Lease contract (locațiune) in Moldova: what to include + checklist

14 June 2026 · KX Estate Team

A commercial real-estate lease in Moldova (a contract de locațiune, the local legal term) must state the parties and their identification details, the property, the rent with its currency and frequency, the term and renewal, the deposit, indexation and the termination procedure. It is concluded in writing. Below is the clause-by-clause breakdown plus a ready checklist.

What must be stated in a lease contract

A good contract settles in advance every question the parties would otherwise argue about later. Here is the minimum set of clauses that protects both the owner and the tenant:

• Parties and details. Individual: surname, first name and IDNP; legal entity: name, IDNO/CUI and who signs on behalf of the company.
• The property. Exact address, area in m², floor, intended use (office, retail space, warehouse) and condition at the time of handover.
• Rent. Amount, currency (EUR/MDL/USD/RON) and frequency: monthly, quarterly or otherwise.
• Term and renewal. Start date, end date and the renewal procedure (automatic or by agreement of the parties).
• Deposit (security). Amount, what it can be withheld for and when it is returned.
• Indexation. How and when the rent changes (pegged to the exchange rate, to inflation, or a fixed percentage per year).
• Maintenance and utilities. Who pays for utilities, routine maintenance and major repairs.
• Termination. Grounds, notice period and the procedure for early exit.

Tip: state the currency right next to the payment amount. “1,000” with no currency is a common cause of disputes, especially when the rent is in euros but the payment arrives in lei at the NBM rate.

Does a lease contract have to be in writing?

Yes. A real-estate lease is concluded in written form. It serves as evidence in the event of a dispute and as the basis for accounting for the income for tax purposes. A verbal arrangement for a commercial space almost always ends in losses: you cannot confirm the amount, the term or the deposit.

Written form does not mean “complicated.” It is one document signed by both parties, with annexes (a handover act, a payment schedule). What matters is that all the mandatory clauses are inside it, not left “to a verbal understanding.”

How to set out the rent, currency and indexation

This is the section where owners lose the most money. Three rules:

1. Currency on every amount. If the rent is pegged to the euro (EUR/MDL ≈ 19.4, illustrative, at the NBM rate), write that down and specify at which rate and on which date it is converted into lei.
2. Frequency and payment date. “By the 5th of each month” is better than “monthly”: it leaves the tenant no room for interpretation.
3. An indexation mechanism. Fix the formula in advance: for example, +N% per year, or pegged to official inflation. Without this clause the rent is frozen for the whole term, while inflation eats into the income.

Example (hypothetical): a property worth €200,000, rent of €1,200/month = €14,400/year. If the contract has no indexation, in 3 to 5 years this amount will lose value, and raising it without the tenant’s consent will be impossible.

Checklist: 10 points before you sign

Run through the list before you put your signature down:

Besides the contract itself, attach a handover act (with meter readings and a description of the condition) and a payment schedule. This removes half of all future disputes.

Tax on rental income

An individual’s income from leasing real estate in Moldova is subject to a final income tax; the rate commonly applied is 7%. Always confirm the current rate and your specific obligation with the State Tax Service (Serviciul Fiscal de Stat, SFS) or an accountant, since the rules differ for individuals and for legal entities.

Meanwhile, the market is going legitimate. In January to May 2026, 47.5 million lei of income tax on rent came into the budget, 27.9% more than a year earlier, while the number of registered lease contracts grew by 34% (≈15,788) (source: SFS, 2026). So the contract and the actual payments need to add up: the tax authority is reconciling the data ever more actively.

How KX Estate helps with this

KX Estate keeps the contract linked to the property with all its details (IDNO/CUI, currency, term) and immediately builds a payment schedule a year ahead. From there the system tracks the deadlines itself, flags overdue items and reconciles incoming payments with the bank, so that no mandatory clause of the contract gets “lost” in correspondence and spreadsheets.

In short: a written contract with every mandatory clause (parties, property, rent with its currency, term, deposit, indexation, utilities and termination) protects your income. Run through the checklist before you sign, not after the first dispute.

Frequently asked questions

Does a lease contract have to be in writing in Moldova? Yes. A real-estate lease is concluded in writing. It serves as evidence in a dispute and as the basis for tax accounting. A verbal arrangement for a commercial space is almost impossible to confirm.

What must be stated in a lease contract? The parties and their identification details (IDNP for an individual, IDNO/CUI for a legal entity), the property, the rent with its currency and frequency, the term and renewal, the deposit, indexation, utilities and the termination procedure.

In which currency can the rent be stated? In any of those used in practice: EUR, MDL, USD or RON. What matters is that you write the currency next to every amount and, if the rent is in euros, specify the procedure for converting it into lei at the NBM rate.

What tax does the owner pay on rental income? An individual’s rental income is subject to a final income tax, commonly at a rate of 7%. Confirm the current rate and your own regime with the SFS or an accountant, since the rules for legal entities are different.