Minnesota: Rental Application and Tenant-Screening Fee Requirements
The short answer
Minnesota permits a reasonable applicant screening fee, with no flat statewide dollar cap, but the landlord may not charge when no unit is or reasonably will be available and may not use, cash, or deposit the fee until every earlier applicant has been resolved. Before accepting the fee, the landlord must disclose the screening service and rental criteria in writing; refunds are required when an earlier applicant takes the unit, the denial relies on an undisclosed reason, or money is not used for the listed checks and reports. A rejected applicant must be told within 14 days which disclosed criteria were not met.
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This is the general rule in Minnesota. Ezel applies current Minnesota law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| 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)) |
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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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