How to Evict a Roommate in District of Columbia (and Other Household Situations)
What District of Columbia law says about roommates who are not on the lease, guests who won't leave, family members, renting a room in your own home, and tenancies at will — each with the statute or official source.
Short answer: Under the Rental Housing Act, "tenant" includes a tenant, subtenant, lessee, sublessee, or other person entitled to the possession, occupancy or benefits of a rental unit owned by another person. A roommate who sublets from the leaseholder, or who is otherwise entitled to occupy, can therefore be a tenant even without signing the main lease; a person merely visiting is not. D.C. Code § 42-3501.03 (definition of tenant)
| Roommate not on the lease | Under the Rental Housing Act, "tenant" includes a tenant, subtenant, lessee, sublessee, or other person entitled to the possession, occupancy or benefits of a rental unit owned by another person. A roommate who sublets from the leaseholder, or who is otherwise entitled to occupy, can therefore be a tenant even without signing the main lease; a person merely visiting is not. Whether a particular roommate is "entitled" to occupancy depends on the facts, such as any agreement with the leaseholder or the housing provider. Re-verified 2026-10-27. |
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| Removing a roommate or subtenant | A leaseholder who rents to a roommate is a "housing provider" (the definition includes a sublessor and anyone entitled to receive rent). No tenant may be evicted without a written notice meeting the Rental Housing Act's requirements, and possession is recovered only through a case in D.C. Superior Court; the eviction itself is carried out under a court writ. The business-license filing requirement for a writ of restitution does not apply to complaints involving subtenants (D.C. Code § 42-3505.01). Which just-cause grounds apply when a tenant evicts a subtenant is not spelled out in the statute. Re-verified 2026-10-27. |
| Guests who won't leave | No statute sets a number of days after which a guest becomes a tenant. Someone who "detains possession of real property without right, or after his right to possession has ceased" can be removed only through a verified complaint for possession in D.C. Superior Court. Re-verified 2026-10-27. Source: D.C. Code § 16-1501 |
| Removing a family member or partner | No statute names family members specifically. A family member or partner whose permission to stay has ended is a person holding possession "after his right to possession has ceased," and the owner or leaseholder's remedy is a possession case in D.C. Superior Court. Civil protection orders in domestic-violence cases are a separate court process that can order a person to leave the home. Re-verified 2026-10-27. Source: D.C. Code § 16-1501 |
| Renting a room in your own home (lodgers) | No separate lodger statute. A "rental unit" expressly includes a room, and a "housing accommodation" is any structure with one or more rental units, so a room rented in an owner-occupied home generally falls under the Rental Housing Act's eviction rules. Re-verified 2026-10-27. |
| Tenancy at will | A tenancy at will may be ended by 30 days' written notice from either landlord or tenant, and a tenancy by sufferance by written notice to quit (or the tenant's notice of intent to quit on the 30th day after service). For residential tenancies, however, the Rental Housing Act bars eviction except for listed causes, and a tenant may end a residential tenancy with a 30-day written notice expiring on the first day of a month. Re-verified 2026-10-27. |
| Hotel and extended-stay guests | The Rental Housing Act's "housing accommodation" excludes a hotel or inn with a valid certificate of occupancy and buildings used primarily for transient occupancy (at least 60% of rooms used transiently as of May 20, 1980). A unit counts as transient only if the landlord pays the sales tax on transient accommodations for it. No statute sets a number of days after which a hotel guest becomes a tenant. Re-verified 2026-10-27. |
Never remove someone by changing the locks or taking their belongings: if the person has become a tenant, only a court can order them out. If there is violence or a threat, call 911 and ask about a protective order.
Templates
District of Columbia eviction laws · Free legal help in District of Columbia · Roommate rules in other states
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.