment. The period allotted for recalculation actions corresponds to five days (working days) from the moment the tenant sent a written application.

When the applicant was subsequently unable to confirm the duration of his absence or when the documents submitted by him do not confirm his temporary absence from housing for the period specified by him or part of the latter mentioned in the application for recalculation, the company charges the full amount of payment for utilities for the entire period.

In addition, in relation to the amount untimely paid by the tenant, the measure provided for in Article 155 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation may be applied. This measure refers to fines and penalties accrued as a result of late payments for utility services provided.

Documents based on which the amount presented for utility services provided can be recalculated include:

A copy of the order to send the employee on a business trip or a copy of the relevant certificate. A certificate issued from the place of employment upon the fact of a business trip, accompanied by copies of tickets used on the trip, will also be sufficient;
A certificate of the citizen’s stay for treatment in a hospital or a certificate of completion of treatment at a sanatorium and resort, accompanied by copies or originals of travel tickets;
Travel tickets, issued in the name of the person living in the apartment, or copies, with proper certification. If electronic tickets were used for the trip, you should obtain a specific printout on paper, or other documents issued by the carrier, to confirm the fact of the trip. This could be a coupon for an airplane flight, a ticket for travel on a train and other documents;
Bills that were paid at a hotel or any other temporary place for accommodation services;
Documents confirming the temporary registration of a citizen at the place of his short-term stay;
Certificates issued by a gardening association to confirm the resident’s presence at his dacha;
Other supporting documentation that can directly or indirectly certify the fact and period of a citizen’s absence from housing.

The procedure followed for the recalculation of amounts presented for utility services in the event of their inadequate quality and prolonged absence of provision

When a management company provides a consumer with a service that does not comply with the standards of this type, the resident has the right to demand a recalculation of the amount billed for payment for such a service.

For this purpose, a separate act is drawn up regarding the failure to provide a utility service or its provision in inadequate quality.

Such an act must be drawn up by the management company at the request of the residents. Anyone living in the apartment has the right to personally request such an act. If the company directly denies this right, you should contact the Housing Inspectorate.

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The procedure for recalculating utility services provided in inadequate quality or with an interruption exceeding the period permitted by law is provided for by the Rules for the provision of utility services to owners and users of premises in apartment buildings and residential buildings, which were approved by government decree No. 354 of May 6, 2011.

Having drawn up the act, the management company sends it to the Unified Center. And it is here, in the Unified Settlement Center, that the amounts presented are directly recalculated. All results obtained during recalculation are subsequently displayed on the payment receipt in a separate “recalculation” column.

At the same time, the calculation of the amount of reduction in utility bills is carried out based only on the addresses that are received every month from the control room of the utility service in the area.

A sample application for recalculation of payment for utilities during the period of absence from the apartment is available for download here.

If you want to find out how to solve your specific problem, please contact the online consultant form on the right. It's fast and free! Or call us at :

The grounds on which the utility service provider recalculates the payment for the period of temporary absence of the consumer from the occupied premises are set out in section. VIII RF PP No. 354. The owner of a share in an apartment where there are no meters tried to challenge them in the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. We talk about the court decision.

The obligation to pay for housing and utilities arises from the moment of registration of ownership of the premises or its share (clause 5, part 2, article 153 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation). Payments for utility services are calculated according to the readings of installed metering devices, and if they are not available, based on resource consumption standards approved by the state authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation (Part 1 of Article 157 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).

The procedure for recalculating fees for utility services in the event of a consumer’s temporary absence from the premises is defined in Section. VIII RF PP No. 354. If individual metering devices are installed in the premises, then during the absence of residents, the payment for housing and communal services is not recalculated. Resource consumption is recorded by the IPU readings.

If the apartment is not equipped with meters, then if consumers do not stay in it for more than five full days, the owner has the right to contact the utility contractor for a recalculation of the fee (clause 86 of RF PP No. 354). In this case, an important condition is the absence of the technical possibility of installing an IPU in the apartment, confirmed by the relevant inspection report.

Recalculation is done within five working days after receiving an application from the consumer and documents confirming the period of temporary absence. Such an application must be submitted before departure or no later than 30 days after the end of the period of non-residence. The application must be accompanied by a copy of the inspection report on the impossibility of installing the IPU (clauses 91, 92 of the RF PP No. 354).

Such an inspection is carried out in accordance with the order of the Ministry of Regional Development of the Russian Federation dated December 29, 2011 No. 627. If the impossibility of installing meters is not confirmed or the IPU is out of order, the recalculation of fees for the corresponding CU in the temporary absence of residents is not carried out (clause 86 of the RF PP No. 354) .

The owner of a share in an apartment in an apartment building did not agree with the approach to recalculating the payment for utilities during absence, set out in RF PP No. 354. Utility meters are not installed in the residential premises, since all apartment owners could not agree on this. Payments are calculated based on consumption standards.

Since the owner of the share has not lived in the premises for almost a year, he contacted the management organization with a request to recalculate the payment for utilities due to temporary absence. The management office refused to recalculate the owner, citing clause 86 of the RF PP No. 354: the applicant did not have a certificate confirming the impossibility of installing an IPU in the apartment.

The owner considered that the list of grounds for recalculation in case of temporary absence, given in RF PP No. 354, was incomplete, and appealed to the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation with a request to declare partially invalid clause 86, the first paragraph of clause 91, the second paragraph of clause 92 of RF PP No. 354 .

The plaintiff considered Parts 1.3 of Art. 1 of the RF Housing Code the following requirements of RF PP No. 354:

recalculation of fees in case of temporary absence is done only in the absence of the technical ability to install the IPU;
the deadline for filing an application for recalculation in case of temporary absence is limited to 30 days after the end of the period of absence;
The application for recalculation must be accompanied by an inspection report to determine whether it is possible to establish an IPU.

The plaintiff argued that these paragraphs of the RF PP No. 354 violate his rights and establish the principles of consumer inequality, which is contrary to Art. 1 Residential Complex of the Russian Federation. After all, only consumers with a report on the impossibility of installing an IPU have the right to receive a recalculation of fees for utility services during a period of temporary absence.

The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, having analyzed the specified points of the RF PP No. 354 and the plaintiff’s arguments, did not agree with him. In the decision, the judge emphasized that non-use of the premises by the owner is not grounds for non-payment of payments for housing and communal services (Part 11 of Article 155 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).

The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation did not find confirmation of the plaintiff’s arguments that the condition for providing a certificate on the impossibility of installing a meter contradicts the principles of equality and creates advantages for some consumers over others (Part 1 of Article 1 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).

This condition, on the contrary, contributes to the fulfillment of the requirements of the Federal Law of November 23, 2009 No. 261-FZ “On energy saving and increasing energy efficiency.” This Federal Law established that consumed energy resources are subject to accounting using IPU (Article 13 No. 261-FZ).

Confirmation of the impossibility of installing an IPU is aimed at ensuring that consumers switch to paying for utility services based on meter readings. This promotes efficient and effective use of resources. Therefore, the owner, if technically possible, has not installed meters, cannot refer to their absence in order not to pay for housing and communal services.

The court also did not take into account the plaintiff’s argument that meters were not installed due to a lack of agreement between the owners of shares in the apartment. Vp. 1 tbsp. 247 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation prescribes a procedure for resolving disputes between owners of shared property. The use of shared property occurs by agreement of the share owners, and if agreement cannot be reached, through the courts.

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Therefore, failure to install an IPU due to disagreements between participants in shared ownership cannot serve as a basis for recalculating fees during the period of temporary absence of the consumer from the occupied premises. The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation rejected the plaintiff's claim, confirming the legality of the management organization's refusal to recalculate.

The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation confirmed the legality of the application by management organizations and HOAs of clause 86 of the RF PP No. 354 if a consumer applied to them with a request to make a recalculation for the period of his absence.

The presence of an apartment inspection report, which confirms the impossibility of installing metering devices, still remains a key condition for making a recalculation for the time the applicant does not live in the apartment.

It is important for the applicant to comply with the terms of submission of documents: before departure or within 30 days after returning to the apartment (clause 91 of the RF PP No. 354). The legality of this provision was also confirmed by the RF Armed Forces.

If the requirements of Section VIII of RF PP No. 354 are met, then the management authority or HOA does not have the right to refuse the consumer a recalculation, which must be done within five working days from the date of submission of the application. Ksenia Terletskaya

Without a certificate of lack of technical ability to install IPU, recalculation for temporary absence will not be made

From January 2021, recalculation for temporary absence will be made only for consumers in residential premises in which the installation of individual water meters is impossible for technical reasons. This change to the existing recalculation procedure was made by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated December 26, 2016 No. 1498 “On issues of providing utilities and maintaining common property in an apartment building.”

Recalculation for temporary absence from residential premises can be used by consumers who are absent from home for more than five calendar days in a row and whose apartments are not equipped with individual water meters. Recalculation is made for hot, cold water and sewerage, as well as gas. Previously, in order for consumers to receive a recalculation for temporary absence, it was enough to confirm the very fact of absence from the residential premises with the help of documents (“personalized” travel documents, travel certificate, certificate of being treated in a stationary medical institution or at a sanatorium-resort treatment, etc. .d.), then now it is necessary to submit a report stating that it is not technically possible to install an individual water meter in a residential area.

If the residential premises are not equipped with an individual water meter and the lack of technical ability to install it is not confirmed by an act, recalculation for temporary absence is possible only according to.

An act on the lack of technical feasibility of installing a water IPU is drawn up and signed by the management organization based on an inspection of the residential premises. The form of the act and the criteria for the lack of technical feasibility of installing an IPU are approved by Order of the Ministry of Regional Development of the Russian Federation of December 29, 2011 N 627.

It is not technically possible to install a metering device if the survey reveals the presence of at least one criterion:

— installation of IPU is impossible without reconstruction, major repairs of existing in-house engineering systems (in-apartment equipment) and (or) without the creation of new in-house engineering systems (in-apartment equipment);

— when installing the IPU, it is impossible to ensure compliance with the mandatory metrological and technical requirements for the metering device of the corresponding type, including the place and procedure for its installation, presented in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation on ensuring the uniformity of measurements and on technical regulation;

— in the place where it is necessary to install the IPU, it is impossible to ensure compliance with the mandatory requirements for the operating conditions of the metering device, which are necessary for its proper functioning, including due to the technical condition and (or) operating mode of in-house engineering systems (in-house equipment), temperature conditions, humidity, electromagnetic interference, flooding of premises, and (or) it is impossible to provide access for taking readings from the meter, its maintenance, and replacement.

— the design characteristics of the MKD have a vertical distribution of in-house utility heating systems.

The actual procedure for receiving recalculation for temporary absence has not changed. Upon return, the consumer must contact the district Public Services Center, write a statement, submit a report stating that it is not technically possible to install the IPU and documents confirming the temporary absence.

We remind you that in accordance with the Federal Law of November 23, 2009 N 261-FZ “On Energy Saving and Improving Energy Efficiency,” consumers were required to install individual metering devices in residential premises before July 1, 2013.

on the procedure for recalculation for temporary absence, in connection with the entry into force of Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of December 26, 2016 No. 1498

Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated December 26, 2016 No. 1498 “On issues of providing utilities and maintaining common property in an apartment building” amended the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated May 6, 2011 No. 354 regarding recalculation for temporary absence.

In accordance with clause 92 of the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated May 6, 2011 No. 354, recalculation for the temporary absence of the owner is made on the basis of the submission:

2. Inspection report to determine the lack of technical feasibility of installing individual or general metering devices

in a residential area. An act on the lack of technical feasibility of installing an IPU for water (hereinafter referred to as the act) is drawn up and signed by the management organization based on an inspection of the residential premises in accordance with the form approved by Order of the Ministry of Regional Development of the Russian Federation dated December 29, 2011 No. 627.

3. Documents confirming the consumer’s temporary absence. Documents, with the exception of travel tickets, must be signed by an authorized person of the organization that issued them, and in accordance with the changes

, certified by the seal of the organization
(if there is a seal).
If the residential premises are not equipped with an individual or general metering device and the lack of technical ability to install it is not confirmed, recalculation for water consumption services is not made.

The procedure for recalculation remained the same (regardless of the presentation of the report on the lack of technical feasibility of installing water IPU).

In order to avoid mass appeals of the population to management organizations for an inspection report on the residential premises of the State Budgetary Institution “MFC of the City of Moscow”, the following procedure is recommended:

The management organization submits to the district public services center an address list of apartment buildings in which there is no technical possibility of installing an IPU for water in residential premises (with a list of apartments attached).

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When a consumer from an apartment building listed on the list contacts, specialists from the District Public Services Center send a request to the management organization to submit a Certificate of the lack of technical feasibility of installing a water pump at a specific address, indicating the apartment.

In this case, the application and documents confirming the temporary absence from the consumer are accepted, recalculation is made after receiving the act from the management organization.

To carry out a correct and timely recalculation for temporary absence, a report on the impossibility of installing an IPU must be submitted to the District Public Services Center as soon as possible.

In order to inform the population about changes in the procedure for recalculation for temporary absence, relevant announcements should be placed on the stands of the MKD:

— at the stands of apartment buildings where it is possible to install an IPU: an announcement about the need to request an act from the management organization and independently submit it to the MFC of the district;

— at MKD stands without the technical ability to install an IPU: an announcement about sending information about the impossibility of installing an IPU directly from the management organization to the district MFC without the participation of the consumer.

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Extensive information on the practice of applying the Russian Law on the Protection of Consumer Rights

The fight against public services is practically a way of life for every citizen of our vast Motherland. What to hide, the solution to any issue with public utilities is never simple and comes to us with sweat and blood. In this article, I will try to briefly outline how to deal with utility services to reduce payments when you are temporarily absent from your place of residence.

A long absence from your place of residence, no matter whether it is a period of time off from work, a business trip, or travel for family reasons, you have the opportunity to use your right to refuse to pay for certain utilities. The procedure for recalculation for the period of temporary absence of the consumer in the occupied residential premises is established by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated May 23, 2006 No. 307 (hereinafter referred to as the Rules).

Namely, if the consumer is temporarily absent from the residential premises for more than 5 full calendar days in a row, the payment for:

cold water supply;
hot water supply;
drainage;
electricity supply;
gas supply.

Recalculation of the amount of payment for utilities specified in paragraph 54 of the Rules is carried out in the absence of individual metering devices in the residential premises for the above types of utilities.

If you have installed individual metering devices for the specified services, then accordingly there is no need to recalculate the fee, since the readings of the metering devices will reflect a decrease in consumption.

1. It is necessary to submit a written application for recalculation to the utility service provider. The executor may be a management company, HOA, residential complex, housing cooperative or other specialized consumer cooperative; in the case of direct management of an apartment building (hereinafter referred to as an apartment building) by the owners of the premises - another organization that produces or acquires utility resources for the needs of the owners.

The consumer's application for recalculation is submitted within a month after the end of the period of temporary absence from the place of residence.

The following documents must be attached to the application confirming the duration of the period of temporary absence of the consumer and (or) persons living with him at the place of permanent residence. A document confirming the temporary absence of a consumer may be:

a copy of a travel certificate or a business trip certificate certified at the place of work;
certificate of being treated in a hospital facility;
travel tickets issued in the name of the consumer (if the consumer's name is indicated in these documents in accordance with the rules for their execution), or copies thereof;
invoices for accommodation in a hotel, hostel or other place of temporary stay or copies thereof;
certificate of registration at the place of residence;
a certificate from the organization providing security for the residential premises in which the consumer was temporarily absent;
other documents confirming the consumer’s temporary absence.

I would like to note that the Contractor does not have the right to demand the provision of any specific document, based on the wording of the law, the legislator directly stated that “ a document confirming temporary absence”, that is, does not imply the provision of a whole list of certificates, as is usually required by “utility workers”. But, nevertheless, it would not be superfluous to attach several documents indicated in the list above. The Rules also secure the Contractor’s right to make copies of documents presented by the consumer and verify their authenticity, completeness and reliability of the information contained in them, including by sending official requests to the authorities and organizations that issued them.

2. The Contractor carries out recalculation following the procedure established by the Rules, namely, the recalculation of the amount of payment for utility services is carried out by the Contractor within 5 working days based on a written application from the consumer submitted within a month after the end of the period of temporary absence of the consumer. Recalculation of the amount of payment for utility services is carried out in proportion to the number of days of temporary absence of the consumer, which is determined based on the number of full calendar days of his absence, not including the day of departure from his place of permanent residence and the day of arrival at this place. Recalculation of the amount of payment for sewerage is carried out in the case of recalculation of the amount of payment for cold water supply and (or) hot water supply.

3. The result of recalculation of the amount of payment must be reflected in the invoice (payment document for payment of housing and communal services), which, in accordance with the Rules, is provided to you no later than the 1st day of the month following the expired month. It should be especially noted that recalculation is carried out only in relation to the above-mentioned services and only for a temporarily absent consumer. For other services included in utility payments (solid waste removal, maintenance and repair of housing stock, elevator maintenance and upkeep, etc.), recalculation for the time of absence is not made. Payments for housing and communal services for residents who have not provided documents confirming the period of temporary absence are charged in full.

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