Rent adjustment in Denmark: how you may adjust the rent in 2026
23 September 2026 · 13 min read · Property management
You may only adjust the rent in the ways the Danish Rent Act (lejeloven) allows, and which ones apply depends on where the home is, when the building was first used and what the lease says. The most common is an agreed yearly adjustment in line with the net price index (nettoprisindeks). Without such an agreement, you can as a rule only raise the rent under the Act’s own rules: to the rental value, under the building’s budget, after improvements, or when taxes and charges go up.
Which rules apply to the rent in your home?
The Rent Act has three systems for how rent is set and adjusted: cost-based rent (omkostningsbestemt leje), the rental value (det lejedes værdi) and free rent (fri leje). Which system your home falls under is decided by objective facts, not by what you and the tenant agree.
The first question is whether the municipality is regulated. Regulated municipalities are those where the former rent control rules in the Housing Regulation Act (boligreguleringsloven) applied, and those where the municipal council has decided so (§ 4 of the Rent Act, in Danish). Cost-based rent only applies in regulated municipalities (§ 6). In an unregulated municipality there are no special rules on the level of rent when the agreement is made, but the tenant can later demand a reduction if the rent is substantially higher than the rental value (§ 45).
| The home | Rent when the agreement is made | Adjustment during the tenancy |
|---|---|---|
| Building first used after 31 December 1991, former business premises or a new home in the attic storey | Free rent by agreement (§ 54) | Agreed net price index plus taxes and charges |
| Regulated municipality, building with 7 or more flats on 1 January 1995 | Cost-based rent (§ 19, subsection 1) or the rental value if the tenancy has been comprehensively improved (§ 19, subsection 2) | Under the building’s budget (§ 23) or the net price index (§ 26 or § 53, subsection 2) |
| Regulated municipality, building with 6 or fewer flats on 1 January 1995 | Must not be substantially higher than the rent for comparable tenancies with cost-based rent (§ 32) | The rental value (§ 42) or agreed net price index (§ 53, subsection 2) |
| Unregulated municipality | Agreed freely, but a reduction can be demanded if it is substantially higher than the rental value (§ 45) | The rental value (§ 42) or agreed net price index (§ 53, subsection 2) |
The rental value is found by comparing with the rent usually paid in the neighbourhood for similar homes in terms of location, type, size, quality, fittings and state of repair (§ 42, subsection 2). Tenancies with free rent do not count in the comparison (§ 42, subsection 4).
A tenancy in a larger building in a regulated municipality can leave cost-based rent if it has been comprehensively improved. For improvements carried out in 2026, the cost must exceed DKK 2,660 per m² or DKK 304,141 per tenancy, and there are further conditions, including the building’s energy label and an inspection by the Rent Tribunal (huslejenævnet) before the work starts (§ 19, subsections 2-6, and the guidance on rates for 2026, in Danish).
A room in the home you live in yourself follows the rental value, also in a regulated municipality (§ 6, subsection 3). Read about renting out a room.
Rent adjustment in Copenhagen
Copenhagen is a regulated municipality. Here, the rent in buildings that had seven or more flats on 1 January 1995 is set under the rules on cost-based rent (City of Copenhagen, in Danish).
For a rented-out owner-occupied flat (ejerlejlighed), the rules depend on whether the flat was part of a building with six or fewer flats or with seven or more on 1 January 1995, writes the municipality (in Danish). A co-op apartment (andelslejlighed) rented out by its owner follows the rules for the small buildings. If you own several owner-occupied flats in the same owners’ association, they count as one building when deciding whether the building is small (§ 9).
In the small buildings, the Rent Tribunal compares with similar flats with cost-based rent, and it can only reduce the rent if it is more than 10 percent too high. You cannot work out the rent from your own costs for loans, co-op charges or service charges, and the tribunal does not compare with prices in housing ads. If the flat is furnished, this is part of the assessment, but it does not give a right to a much higher rent, and you cannot agree a separate payment for the furniture (City of Copenhagen, in Danish).
If you want an idea of what your home could rent for before you write the lease, try the rent calculator.
Adjustment in line with the net price index
The net price index shows the change in consumer prices excluding VAT and duties, and it is used in particular to adjust contracts and leases (Statistics Denmark, in Danish). You can agree with the tenant that the rent is adjusted once a year in line with the index (§ 53, subsection 2). With free rent, the rent cannot be adjusted during the tenancy without such an agreement, apart from increases in taxes and charges (§ 54, subsection 3, and the guidance to standard form A (typeformular A)).
The adjustment itself only requires written notice to the tenant. The Act does not set a specific notice period, so the timing is what you have agreed. Show the calculation in the notice so the tenant can follow it.
How to calculate it
The formula in standard form A is: current rent divided by the index at the last adjustment, multiplied by the new index. An example: the rent is DKK 12,000 a month, and the lease says it is adjusted by the index for June. The net price index was 99.73 in June 2025 and 102.38 in June 2026 (StatBank Denmark, table PRIS04). The new rent is DKK 12,000 divided by 99.73 and multiplied by 102.38, which is DKK 12,319. That is an increase of 2.7 percent.
Since January 2026, Statistics Denmark has published the index with 2025=100. From January 2016 to December 2025 the base was 2015=100 (Statistics Denmark, in Danish). If your lease contains an index figure from the old series, look up the same month in the new series so both figures have the same base.
An index-adjusted rent can still be challenged for reduction if it is substantially higher than the rental value (the guidance to standard form A). With free rent, the rent can only be reduced if it is unreasonable (§ 55).
The net price index with cost-based rent
If you own a building with cost-based rent, you can decide to adjust in line with the net price index in periods of 2 years instead of adjusting under the budget. This only applies to the part of the rent that covers operating costs excluding taxes and charges, and to all tenancies in the building except those with free rent. When the period ends, the rent must be calculated under the budget again (§ 26).
Can you still agree stepped rent?
Not in new leases. Stepped rent means that the rent rises by fixed amounts on fixed dates. The option was abolished on 1 July 2015 and replaced by adjustment in line with the net price index (Act no. 310 of 30 March 2015, in Danish). The City of Copenhagen says the same about tenancies with free rent: in leases entered into after 1 July 2015, a stepped rent clause cannot be agreed (City of Copenhagen, in Danish).
Stepped rent in a lease from before 1 July 2015 still applies. The new rules only affect the older agreements if the parties have agreed to change the adjustment after that date (§ 5, subsection 6, of the 2015 Act, which § 207, subsection 4, of the Rent Act keeps in force). If you want a fixed yearly adjustment in a new lease, the net price index is the way to do it.
Does the 4 percent cap still apply in 2026?
No. Prices rose sharply in 2022, and in June the net price index was 8.1 percent higher than a year earlier (StatBank Denmark). The Danish Parliament (Folketinget) therefore introduced a cap: an adjustment based on the change in the net price index for 2022 and 2023 could give at most 4 percent a year (§ 53, subsection 3, inserted by Act no. 1311 of 27 September 2022, in Danish). The cap also applied to free rent (§ 54, subsection 4).
The cap only covers the index change for those two years. An adjustment based on the change in 2024 and later is not covered, so in 2026 an agreed adjustment again follows the full increase. The special exception for landlords whose costs for the property rose more than the cap allowed for (§ 53 a) was repealed on 1 January 2025.
The cap did, however, lower the rent permanently in the tenancies it affected. According to the explanatory notes to the bill, it affects all future rent payments in the tenancy, and the limit only disappears when the home is let again. You also cannot get around the cap by skipping an adjustment and adjusting for two years at once (bill L 210, in Danish).
Increases to the rental value, after improvements and for higher taxes
If the rent is substantially lower than the rental value, you can demand that it is raised to a reasonable level (§ 42). This is the rule in unregulated municipalities and in the small buildings in regulated municipalities. The increase can take effect no earlier than 2 years after the tenancy began or 2 years after the last increase of the same kind (§ 42, subsection 5). If the tenant has an agreed period in which you cannot give notice, you can only demand the increase if you reserved the right to adjust in the lease (§ 44, subsection 5).
If you have improved the tenancy, for example with a new kitchen or bathroom, you can demand a rent increase equal to the increase in the rental value (§ 128).
If property taxes or public charges, for example for water, refuse collection or chimney sweeping, go up, you can demand that the increase is covered through the rent (§§ 46-47). This applies in both regulated and unregulated municipalities and also with free rent. If the taxes or charges fall, you must reduce the rent accordingly and notify the tenant in writing no later than 6 weeks after you were notified of the reduction (§ 48).
How to give notice of a rent increase
The requirements for the notice depend on which rule you use. If any of the information the Act requires is missing, the demand is invalid.
| Adjustment | Notice | What the written demand must contain |
|---|---|---|
| Agreed net price index (§ 53, subsection 2, and § 54, subsection 3) | No specific notice in the Act. The timing follows the agreement | Written notice of the increase |
| The rental value (§§ 42 and 44) | 3 months | The size of the increase, the reason for it and the tenant’s right to object |
| Improvements (§§ 128 and 130) | 3 months, at the earliest from when the improvement is finished | The reason, a calculation with the costs incurred and the tenant’s right to object |
| Taxes and charges (§§ 46-47) | 3 months, or from when the cost was imposed if you demand it no later than 5 months after | A calculation of the change and the tenant’s right to object |
| Cost-based rent (§§ 23 and 29) | Takes effect on the 1st of the month, 3 months after the demand | The current and the new budget, the size and calculation of the increase, the new rent and the tenant’s right to object |
| Net price index under § 26 | Takes effect on the 1st of the month, 3 months after the demand | The size of the increase and the calculation |
For an increase to the rental value, after improvements or because of taxes and charges, the tenant has 6 weeks from receiving the demand to object in writing. If you want to maintain the demand, you must bring the case before the Rent Tribunal no later than 6 weeks after the tenant’s deadline (§ 44, subsection 3, § 46, subsection 5, and § 130, subsection 5). With cost-based rent in buildings without tenant representation, this applies when at least a quarter of the tenants who are to have the increase object (§ 29, subsection 2).
In 2026 it costs DKK 367 to bring a case before the Rent Tribunal, and if the tenant wins in full, you as landlord pay DKK 7,027 to the tribunal (§ 82 of the Housing Conditions Act (lov om boligforhold) and the guidance on rates for 2026, both in Danish).
What the lease must say
Some forms of adjustment must be in the lease from the start. Special terms are written in § 11 of standard form A. Check these points:
- A term on yearly adjustment in line with the net price index. Write which point in time is the starting point, the index value at that time and when the rent is adjusted for the first time (the guidance to standard form A, in Danish).
- With free rent in former business premises or a new home in the attic storey: that the tenancy is covered by the rule. Otherwise the rent cannot be set freely (§ 54, subsection 2).
- If you have decided to adjust a cost-based rent in line with the net price index, the lease must say so and state when the 2-year period ends (§ 11, subsection 5).
- The date on which the taxes and charges in the rent were calculated. The date is the starting point when they change later (standard form A, § 3).
- A reservation on adjustment if the tenant is to be protected from notice for a period (§ 44, subsection 5).
Use the authorised lease. If you use a form that is not authorised, terms that leave the tenant worse off than the Act are invalid (§ 14). Read about standard form A10, or download it on the page with the free lease agreement.
If you rent out through BY Administration with long-term rental, we draw up the lease under the Rent Act and adjust the rent by the rules. For owners’ associations, we handle the budget and collection through property management.
Sources
- Act on Rent (the Rent Act, lejeloven), Act no. 341 of 22 March 2022 as amended (Retsinformation, in Danish)
- Act no. 1311 of 27 September 2022 on a cap on rent increases (Retsinformation, in Danish)
- Bill on a cap on rent increases, L 210, with explanatory notes (Retsinformation, in Danish)
- Act no. 310 of 30 March 2015 on simplifying and modernising rent legislation (Retsinformation, in Danish)
- Guidance on adjusting the rates in rent legislation for 2026 (Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing, in Danish)
- Standard form A, 10th edition, with guidance (Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing, in Danish)
- Flats with free rent (City of Copenhagen, in Danish)
- Net price index (Statistics Denmark, in Danish)
- Net price index, table PRIS04 (StatBank Denmark)
Frequently asked questions
The key questions, answered briefly.
Have another question?Call +45 50 52 15 37 or book a meeting.
How much can the rent go up each year in 2026?
There is no longer a general cap. If you have agreed adjustment in line with the net price index, the rent follows the rise in the index, which was 2.7 percent from June 2025 to June 2026 according to Statistics Denmark. Without such an agreement, it depends on the rules for the home: the rental value, the building’s budget or increases in taxes and charges.
Can the landlord raise the rent if the lease does not say so?
Yes, but only under the Act’s own rules. In unregulated municipalities and small buildings, the rent can be raised to the rental value with 3 months’ notice, no earlier than 2 years after the tenancy began. In larger buildings in regulated municipalities, it is done under the budget. Notice can also be given for improvements and increases in taxes and charges. With free rent, a yearly adjustment must be agreed as the net price index.
Is stepped rent still legal?
Not in new leases. The option to agree that the rent rises by fixed amounts on fixed dates was abolished for leases entered into after 1 July 2015 and replaced by adjustment in line with the net price index. Stepped rent in a lease from before that date still applies, unless the parties have later agreed to change the adjustment.
Does the 4 percent rent cap still apply?
No, not for new adjustments. The cap applied to adjustments based on the change in the net price index for 2022 and 2023, and adjustments based on the change in 2024 and later are not covered. The cap did, however, lower the rent permanently in the tenancies it affected, because according to the explanatory notes to the bill, the limit only disappears when the home is let again.
What happens if the tenant will not accept a rent increase?
For an increase to the rental value or because of higher taxes, the tenant must object in writing no later than 6 weeks after receiving the demand. If you want to maintain the increase, you must bring the case before the Rent Tribunal (huslejenævnet) no later than 6 weeks after the tenant’s deadline. It costs DKK 367 in 2026, and if the tenant wins in full, the landlord pays DKK 7,027.
How do you calculate a net price index adjustment?
Take the current rent, divide by the index from the last adjustment and multiply by the new index. With a rent of DKK 12,000 and the index figures 99.73 for June 2025 and 102.38 for June 2026, the new rent is DKK 12,319. Use figures from the same series, because Statistics Denmark has published the index with 2025=100 since January 2026.
Can you set the rent yourself in a newly built flat?
Yes. In buildings first used after 31 December 1991, the rent can be set freely by agreement. The same applies to former business premises and homes created in an attic storey that was not a home on 1 September 2002. The rent can only be reduced if it is unreasonable. Without an agreement on the net price index, according to the guidance to the standard lease it cannot be adjusted during the tenancy, apart from increases in taxes and charges.
