Can my landlord keep my security deposit? When it must be returned

What the Civil Code does not say

Title VI of the Civil Code regulates leases across 47 articles, 1666 through 1712. None of them sets a cap on the security deposit, a deadline for returning it, or a rule about interest. The deposit is mentioned exactly once in the whole title, in article 1710, and only in passing: when a tenant’s heirs continue the lease, the landlord may demand “new guarantees” from them within fifteen days. That is all. There is no general deposit regime in an ordinary lease.

What does govern is the general rule for any contract: article 1354 lets the parties freely set the content of the contract, and article 1361 makes whatever was agreed binding. If your contract says the deposit is returned within 15 days, that protects you. If it says nothing, there is no legal floor to fall back on for the timing — only for the return itself, which remains enforceable like any other contractual obligation.

The standard that does exist: ordinary use

Even though there are no rules on the amount or the deadline, there is a clear standard for what can be deducted. Article 1681, item 10, requires the tenant to return the property “in the condition received, with no more wear than that of its ordinary use.” Faded paint, carpet marks from normal foot traffic, or the typical wear of living somewhere for months are not damage chargeable to the tenant. A hole in the wall, an appliance broken through misuse, or a forced lock are.

That same standard — ordinary use excluded from the deduction — is exactly the one Decreto Legislativo 1177 uses for FUA contracts, below. That is not a coincidence: it is the general Peruvian rental standard, FUA or not.

If your contract is a FUA (Decreto Legislativo 1177)

The FUA regime is a special, voluntary contract meant to give more legal certainty to housing leases. If your contract was signed on this form, the deposit does have written rules, in article 7:

• It is paid into a designated bank account (the “cuenta de abono”) set by the landlord — not in cash, and not into just any account.
• It is used in a fixed order: first to restore the property to the condition it was handed over in — excluding ordinary wear — and “second,” if anything is still owed, to cover unpaid rent or related charges.
• It is returned without interest, even if it sat in a bank account for months or years.
• It is returned when the property is handed back — at the moment of restitution, not on some later date the contract sets. The rule does not say how many days after handing back the property the money must actually be in your account; that practical detail is not settled in article 7.

This regime is optional: if your contract does not mention the FUA, the RAV (Registro Administrativo de Arrendamiento para Vivienda), or the designated account, you are not under these rules, and the ordinary lease described above applies.

What to do if it is not returned

Failing to return the deposit — FUA or not — is still a breach of what was agreed, and that is claimable. The practical path: ask for the return in writing, with the exact amount and any deductions itemized; if there is no response, a notarial letter creates a formal, dated record; and if that does not work either, the route is a civil claim for breach of contract or, if no other action is available, for unjust enrichment (article 1954). There is no free administrative procedure for this — it is not a matter for Indecopi or the Defensoría del Pueblo, unless your landlord is a business that also breached other consumer obligations. Between private individuals, without agreement, it ends up in the courts.

If the lease ended through an expedited eviction

Deposit-return rules apply the same way regardless of how the lease ended. If your case involved expedited eviction in Peru, see that guide to understand the full process.