Child Continues Parent’s Tenancy?

The Amsterdam Court of Appeal rejected an adult son’s claim to continue his deceased mother’s tenancy in its judgment of 1 September 2026. Living together or giving care did not, on these facts, sufficiently establish the durable shared household required for his claim.

Editorial review: Arslan Advocaten. Updated 24 October 2026.

The claim under Article 7:268

A person relying on Article 7:268(2) must establish the relevant main residence and durable shared household with the deceased tenant, alongside the other conditions. A timely claim generally involves the six-month period after death. A spouse or an existing co-tenant can occupy a different legal position from an adult child, so identify the claimant’s status first.

Evidence must describe the household before death

The court had doubts about the son’s main residence. Important documents related to the period after his mother’s death and did not sufficiently establish the earlier position. A later energy contract or photographs of the interior do not by themselves answer how the household functioned while the tenant was alive.

Shared living and reciprocity

The decisive difficulty was the lack of a sufficiently established shared household. The mother paid the household costs and the son was financially dependent on her. The court considered the one-way care relationship insufficient by itself to demonstrate the required reciprocity. Activities such as shopping together did not change the outcome on these facts. Other cases can involve a different division of costs and responsibilities.

The procedural position was also case-specific

The appeal court maintained the refusal of continuation but did not simply grant the landlord every requested immediate-enforcement measure. The judgment addressed the statutory position during a timely continuation claim and set the relevant vacation period after service. Do not infer from this case that every unsuccessful claimant must leave immediately or can always remain throughout any appeal.

Prepare a factual chronology early

Preserve address records, correspondence, bank statements, household contributions, evidence of shared tasks and witness information from before death. Explain what each person contributed rather than relying on the label carer. A request to the landlord and a timely court claim are not necessarily the same step. This article analyses a published judgment and does not present it as an Arslan client result.

Documents to collect

Date of death and the complete tenancy agreement
Claimant’s status and residence documents
Pre-death payments and household arrangements
Correspondence with the landlord
Court papers and all procedural dates

Frequently asked questions

Is caring for a parent enough?

Not automatically. Care may be relevant alongside the full household circumstances.

Are documents from after death worthless?

They can be relevant, but may not establish what the household was like before death.

Can an adult child never continue a parent’s tenancy?

That is not the rule. The statutory conditions and individual evidence determine the assessment.

Discuss the right next step

Send the complete agreement, relevant correspondence and the next deadline. We first assess the legal question, evidence and appropriate route. The first consultation is free and without obligation. Eligible individuals may qualify for subsidised legal aid; a personal contribution or other costs can remain. Where private fees apply, we agree the scope and expected costs before further work. A contact request does not itself preserve a statutory or court deadline.

Contact our English-speaking team · Tenancy law in the Netherlands · Choose your local office