I. The provisions of this Law shall apply: 1. to leases of buildings or premises in which a business is operated, whether such business belongs to a trader, an artisan or an industrialist; 2. to leases of buildings or of ancillary premises dependent on the premises in which the business is operated. 3. In the event of a pluralit…
Law relating to leases of premises for commercial, industrial or artisanal use
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The provisions of this Law shall not apply to: 1. leases of buildings or premises falling within the public domain of the State, the domain of the territorial communities or of public establishments; 2. leases of buildings or premises falling within the private domain of the State, of the territorial communities or of public est…
Leases of buildings or premises for commercial, industrial or craft use must be concluded by a written instrument with a certain date. Upon delivery of the premises, a descriptive statement of the premises must be drawn up, to serve as evidence between the parties. Section 3. - Condition of duration
The lessee shall be entitled to renewal of the lease where he proves consecutive enjoyment of the premises for at least two years. The lessee shall be exempt from the condition of duration if he has paid a sum of money in consideration of the right to the lease. The amount paid must be recorded in writing in the lease contract or in a separate instrument. TITLE II: Of the rent
The rent for the buildings or premises referred to in Article 1 above, as well as all charges, shall be fixed by agreement between the parties. In the absence of any stipulation as to the party liable for such charges, they shall be deemed to be included in the rent. Rent revision shall be subject to the provisions of Law No. 07…
The lessee shall be entitled to renewal of the lease where the provisions of Title I of this law are complied with. Leases of premises and buildings governed by this law shall terminate only in application of Article 26 below. Any provision to the contrary shall be null and void. Section 2. - Termination indemnity
The lessee shall be entitled to termination compensation subject to the exceptions provided for by this law. The compensation shall correspond to the loss suffered by the lessee as a result of the eviction. The compensation shall include the value of the business estimated on the basis of the tax returns for the last four financ…
The lessor shall not be liable to pay any compensation to the lessee for eviction in the following cases: - 7 - 1. where the lessee has not paid rent within a period of fifteen (15) days after receipt of the formal notice, and the amount of rent due is at least equal to three months; 2. where the lessee makes, without the lessor…
The lessor has the right to seek the eviction of the lessee in order to demolish and rebuild the premises, provided that he justifies ownership thereof for a period of at least one year from the date of the notice and pays the lessee a provisional indemnity equivalent to three (3) years' rent, and preserves for the latter the ri…
The landlord shall be required to begin reconstruction within a period of two (2) months from the date of eviction. Failing that, the tenant shall be entitled to compensation in accordance with the provisions of article 7 above, unless the landlord proves that the reason for the delay does not depend on his will.
The landlord is required to notify the tenant of the date of delivery of the new premises placed at the tenant's disposal, which must not exceed three years from the date of eviction, and must notify the tenant of the placing of the said premises at disposal within one month from the date of obtaining the certificate of conformi…
The tenant shall be required, from the placing of the premises at his disposal, to pay the amount of rent previously paid pending the fixing of the new lease conditions, by mutual agreement or by court decision, taking into account the new elements introduced into the premises, notwithstanding the provisions of Law No. 07-03 rel…
Subject to the legislation relating to buildings threatening ruin and to the organization of urban renovation operations, the lessor may claim eviction if the premises are threatening ruin. The lessee shall not be entitled to renewal or to compensation in accordance with the following paragraphs unless the reconstruction or reno…
In case of multiple tenants, the right of priority to the reconstructed premises shall be as follows: 1. where the reconstructed building does not allow the reinstatement of all tenants, the right of priority shall be granted to the oldest tenant who has expressed his intention to renew; 2. where the reconstructed building compr…
The tenant shall be entitled to full compensation in accordance with Article 7 above: if the reconstructed building does not comprise any premises after exercise of the right of priority; if the reconstructed building does not comprise premises for commercial, industrial or craft use for reasons other than those relating to legislative or regulatory provisions concerning the building. Section 4. - Extension or raising of the premises
Where the owner contemplates the extension or the raising of the building and this requires the evacuation of the leased premises, the period of temporary eviction of the tenant shall be fixed by the lessor for a period that may not exceed one year from the date of eviction. - 11 - The tenant shall be entitled to compensation fo…
The president of the court shall rule on the application seeking eviction and on the fixing of the compensation due to the tenant throughout the eviction period. He shall also rule on the application for extension of the eviction period and on the amount of compensation due. He shall furthermore rule, at the tenant's request, on…
The owner who contemplates evacuating the premises for demolition and reconstruction or evacuation for extension or raising must produce a valid building permit issued by the competent authority and a plan approved by that authority. The building permit shall be conclusive during the proceedings before the court, so long as the…
The owner may request the evacuation of the part reserved for accommodation ancillary to the commercial, industrial or craft premises in order to inhabit it himself, his spouse, his ascendants, his direct descendants of the first degree, the beneficiaries of the compulsory legacy where applicable, in accordance with the provisio…
The owner shall not be entitled to request the evacuation of the part used as accommodation ancillary to premises for commercial, industrial or craft use in the following cases: 1. where the repossession of the premises is likely to cause serious harm to the operation of the business; 2. where they are annexes of tourist establi…
In the case of expropriation for reasons of public utility of a building in which a commercial business is operated, the provisions of Law No. 7-81 relating to expropriation for public utility and temporary occupation, promulgated by dahir No. l-81-254 of 11 rejeb 1402 (6 May 1982), shall apply. TITLE VII: On the exercise of complementary, related or different activities
The tenant may be authorized to carry out one or more activities complementary or related to the initial activity, provided that they are not incompatible with the purpose, characteristics and situation of the building, and that they are not likely to compromise its safety. In that case, the tenant shall send a request to the le…
The lessor shall be entitled, in the cases referred to in the preceding article, to request the fixing of the new rent, which shall run from the date of referral to the court. TITLE VIII: Subletting
The tenant may sublet to third parties all or part of the premises, unless otherwise stipulated, and the relationship shall then remain between the lessor and the main tenant. The said subletting shall have no effect against the lessor until the date of notification. The lessor informed of the subletting must inform the subtenan…
The tenant shall be entitled to assign the lease in addition to the elements of the commercial business or separately, without the lessor's agreement and notwithstanding any stipulation to the contrary. On pain of unenforceability against the lessor, the assignor and the assignee shall notify the lessor of the said assignment. -…
The lessor intending to terminate the lease must send the tenant a notice to vacate obligatorily stating the reason and granting an eviction period running from the date of receipt. The said period shall be set at: fifteen (15) days where the request is based on non-payment of rent or on the fact that the premises are in danger…
When the competent court considers that the ground for the notice is founded, it shall order, at the lessor's request, the validation of said notice and the eviction of the lessee. Failing that, the request shall be rejected. The lessee may file an application for compensation in the course of the action for validation of the no…
When the competent judicial body orders the eviction and the compensation of the lessee, the lessor shall be required to deposit the amount of the compensation within a period of three (3) months from the date on which the judgment becomes enforceable. Failing this, the latter shall be deemed time-barred and shall in that case bear all the costs of justice resulting from the proceedings.
The lessor who wishes to terminate the lease of the building in which a business encumbered with registered charges (inscriptions) is operated must notify his - 17 - request to the creditors previously registered at the domicile elected by them in their registrations. A registered creditor means any person who enjoys the seller's privilege or holds a pledge (nantissement) over the business.
When the court decides on the payment of the full compensation by virtue of the provisions of Article 7 above, the sum due may only be collected after the lessee produces an attestation issued by the registry (secrétariat-greffe) certifying that the said business is not encumbered with any registration. When the business is encu…
Where the tenant has been deprived of the right to renewal, pronounced against him in the cases provided for in Articles 9, 13 and 17, he may claim enforcement of the provisional compensation according to the amount previously awarded. The tenant who has not submitted a request to fix the amount of said compensation has the righ…
a. Repossession of the premises by the lessor: The lessor may, in the event of non-payment of the rent by the lessee or abandonment of the premises for an unknown destination for a period of six (6) months, apply to the president of the court, ruling in summary proceedings, to order the opening of the premises and authorize him…
Where the lease contains a resolutory condition, the lessor may, in the event of non-payment of rent by the tenant for a period of three (3) months and after notification of a formal notice that has remained unsuccessful upon expiry of a period of fifteen (15) days from the date of its receipt, file a petition with the judge sit…
The formal notices, notices and other procedures carried out under this law must be effected by a judicial officer or in accordance with the procedures provided by the Code of Civil Procedure.
The commercial courts have jurisdiction to rule on disputes relating to the implementation of this law. However, the courts of first instance have jurisdiction in accordance with the legislation on the judicial organization of the Kingdom.
The time limits provided for by this law are clear time limits. - 20 - TITLE XI: Final provisions
Unless otherwise specially provided, the provisions of the Code of Obligations and Contracts shall apply to leases that do not meet the conditions provided for in Title I of this law.
This law shall enter into force after the expiry of six (6) months from the date of publication in the Bulletin Officiel. Its provisions shall apply to leases in progress or actions pending, without renewal of the instruments, formalities and judgments rendered before the entry into force of this law. Leases concluded in breach…