Rental Application and Tenant-Screening Fee Requirements in Hawaii

At a glance

Screening costs, processing time, and eligible applicants

Hawaii Revised Statutes § 521-46(a) allows a landlord or the landlord's agent to charge an application screening fee when the application is processed. The fee must cover the costs of obtaining information about the applicant. The statute's examples include personal reference checks, tenant reports, criminal background checks, and credit reports from a consumer credit reporting agency.

The landlord may charge the fee only for an applicant who is at least 18 years old or is an emancipated minor. The statute does not state a separate numeric, per-applicant, per-household, customary-cost, or annually adjusted ceiling. Instead, the cost purpose and unused-amount refund limit what the landlord may retain.

Receipt, cost breakdown, and unused-money refund

Under § 521-46(b), the applicant may request both a receipt for the screening fee and a breakdown of the costs it covers. The request condition matters: the section does not make either document automatically due without a request.

Section 521-46(c) requires the landlord or agent to return any amount not used for an authorized purpose within 30 days after the landlord submits the screening requests. The deadline runs from submission of those requests, not from payment, denial, withdrawal, or selection of another applicant.

The section does not require delivery of the resulting credit, criminal- background, tenant, or other screening report.

Coverage and enforcement

Hawaii Revised Statutes § 521-8 defines “landlord” to include the owner, lessor, sublessor, successors, and any landlord agent. Section 521-7 excludes specified arrangements from Chapter 521, including listed institutional and college housing, day-to-day hotel or motel occupancy, certain homeless facilities, and specified housing directly controlled, owned, or managed by the Hawaii Public Housing Authority.

The fee section states no fixed civil damages, multiplier, or attorney-fee award. Section 521-77 provides that the Office of Consumer Protection may receive, investigate, and attempt to resolve any dispute arising under Chapter 521. The chapter states no application-fee-specific local preemption or express preservation of stronger local rules.

What trips people up

The fee is collected when the application is processed. Section 521-46(a) does not authorize collecting it merely because a person asks about a unit; it ties the charge to processing the application.

The receipt and breakdown require a request. The unused-money refund does not. Subsection (b) begins “Upon request by the applicant,” while subsection (c) directly commands return of the unused amount.

Current law does not require reusable reports. Multiple 2025 and 2026 bills would have required some form of applicant-supplied or comprehensive reusable tenant screening report, but none passed before the 2026 Legislature adjourned.

Common questions

Is there a statewide dollar maximum? There is no separate numeric ceiling. The fee must cover costs of obtaining applicant information, and unused money must be returned.

Can a landlord charge a minor? Only if the applicant is an emancipated minor; otherwise the applicant must be at least 18.

When is unused money due back? Within 30 days after the landlord submits the screening requests.

Must the landlord accept my recent credit or background report? Current Hawaii law creates no statewide applicant-supplied or reusable-report procedure.

Statutes and sources

• Hawaii Revised Statutes § 521-46 — permitted costs, charge timing, age, requested receipt and breakdown, and unused-amount refund.

  [A] landlord or the landlord's agent may charge the applicant an application screening fee at the time the application is processed ... to cover the costs of obtaining information about the applicant ... A landlord or the landlord's agent shall return to the applicant any amount ... not used ... within thirty days after the landlord has submitted screening requests.

Official source: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0521/HRS_0521-0046.htm (accessed 2026-07-21) - Hawaii Revised Statutes § 521-7 — arrangements excluded from Chapter 521.

Unless created solely to avoid the application of this chapter, this chapter shall not apply to ...

Official source: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0521/HRS_0521-0007.htm (accessed 2026-07-21) - Hawaii Revised Statutes § 521-8 — dwelling-unit and landlord definitions.

“Landlord” means the owner, lessor, sublessor, assigns or successors in interest ... and in addition means any agent of the landlord.

Official source: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0521/HRS_0521-0008.htm (accessed 2026-07-21) - Hawaii Revised Statutes § 521-77 — Office of Consumer Protection dispute resolution authority.

The office of consumer protection may receive, investigate and attempt to resolve any dispute arising under this chapter.

Official source: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0521/HRS_0521-0077.htm (accessed 2026-07-21) - Hawaii Revised Statutes chapter 521 — current official chapter index.

521-46 Application screening fee ... 521-77 Investigation and resolution of complaints by the office of consumer protection

Official source: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/vol12_ch0501-0588/hrs0521/hrs_0521-.htm (accessed 2026-07-21)