Handover Protocol (Move-In/Move-Out Protocol)
A written record, signed by both landlord and tenant, describing the condition of a rental property and its meter readings at the moment of handover — the primary evidence used to resolve later disputes over security deposit deductions.
Applies to Poland.
Definition
Polish law does not mandate a specific statutory form for this protocol (protokół zdawczo-odbiorczy), but courts and tenant-protection practice treat it as the standard method of proving the state of a property at a given moment, particularly under Article 675 of the Civil Code, which requires a tenant to return the property in the condition resulting from ordinary use.
A thorough protocol lists meter readings (electricity, gas, water) as of that date, an inventory of furnishings and their condition, and any existing damage or defects — ideally supported by dated photographs. Both parties sign it at move-in and again at move-out.
Because it is not a legally mandatory document, its absence does not invalidate a lease, but without it any dispute over deposit deductions or damage responsibility tends to default to whichever party can otherwise prove the property's earlier condition — usually the landlord, who normally controls the property between tenancies.
Examples
At move-in, the tenant and landlord jointly draw up a protocol with meter readings and photographs of the condition of the walls and floors.
At move-out, a scratch appears on the bathroom tiles — without a move-in protocol it's hard to establish whether the tenant caused it.
A landlord refuses to return part of the deposit, citing damage not noted in the initial protocol but only photographed at move-out.
How this affects buying and selling
For tenants, insisting on this protocol at both ends of the tenancy is the single best protection against unfair deposit deductions. For landlords, a detailed protocol equally protects against claims that pre-existing damage was caused by the tenant.
