Published 2026-09-27 · 10 min read

Montana Security Deposit Law 2026: Limits, Deadlines & Deductions

Montana's security deposit law, Mont. Code Ann. Title 70, Chapter 25 (§§ 70-25-101 to 70-25-206), is unusual in both directions. It sets no cap at all on how much you can collect, and its wrongful-withholding penalty has no multiplier — the tenant recovers the amount wrongfully withheld, nothing more. But it surrounds the deposit with traps: a 10-day full-refund clock for a clean move-out, a 30-day written list whose absence forfeits your right to withhold for damage and cleaning charges, a written cleaning notice with a 24-hour cure window that must be satisfied before any cleaning deduction, and a move-in condition statement that, if skipped, bars recovery for damage or cleaning unless you prove the tenant caused it by clear and convincing evidence.

The short version: Charge what the market will bear — no section limits the amount. At move-out, if inspection shows no damage, no cleaning required, and no unpaid rent, and the tenant demonstrates no utilities are unpaid, return the full deposit within 10 days (§ 70-25-202(1)(b)). Otherwise, within 30 days after termination or surrender and acceptance, whichever first, deliver a written list of rent due and damage and cleaning charges, with the balance (§ 70-25-202(1)(a)). Wrongfully withhold, and you owe the amount wrongfully withheld, with the burden of proving tenant-caused damage on you (§ 70-25-204).

Corrections to the earlier version of this page: The old page said a missed 30-day accounting "forfeits your right to deduct anything at all." Section 70-25-203 is narrower: the forfeiture covers withholding for the damages or cleaning charges — it does not by its terms reach a withholding for rent due. The old page also described refund delivery as mailing only; the 2025 amendment restructured § 70-25-202 so the 30-day list and the 10-day return sit together in subsection (1), added delivery by electronic fund transfer, cash, check, or other forms of refund, and added an exception in § 70-25-202(2) where the agreement was terminated under § 70-24-427 or § 70-33-427 and a claim is pending in court. The old page omitted five sections entirely: the definitions and anti-relabeling presumption (§ 70-25-101), the coverage rule (§ 70-25-102), the rule voiding contrary lease provisions and tenant waivers (§ 70-25-103), the forwarding-address rule (§ 70-25-205), and the move-in condition statement (§ 70-25-206).

Montana's 10-day clean-return clock is one of the tightest in the country — and a missed 30-day list forfeits your right to withhold for damage and cleaning charges. The Security Deposit Disposition & Deadline Tracker ($14.95) keeps your return deadlines, itemized deductions, and mailing dates in one spreadsheet so the clock never sneaks up on you.

The statute table

Limits: how much can you charge?

There is no deposit cap in Montana — not one month, not two. Under § 70-25-101(4), the definition carries two presumptions that defeat relabeling: any deposit a lease requires the tenant to provide or maintain is presumed to be a security deposit, and a fee or charge for cleaning and damages, no matter how designated, is presumed to be a security deposit. Calling part of the money a "non-refundable cleaning fee" does not take it outside the chapter. And § 70-25-103 voids any contrary lease provision or tenant waiver — you cannot contract around these rules.

The 10-day and 30-day deadlines, precisely

Two clocks run at move-out, and which one applies turns on the inspection. If, after inspection, there are no damages, no cleaning required, and no rent unpaid, and the tenant can demonstrate that no utilities are unpaid, the full deposit is due back within 10 days (§ 70-25-202(1)(b)(i)). Otherwise, within 30 days after termination or surrender and acceptance, whichever occurs first, you must provide the written list of rent due and damage and cleaning charges, with payment of the difference between the deposit and the permitted charges (§ 70-25-202(1)(a)(i)). Delivery follows § 70-25-202(1)(a)(ii): the refund by electronic fund transfer, cash, check, or other form of refund, or by mail to the tenant's new or last known address, and the list noticed under § 70-24-108 or § 70-33-106. One carve-out: § 70-25-202 does not apply where the agreement was terminated under § 70-24-427 or § 70-33-427 and you have a pending claim in court (§ 70-25-202(2)). Find your exact cutoff with the Security Deposit Deadline Finder.

When the clock actually starts

The trigger is the earlier of two events: termination of the tenancy, or your surrender and acceptance of the premises.

• Getting the keys back early starts the clock early — surrender and acceptance, not the term end, controls.
• The cleaning-notice process must fit inside the same window. The § 70-25-201(3) notice and 24-hour cure are a precondition to deducting cleaning charges, and the list must follow them — sequence both in the first days, not the last.

A worked example

Rent is $1,400 a month and the deposit is $1,400. The tenancy terminates, and you accept surrender, on Monday, June 1, 2026.

• The 30-day list-and-balance deadline is Wednesday, July 1, 2026. Had the move-out been clean, the full $1,400 would instead have been due within 10 days, by Thursday, June 11, 2026.
• Before termination, at the tenant's request, you inspect within the final week (§ 70-25-201(2)). Cleaning is incomplete, so you deliver the § 70-25-201(3) notice covering the uncompleted cleaning; the 24 hours run, still not done.
• Your lawful deductions total $725: $300 of unpaid rent, $275 to repair tenant-caused damage, and $150 of actual cleaning expenses (your own labor at a reasonable charge). The balance is $675.
• You deliver the list and the $675 on or before July 1: you have complied.
• If instead you never send the list, § 70-25-203 forfeits your right to withhold for the damage and cleaning charges: $275 + $150 = $425 must come back even though the charges were real, and wrongfully keeping it exposes you under § 70-25-204 to damages of $425 — no multiplier — plus a discretionary attorney-fee award.

Deductions and the itemized list

Under § 70-25-201(1), you may deduct the damage caused by the tenant, the unpaid rent, late charges, utilities, and penalties due under lease provisions, other money owing at the time of deduction, and actual cleaning expenses, including a reasonable charge for your own labor. The § 70-25-101 definitions matter: "damage" is tangible loss caused by the tenant (or the tenant's family, licensees, or invitees), and "cleaning expenses" excludes needs attributable to normal wear. Generate a compliant letter with the Security Deposit Deduction Letter Generator.

The cleaning-notice rule

Cleaning is the only deduction category with a procedural precondition, in three layers under § 70-25-201(3):

1. No cyclical-maintenance charges. Cleaning charges may not be imposed for normal maintenance performed on a cyclical basis, as noted when the tenant took the space — unless the tenant's negligence forced the maintenance.

2. Written notice first. No cleaning deduction until written notice states the cleaning not accomplished by the tenant and the additional amount and type or types of cleaning needed to bring the premises back to its condition at the time of renting (§ 70-25-201(3)(a)).

3. A 24-hour cure window. After delivery of the notice under § 70-24-108 or § 70-33-106, the tenant has 24 hours to complete the cleaning — unless the agreement is already terminated under § 70-24-427 or § 70-33-427 and you have a pending claim filed in court. Certified-mail service counts as made 3 days after mailing (§ 70-25-201(3)(b)).

If the tenant failed to notify you of the intent to vacate, or vacated without notice, you are relieved of the notice requirement and may deduct the cleaning charges — or you may instead leave a copy of the notice in a conspicuous location in the unit and notify the tenant by e-mail, phone, or text, and notice is considered delivered (§ 70-25-201(3)(c)).

Move-out compliance checklist

1. At signing, deliver the § 70-25-206 condition statement — a separate signed written statement of the premises' present condition.

2. Treat every move-in charge as a security deposit (§ 70-25-101(4)), however the lease labels it, and strip lease clauses that contradict Chapter 25 (§ 70-25-103).

3. Offer the pre-termination inspection — at either party's request, within 1 week before the tenancy terminates (§ 70-25-201(2)).

4. If cleaning is incomplete, serve the § 70-25-201(3) notice and let the full 24 hours run before deducting for cleaning.

5. Log the earlier trigger date — termination or surrender and acceptance, whichever first.

6. Pick your clock. Clean inspection, no unpaid rent, tenant demonstrates no unpaid utilities: full deposit back in 10 days (§ 70-25-202(1)(b)). Anything else: list plus balance in 30 days (§ 70-25-202(1)(a)).

7. Price each deduction against § 70-25-201(1) only and keep the proof — the burden of proof on damage is yours (§ 70-25-204(1)).

8. Deliver on time and keep the proof. Pay the balance by electronic fund transfer, cash, check, or other form of refund, or mail it to the new or last known address; notice the list under § 70-24-108 or § 70-33-106 (§ 70-25-202(1)(a)(ii)).

9. Never skip the list. A late or missing list forfeits withholding for damage and cleaning charges (§ 70-25-203), however genuine they are.

Interest and where the money sits

Chapter 25 imposes no interest requirement and no separate-account, escrow, or banking rule. What the 2025 amendment changed is the return mechanics: § 70-25-202(1)(a)(ii) and (1)(b)(ii) now expressly allow delivery by electronic fund transfer, cash, check, or other forms of refund.

The penalty, spelled out

Montana has two distinct sanctions, punishing two distinct failures:

• Failure to send the list — forfeiture (§ 70-25-203). A landlord who fails to provide the written list § 70-25-202 requires forfeits all rights to withhold any portion of the deposit for those damages or cleaning charges — on the worked example, $425 must be returned even if every charge was legitimate. Note the scope: the forfeiture is written in terms of damage and cleaning charges; it does not by its terms forfeit a withholding for rent due.
• Wrongful withholding — 1x damages (§ 70-25-204(1)). A person who wrongfully withholds the deposit or any portion of it is liable in a civil action for an amount equal to the sum determined to have been wrongfully withheld or deducted. There is no multiplier — $425 wrongfully kept is $425 in damages, not $850. Attorney fees may go to the prevailing party at the court's discretion, and the burden of proof of tenant-caused damage is on the landlord.
• The tenant cannot sue immediately (§ 70-25-204(2)). An action may not be maintained until one of four triggers: the tenant receives your written denial of the sum claimed; 30 days expire after termination; 30 days expire after surrender and acceptance; or 10 days expire after you indicated a clean move-out (no damage, no cleaning, no unpaid rent or utilities).
• The condition-statement bar (§ 70-25-206(3)). Skip the move-in condition statement (or the prior tenant's damage list, if requested in writing) and you are barred from recovering any sum for damage or cleaning unless you establish by clear and convincing evidence that the damage occurred during this tenancy and was caused by the tenant or the tenant's family, licensees, or invitees.

FAQ

Is there really no deposit cap in Montana?

Correct. No section of Chapter 25 limits the amount. The chapter regulates what counts as a deposit (§ 70-25-101(4)) and what it may be used for (§ 70-25-201), not how large it may be.

What is the 24-hour cleaning rule?

Before cleaning charges may be deducted, § 70-25-201(3) requires written notice stating the cleaning the tenant did not accomplish and the additional amount and types of cleaning needed. After delivery under § 70-24-108 or § 70-33-106, the tenant has 24 hours to complete it.

Can I deduct for my own labor cleaning the unit?

Yes — § 70-25-201(1) expressly includes a reasonable charge for the landlord's labor in actual cleaning expenses, subject to the § 70-25-201(3) notice-and-cure process and the normal-wear limit in § 70-25-101(1).

What happens if I miss the 30-day deadline for the list?

Under § 70-25-203 you forfeit all rights to withhold any portion of the deposit for the damage or cleaning charges.

Can I call part of the deposit a non-refundable fee and keep it outside these rules?

No. Section 70-25-101(4) presumes that a fee or charge for cleaning and damages, no matter how designated, is a security deposit, and § 70-25-103 invalidates any contrary lease provision and any attempted tenant waiver.

What if the tenant never gives me a forwarding address?

Mail the refund to the tenant's last known address. That mailing is not wrongful withholding (§ 70-25-202(1)(c)), but you remain liable for the amount due, and the tenant's silence does not bar recovery (§ 70-25-205).

Do I owe interest on the deposit, or have to hold it in a separate account?

Neither. Chapter 25 contains no interest requirement and no escrow, segregation, or banking rule.

What is the move-in condition statement, and what if I skipped it?

Section 70-25-206(1) requires anyone who takes a security deposit to furnish each tenant, at lease execution or creation of the tenancy, a separate signed written statement of the premises' present condition (§ 70-25-206(2)). If you failed to furnish it (or the prior tenant's damage list, on written request), § 70-25-206(3) bars recovery of any sum for damage or cleaning unless you prove by clear and convincing evidence that the tenant caused the damage during this tenancy.

Read the statute yourself

Everything here traces back to Mont. Code Ann. Title 70, Chapter 25, Parts 1 and 2. If anything is disputed, the primary sources control:

• Mont. Code Ann. § 70-25-201 (Montana Legislature) — deductions and the cleaning-notice rule.
• Mont. Code Ann. § 70-25-202 (Montana Legislature) — the 30-day list, 10-day return, and delivery methods.
• Mont. Code Ann. § 70-25-205 (Montana Legislature) — failure to furnish a new address.
• Mont. Code Ann. § 70-25-206 (Montana Legislature) — the move-in statement of condition.
• Mont. Code Ann. § 70-25-204 (Justia) — wrongful withholding and the 1x damages measure.

The deposit is only one piece of Montana compliance. Our full Montana landlord-tenant law guide covers the rest of the relationship — rent, fees, and increases, applications and screening, required disclosures, and the landlord's and tenant's statutory duties.

More security deposit guides

• Security deposit laws by state
• Missouri security deposit law
• Nebraska security deposit law
• Mississippi security deposit law
• Nevada security deposit law

Last verified: October 15, 2026. This is general information, not legal advice. Verify with a licensed Montana attorney before acting.