Should You Accept Partial Rent Payment?

Taking part of the rent is legal, and often sensible. What protects you is what you write down.

In Nigeria, part payment often turns up at renewal. Your tenant pays half the year's rent and promises the balance next month. Or a monthly payment arrives short.

You can accept it. No law stops you, and some rent now is usually better than none. Even if you've already served a notice to quit, collecting rent probably won't cancel it. A Supreme Court justice said so in 2021.

Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Apapa and Ikeja GRA are exempt from the Lagos State Tenancy Law 2011 (s.1(3)), so the sections cited here don't apply there. Ask a lawyer before you serve notice there. Outside Lagos, your state's recovery of premises law applies.

Key takeaways

You can accept part of the rent. No law stops you.
The unpaid balance is still arrears, and arrears are a ground for a possession order (s.25).
Taking rent after a notice to quit probably won't cancel it. Say in writing that you're not withdrawing the notice.
Every payment needs a receipt, part payments included (s.5).
Confirm the balance and its due date by WhatsApp or email. You don't need a separate agreement.
You can only charge a late fee on the balance if your tenancy agreement has a late fee clause.

What counts as partial rent payment

Partial rent payment is any payment smaller than the rent due for the period. It usually takes one of three forms:

Part of a year's rent at renewal, with the balance promised later.
A monthly payment that comes up short.
A string of small transfers instead of one payment.

The last one is the hardest to keep track of. When rent arrives in pieces, it's easy to lose sight of what has been paid and what is still owed.

Is partial payment still late rent?

Yes. Whatever isn't paid by the due date is arrears. Under the Law:

Arrears are a ground for the court to order possession, unless your agreement says otherwise (s.25).
A monthly tenancy lapses once the tenant is six months in arrears. A quarterly tenancy, or one paid every six months, lapses at a year in arrears. The court then orders possession and the arrears, once you prove them (s.13).
A yearly tenancy with no end date needs six months' notice to quit (s.13). A fixed term ends on its end date. If your tenant stays on, serve seven days' notice before you go to court (s.13(5)).

You can only charge a late fee on the balance if your tenancy agreement has a late fee clause. Our guide to late rent fees shows how to write one.

Should you accept it?

Often, yes, if the balance looks likely to come.

Accept it when	Think twice when
Your tenant has paid on time before	It's the second or third shortfall in a row
They tell you why, and when the balance will come	There's no date, or the date keeps moving
The balance is due within weeks	The balance would run into the next term

Before you refuse, count what the alternative costs. If you refuse, your tenant doesn't leave. Ending a yearly tenancy takes six months' notice, seven more days and a court date. On a flat that lets for ₦3,000,000 a year, each of those months is ₦250,000 you don't collect.

If you've already served a notice to quit

Taking money from a tenant you've asked to leave probably doesn't cancel the notice. In Pillars Nigeria Ltd v Desbordes (2021), a Supreme Court justice said collecting rent after a notice to quit "cannot by any stretch of the law, equity or imagination amount to a waiver of the notice to quit". It was said in a concurring judgment, so other courts may treat it as guidance rather than a binding rule.

Protect the notice anyway:

Say in writing that you're accepting the payment without withdrawing the notice.
Don't agree anything that reads like a new tenancy.
If the notice has run out, your tenant is staying on without a tenancy. Receipt the money as payment for use and occupation (s.31), not as rent for a new period.

How to accept a partial payment safely

Confirm the plan in writing. A WhatsApp message or an email is enough. Keep the message to the money: the amount, the balance, the date. Don't write "renewed", "extended" or a new end date. If a notice to quit is running, add that you're accepting the payment without withdrawing the notice dated [date]. If you don't want to renew, don't take money as rent for the new year. Ask your tenant to reply to confirm.
Give a receipt for every payment. The Law requires one, showing the date, both names and addresses, the property, the amount paid and the period it covers (s.5). Not issuing one carries a ₦100,000 fine on conviction. Add the balance still owed.
Record it against the property. Note each payment against the property and the tenant. When the balance arrives, you'll know what it settles.
Follow up on the date. If the balance doesn't arrive, message your tenant the same day. If it never comes, serve a notice to quit in person, not by WhatsApp (s.18). For a yearly tenant, that's six months unless your agreement says otherwise. Then serve seven days' notice of your intention to recover possession (s.16) and go to court. Your tenant's message confirming the balance helps there. The court can order admitted arrears paid while the case goes on (s.28).

If you collect for an owner, get their go-ahead before you agree a plan or take money after a notice. Report each part payment to them. The receipt duty is yours too, because the Law's "landlord" includes anyone who receives rent for the owner (s.47).

You don't need a separate part payment agreement. No law asks for one. After a notice to quit, a new signed document could look like a new tenancy.

How to avoid partial payments next time

Put it in the tenancy agreement. Say when rent is due, that it's due in full, and what happens if it isn't. If you're willing to take instalments, say how many and when. Say the tenancy stays yearly, and the instalments are part of the yearly rent.
Screen for income. Check that a new tenant's income can carry the rent before they sign. Verify a tenant's income before they sign →
Offer monthly rent. A tenant who can't find a year's rent at once may manage it month by month. You can't demand or take more than six months in advance from a sitting monthly tenant (s.4).

Collect rent with Roofteller

Roofteller's Rent Collection sends your tenant each invoice with its due date, and they pay from the tenant portal. Every bill paid in full gets a receipt, and rent lands in its own account, so you always know what each property has collected.

Final thoughts

Take a part payment when the balance looks likely to come. Write down what's owed and when, and if a notice to quit is running, keep it alive in writing.

FAQ

Can a landlord refuse part payment of rent in Nigeria?

No law makes you accept less than the full rent. But refusing it doesn't clear the arrears, so taking it and recording the balance usually leaves you better off.

Does accepting part payment cancel a quit notice?

Probably not. A Supreme Court justice said in 2021 that collecting rent after a notice to quit isn't a waiver. Say in writing that you're not withdrawing it, and if it has run out, receipt the money for use and occupation, not as rent.

Can I evict a tenant who has paid part of the rent?

Only through the court. Arrears are a ground for a possession order (s.25), and you still need to serve the right notices first. Forcing a tenant out yourself is an offence (s.44).

Do I have to give a receipt for a part payment?

Yes. The Law requires a receipt every time rent is paid, showing the amount and the period it covers (s.5). Not issuing one carries a ₦100,000 fine on conviction.

Can I charge a late fee on the balance?

Only if your tenancy agreement has a late fee clause. No law sets one for you.

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