Landlord Atlas

What are the security deposit rules in Rhode Island?

Verified July 11, 2026 All Rhode Island topics →

Rhode Island caps security deposits at one month's rent, and the landlord must return the deposit with a written itemized statement within 20 days after the later of the tenancy ending, the tenant moving out, or the tenant providing a forwarding address.

The cap applies to any deposit 'however denominated,' so pet deposits and similar charges count toward the same one-month limit; the one exception is a furnished apartment with at least $5,000 worth of furniture, where the landlord may collect a separate furniture deposit of up to one more month's rent on the same 20-day return clock. Deductions are limited to unpaid rent, reasonable cleaning and trash-disposal costs, and damage beyond ordinary wear and tear, all itemized in writing. A landlord who misses the deadline or skips the itemization owes the tenant the amount due plus double the amount wrongfully withheld plus attorney fees. No interest and no separate bank account are required, lease waivers of these rules are void, and a buyer of the property inherits the obligations.

Rhode Island security deposits at a glance

Maximum deposit 1 month's rent — A landlord may not demand or receive a security deposit, 'however denominated,' exceeding one month's periodic rent (R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-19(a)) — the 'however denominated' phrase folds pet deposits and other security-type charges into the same one-month ceiling. Sole express carve-out: a landlord renting a FURNISHED apartment whose furniture has a replacement value of $5,000 or more at lease execution may charge a separate furniture security deposit of up to one additional month's periodic rent (§ 34-18-19(e)), subject to its own parallel 20-day return and itemization track (§ 34-18-19(f)). No age-based or senior deposit variation exists (Rhode Island's age tier is in the rent-increase statute, not the deposit statute).
Return deadline 20 days
Deadline conditions The itemized notice and the balance due are owed within twenty (20) days after the LATER of: (1) termination of the tenancy, (2) delivery of possession, or (3) the tenant's providing the landlord with a forwarding address for the purpose of receiving the deposit (§ 34-18-19(b)). Because the forwarding address is one of the later-of triggers, the landlord's 20-day clock does not start running until the tenant supplies one — tenants who never provide a forwarding address leave the deadline open. The furniture security deposit runs on the same 20-day later-of clock (§ 34-18-19(f)).
Itemization required Yes
Itemization rules Deductions must be itemized by the landlord in a written notice delivered to the tenant together with the balance due (§ 34-18-19(b)). Permitted deductions: unpaid accrued rent, reasonable cleaning expenses, reasonable trash-disposal expenses, and physical damage to the premises beyond ordinary wear and tear caused by the tenant's noncompliance with § 34-18-24. 'Ordinary wear and tear' is defined at § 34-18-11 as deterioration from normal nonabusive living, including deterioration caused by the landlord's own failure to prepare for expected conditions or meet the landlord's obligations. Furniture deposits: only reasonable cleaning, repair, and physical damage to the furniture beyond ordinary wear and tear (§ 34-18-19(f)).
Separate account required No
Interest owed to tenant No
Account & interest rules No interest and no separate or escrow account requirement anywhere in ch. 34-18 (verified negative — full read of § 34-18-19 twice plus a sweep of the entire chapter section index; the only deposit statute is § 34-18-19).
Pet deposits No separate pet-deposit statute. Because § 34-18-19(a) caps any security deposit 'however denominated,' a refundable pet deposit counts toward the one-month ceiling and follows the same 20-day return, itemization, and double-damages rules. The furniture deposit for furnished units (§ 34-18-19(e)) is the only express additional-deposit authorization.
Non-refundable fees allowed Not addressed by statute
Penalty for violation If the landlord fails to comply with the 20-day return and itemization requirements, the tenant may recover the amount due plus damages equal to twice the amount wrongfully withheld, plus reasonable attorney fees (§ 34-18-19(c)); other damages under the chapter remain available (§ 34-18-19(d)).
Tenant forwarding-address duty Providing a forwarding address is one of the three later-of triggers that starts the landlord's 20-day return clock (§ 34-18-19(b)) — the statute imposes no affirmative duty, but a tenant who wants the deposit back promptly must supply a forwarding address, because until then the deadline has not begun to run.

Notes and caveats

Load-bearing figures double-read verbatim (WebFetch + raw curl of the official page; all matched). The later-of-THREE-triggers return clock (termination / delivery of possession / forwarding address) is the field most charts flatten to '20 days after move-out' — the forwarding-address trigger means the clock may start much later. The furniture-deposit carve-out (P.L. 2015 ch. 125/134) requires furniture replacement value of $5,000+ valued at lease execution. No senior/furnished variation beyond that; no receipt, interest, or escrow rules (verified negative, chapter sweep). § 34-18-8 exclusions do NOT exempt owner-occupied small buildings (unlike ME/MA-style carve-outs) — the chapter reaches ordinary small landlords. nonrefundable_fees_allowed=null: no statute addresses refundability; the § 34-18-15(a) regime (P.L. 2024 ch. 308/309, eff. 2025-01-01) requires every fee beyond rent to be disclosed (in the lease's rent section, or in writing if no lease) with undisclosed fees recoverable by the tenant, application fees are banned except actual-cost background/credit-check pass-through (§ 34-18-59, eff. 2024-01-01), and a nonrefundable charge functioning as damage security risks recharacterization under the 'however denominated' cap. Since 2026-07-01, § 34-18-63(e) (Survivor Early Lease Termination Act, P.L. 2026 ch. 147/148 — in force but not yet shown on the code site) restates the 20-day refund duty for survivors who terminate early; it changes nothing in this section's mechanics. Note § 34-18-11's subdivision numbering shifts when the 2026 act is absorbed — re-pin pinpoint cites then.

Statute citations

How this record was verified: Direct read of statute text on the official Rhode Island General Assembly site (webserver.rilegislature.gov): sections 34-18-19, 34-18-16.1, and 34-18-26 each read twice independently (WebFetch render + raw curl of the official HTML, verbatim), with every load-bearing figure matching (one-month deposit cap; $5,000 furniture threshold and separate one-month furniture deposit; 20-day return after the later of termination, delivery of possession, or forwarding address; twice-the-amount-wrongfully-withheld penalty plus attorney fees; 60-day rent-increase notice and 120-day notice for month-to-month tenants over 62; two days' entry notice). The 60/120 rent-increase figures were additionally reconciled against the enacted chapter text of P.L. 2024, ch. 243 (H 7304A, effective upon passage 2024-06-24), which shows the strike-through amendment from the former 30/60. Supporting sections read once (34-18-8, 34-18-11, 34-18-15, 34-18-35, 34-18-37, 34-18-45, 34-18-58, 34-18-59, 34-18-61, 34-18-62) plus the full ch. 34-18 section index as the sweep basis for verified negatives (no deposit interest or escrow requirement, no late-fee cap or grace statute, no rent-increase frequency limit, no preemption statute). Session-law sweeps: 2025 confirmed absorbed into the code (34-18-62, P.L. 2025 ch. 395/396, eff. 2025-07-02, is live); the full 2026 public-laws-by-subject table (Law Revision office, session adjourned sine die 2026-06-11) was swept — the only on-topic enactments are P.L. 2026 ch. 147/148 (Survivor Early Lease Termination Act, new secs. 34-18-63 to 34-18-67 plus amended 34-18-11 definitions, EFFECTIVE 2026-07-01 and in force but not yet displayed on the code site; no change to any field in this record) and ch. 165/166 (shoreline rental disclosure, out of scope). Rent control: 2025 bills S0580/H5264 (4% cap), H5676 (10%+CPI), and H5954 (Providence enabling) all died; 2026 refile S2271 died at sine-die adjournment (absent from the enacted-laws sweep; LegiScan status pages 403-blocked); Providence's 4% rent-stabilization ordinance passed the city council 2026-04-16, was vetoed by Mayor Smiley 2026-04-17, and the override failed in May 2026 — no rent control is in force anywhere in Rhode Island.