Rental Application and Tenant-Screening Fee Requirements in Minnesota
At a glance
| Governing law and coverage | Minn. Stat. §§ 504B.173 and 504B.175; applies when a landlord accepts an applicant screening fee from a prospective residential tenant; no listed small-landlord or unit-type exemption |
|---|---|
| Fees allowed or prohibited | Reasonable applicant screening fee allowed; distinct from prelease deposit; fee may fund personal-reference check, consumer credit report, or tenant screening report (§§ 504B.173(2), 504B.175(1)) |
| Maximum charge and adjustment | No flat statewide dollar cap or index; § 504B.175(1) describes a reasonable applicant screening fee, and § 504B.173(2)(b) requires return of amounts not used for listed checks/reports |
| Permitted costs and charge timing | No charge if landlord knows/should know no unit is available now or within reasonable future; do not use, cash, or deposit fee until all prior applicants are rejected or offered unit and decline (§ 504B.173(1)) |
| Before-screening disclosures | Before accepting fee, disclose in writing screening service name/address/phone (unless none used) and all decision criteria; availability restriction separately applies (§ 504B.173(1), (3)) |
| Receipt, report copy, and refund | Written receipt upon applicant request; return fee if denial uses undisclosed reason or prior applicant accepts; return unused amount if listed checks/reports not performed; mail, destroy requested check, or hold for retrieval; no report-copy duty (§ 504B.173(1)-(2)) |
| Applicant-supplied or reusable reports | No applicant-supplied or reusable-report acceptance/no-fee rule in § 504B.173 or the current ch. 504B scheme |
| Application order and adverse action | Fees held unused until prior applicants resolved; rejection notice within 14 days must identify criteria applicant failed; pending/nonpublic/expunged/destroyed or no-writ eviction cases cannot support denial (§ 504B.173(1), (3)-(3a)) |
| Remedies and stronger local rules | Landlord owes screening fee plus civil penalty up to $100, filing costs, and reasonable attorney fees; materially false/omitted application information can expose applicant to damages plus up to $500 and costs/fees; no express local-preemption clause (§ 504B.173(4)) |
A screening fee is allowed, but collection and use are staged
Minn. Stat. § 504B.173 allows an applicant screening fee but does not set a flat dollar ceiling. Section 504B.175, subd. 1 describes the excluded screening charge as a “reasonable” fee used for a background check, while § 504B.173 requires the return of money not used for a personal reference check, consumer credit report, or tenant screening report.
The landlord may not charge the fee when the landlord knows or should know that no unit is available then or within a reasonable future time. Even after collection, the landlord may not use, cash, or deposit it until every earlier applicant has been screened and rejected or offered the unit and declined.
Written disclosure and receipt
Before accepting the fee, Minn. Stat. § 504B.173, subd. 3 requires written disclosure of:
- the name, address, and telephone number of the tenant screening service, unless the landlord uses none; and
- the criteria on which the rental decision will be based.
The landlord must provide a written receipt upon the applicant's request. The receipt may be incorporated into the application form.
When money must be returned
Under Minn. Stat. § 504B.173, subd. 2, the landlord must return the screening fee if an earlier applicant is offered the unit and agrees to rent it. A refund is also due when the applicant is rejected for a reason not listed in the precharge criteria disclosure.
If the landlord does not perform a personal reference check or obtain a consumer credit or tenant screening report, the landlord must return the amount not used for those purposes. The statute permits return by mail, destruction of an applicant's check on request, or making the fee available for retrieval. It does not state a specific number of days for these returns.
Rejection notice and eviction-file limits
Within 14 days after rejecting the application, Minn. Stat. § 504B.173, subds. 3 and 3a require the landlord to identify the disclosed criteria the applicant failed. The landlord may not deny based on a pending eviction action, a nonpublic, expunged, or destroyed court file, or an eviction action that did not result in a writ of recovery and order to vacate.
The section does not require the landlord to provide a copy of a credit or tenant screening report. It also creates no applicant-supplied or reusable-report acceptance process; separate federal consumer-reporting duties may apply.
Remedies and local rules
Under Minn. Stat. § 504B.173, subd. 4, a violating landlord is liable for the screening fee plus a civil penalty up to $100, civil filing costs, and reasonable attorney fees. The same subdivision makes an applicant who supplies materially false information or omits requested material information liable for damages, a civil penalty up to $500, filing costs, and reasonable attorney fees. The section contains no express local-preemption clause.
Common questions
Can a landlord collect fees from several people at once? The landlord may collect them, but cannot use, cash, or deposit a later applicant's fee until every earlier applicant has been resolved in the manner the statute specifies.
Do I get a refund if another applicant takes the unit? Yes. If a prior applicant is offered the unit and agrees to rent it, the landlord must return your screening fee.
May the landlord deny me for a criterion it never disclosed? A denial for an undisclosed reason triggers return of the fee, and the rejection notice must identify the criteria you failed.
Must Minnesota landlords accept my recent screening report? Section 504B.173 creates no reusable or applicant-supplied-report acceptance rule.
Statutes and sources
- Minn. Stat. § 504B.173 — screening-fee restrictions, disclosure, refunds,
denial notice, and remedies.
A landlord may not ... use, cash, or deposit an applicant screening fee until all prior applicants have either been screened and rejected, or offered the unit and declined to enter into a rental agreement.
Official source: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/504B.173 (accessed 2026-07-21) - Minn. Stat. § 504B.175, subd. 1 — screening-fee distinction from a prelease deposit.
“Prelease deposit” does not include the payment of a reasonable applicant screening fee used to conduct a background check ...
Official source: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/504B.175 (accessed 2026-07-21)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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