Security Deposit Return Deadlines & Deductions in Louisiana

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Return and statement clocks

La. R.S. § 9:3251(A) requires return of a residential deposit within one month after the lease terminates, except for amounts reasonably necessary to remedy tenant default or unreasonable wear. If the landlord keeps any amount, the landlord must send an itemized statement giving the reasons within one month after termination or within 15 days after that one-month date. The tenant must furnish a forwarding address at termination.

The later statement date came from 2026 La. Acts No. 63 (HB 292), effective August 1, 2026. The amendment changed the statement timing; the deposit-return sentence still says one month.

Deductions and abandonment

Section 9:3251(A) limits retention to amounts reasonably necessary to remedy a tenant default or unreasonable wear. Under § 9:3251(C), subsection A does not apply if the tenant abandons the premises without required notice or before the lease terminates. Sections 9:3251–3253 impose no statewide amount cap, interest duty, or separate-account or bond procedure.

Remedy

Under § 9:3252(A), willful failure to comply allows recovery of the amount wrongfully retained plus the greater of $300 or twice that amount. Failure to remit within 30 days after a written refund demand constitutes willful failure. Section 9:3253 lets the court award costs and attorney's fees to the prevailing party in an action under § 9:3252, at its discretion.

What trips people up

The return and statement clocks are now different. A landlord may have the extra 15 days for an itemization of money retained, but the amendment did not move the one-month return deadline for the balance that must be repaid.

Common questions

Do I need to demand the refund in writing? The one-month return rule in § 9:3251(A) does not depend on a demand. A written demand matters to § 9:3252(A)'s rule deeming a failure to remit within 30 days willful.

Can the landlord keep money for ordinary use of the premises? Section 9:3251(A) allows retention to remedy “unreasonable wear,” not wear from ordinary use alone.

Statutes and sources

• La. R.S. § 9:3251 — return, permitted retention, itemization and abandonment. https://www.legis.la.gov/legis/Law.aspx?d=107468 (accessed 2026-10-07)
• La. R.S. § 9:3252 — willful noncompliance and recovery. https://www.legis.la.gov/legis/Law.aspx?d=107469 (accessed 2026-10-07)
• La. R.S. § 9:3253 — discretionary costs and fees. https://www.legis.la.gov/legis/Law.aspx?d=107470 (accessed 2026-10-07)
• 2026 La. Acts No. 63 (HB 292), enacted amendment and official effective-date history. https://www.legis.la.gov/Legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1473882 and https://www.legis.la.gov/legis/BillInfo.aspx?i=250012 (accessed 2026-10-07)