The first step is to determine what rights of sub-let you may have in the written lease; typically there are none and therefore you are supposed to receive the agreement of the landlord before you sub-let. The landlord may refuse this and therefore tenants are often inclined to have a “private deal” which is in reality in breach of the lease but often goes unnoticed or uncared for by the landlord, assuming all goes well and rent is paid.
If the landlord agrees to a “sub-let”, you should get a formal acknowledgement (“I consent to the sub-let of the premises to Mr. X”). Often the landlord may wish to enter into a new lease directly with Mr. X which is good news in the sense that you (as the current Tenant) are then typically released from liability under the lease and your deposit is returned and replaced by Mr. X’s.
In either method, it is well worth the cost to have someone to have a lawyer look at the arrangements to make sure that it is protecting your interests as much as possible.
Weir & Associates
Solicitors & Notaries
16th Floor Tak Shing House
Theatre Lane
20 Des Voeux Road Central
Central
Hong Kong
Tel : 2526-1767
Fax : 2868-3568
email :
weirlaw@hongkonglaw.com
www.HongKongLaw.com/weirlaw