What does the 2025 non-residential rent law change for shop owners and landlords?
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Short answer
Leases of shops and offices are now governed by Law 11/2025, in force 12 June 2025[1,2]. As amended on 31 July 2025, it extends old leases by 5, 6, 7 or 8 years depending on the tenant's category. It also raises the rent in steps[1] and then moves to an equivalent rent of 5% of the property value (was 8%). Thirteen MPs challenged it before the Constitutional Council, and we found no ruling[2,3].
Also asked as: “Non-residential rent law Lebanon 2025” · “Law 11/2025 old shop leases” · “Old commercial rent law in Lebanon” · “Key money (khulu) and the new shop lease law”
Most of the detail on this page comes from one news summary of the amended law. We did not read the law text, its amendment or any Constitutional Council decision. This page covers what was published up to 17 October 2026.
Key facts
What changed in July 2025
The law entered into force on 12 June 2025, once it was published in issue 26 of the Official Gazette[1,2]. Parliament amended it on 31 July 2025. As Al-Modon described the original text in June 2025, it extended an old lease by up to 4 years if the landlord claimed rent increases, or by 2 years if he waived them. The amendment replaced that with four tenant categories.
One commentator, Charfan, refers to the law as amended by Law 24/2025[1,2]. We have not read that amendment. If you let a shop under an old lease, ask a lawyer for the consolidated text as published in the Official Gazette before you rely on any figure here.
The four tenant categories
According to Hona Lebanon's August 2025 summary, the extension and the rent increases depend on whether the tenant paid khulu (key money) and when, or on what the premises are used for.
| Category | Tenant | Extension | Rent increases |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paid no key money | 5 years[1,2] | 30%, 40%, 50% over three years[1] |
| 2 | Paid key money before 2015 | 6 years[1,2] | 30%, 40%, 50% over three years[1] |
| 3 | Paid key money after 2015 | 7 years[1,2] | 30%, 40%, 50%, 60% over four years[1] |
| 4 | Public administrations or liberal-profession premises | 8 years[1,2] | 30%, 40%, 50%, 60% over four years[1] |
Three points are not confirmed. We did not find the exact legal definition of each category, or the date from which a non-residential lease counts as "old". The source also does not say what the percentages are applied to, the old rent or the equivalent rent[1]. A rent lawyer can read the law text alongside your lease and tell you which category your tenant falls in.
The equivalent rent at 5%
Once the increase years are over, the tenant pays bedel al-mithl. The July 2025 amendment cut it from 8% to 5% of the property value[1]. We found no published method for setting that value. Ask a lawyer how it is fixed, and whether an expert or the court sets it when you and the tenant disagree.
The 5% rate is for non-residential leases only. Old residential leases follow a different law and a different equivalent rent[1]. See how much old-rent tenants pay now and what happens to old-rent tenants after February 2026.
Is the law still standing?
In June 2025, 13 MPs filed a challenge before the Constitutional Council. They argued that there was no valid "necessity legislation", that the law went back to cabinet without a plenary vote, and that it breached legal security and acquired rights[2,3]. We found no published outcome.
Two things suggest the law was not annulled. Parliament amended it on 31 July 2025[2,3], and in June 2026 Zuhairi said, as reported by Lebanon Debate, that the law is in force and applied, with many cases settled amicably or in court[1,2]. Hona Lebanon says the law needs no implementing decrees, and that suits filed before it took effect stay governed by the laws under which they were filed[1]. A lawyer can check the outcome of the challenge with the Constitutional Council.
How a landlord can work out where a shop lease stands
- Find the lease and its date. Pull out the signed lease, any renewals and the rent receipts. A lawyer needs these to tell you whether the lease is old or new. For homes, see how to tell an old lease from a new one; we found no published cut-off for shops.
- Check whether a case is already in court. A suit filed before the law took effect on 12 June 2025 stays under the law it was filed under, according to Hona Lebanon[1]. Ask your lawyer for the file number and the court.
- Have a lawyer read the current text. Ask three things: your tenant's category under the amended Law 11/2025, what the percentage increases apply to, and how the property value for the 5% rent is set.
- Talk to the tenant before going to court. Many cases have been settled amicably, Zuhairi said in June 2026, as reported by Lebanon Debate[1,2]. Put any agreement in writing and have both sides sign it. If the tenancy ends, see what happens when a lease ends.
It depends on
- When a case was filed. Suits filed before 12 June 2025 stay under the earlier laws, according to Hona Lebanon[1]. Your lawyer can tell you which regime your file is under.
- The property value. The equivalent rent is a percentage of the property value[1], and we found no published method for setting that value. Ask a lawyer before you name a figure to the tenant.
- Whether the premises are a home or a shop. Homes under old leases fall under a different law. Start with the old-rent law for homes.
Common questions
Does the 5% equivalent rent apply to old residential leases?
Was the non-residential rent law struck down?
How long can an old shop tenant stay under Law 11/2025?
Does Law 11/2025 need implementing decrees before it applies?
Hona Lebanon says it needs none[1].
Sources
Checked against these sources. The numbers in the text point here.
- 1.Hona Lebanon: non-residential leases law, application and amendment
Hona Lebanon (هنا لبنان) · 9 Aug 2025 · read 17 Oct 2026
- 2.Non-residential leases: law in force or challenged?
Al-Modon · 30 Jun 2025 · read 17 Oct 2026
- 3.Old rents to the end
Lebanon Debate (ليبانون ديبايت) / RED TV · 21 Jun 2026 · read 17 Oct 2026
- 4.Legislative and Administrative Land and Property Rights Framework. Lebanon
GLTN / UN-Habitat · May 2024 · read 16 Oct 2026
- 5.The New rent Law: Active in Theory, Suspended in Practice
Public Works Studio · 23 Jun 2025 · read 17 Oct 2026
- 6.قانون الإيجارات الجديد في لبنان... هل يصبح نافذاً نهاية شباط؟
Annahar · 26 Jan 2026 · read 17 Oct 2026
Related questions
- What happens to old-rent tenants in Lebanon after February 2026?For most old-rent tenants the nine-year extension ended on 28 February 2026. What courts have ruled since, the 2029 date and what is still disputed.
- How much rent does an old-rent tenant pay now, and what is bedel al-mithl?No source we read gives the formula: Fund beneficiaries owe bedel al-mithl (equivalent rent), but the Fund never ran. What tenants pay and what may change.
- Is my lease old (before 23 July 1992) or new, and why does it matter?Signed before 23 July 1992, a home lease is an old rent under Law 2/2017; later leases are free contracts. How to tell, and what changes for you.
- Can the landlord evict a tenant after the lease ends, or if there is no written contract?It depends on the lease date. For post-1992 leases: the three-year minimum, notice, tacit renewal, oral leases and where eviction disputes go.
- Is parliament about to change the old-rent law again?No change yet: as of 13 October 2026 a parliamentary committee was still studying two old-rent drafts. What the bills propose and what applies now.
- How do I register a lease at the municipality in Lebanon, and what does it cost?Per the Dahye municipalities union, owners register leases by 31 December. Documents, the disputed stamp fee, and when EDL or the Land Registry need it.
