If you find a pet your Oregon tenant never told you about, check the lease and speak with them first. Ask if they need the pet because of a disability. That request needs its own review. Oregon law offers two notice routes for a pet that breaks the lease: the pet-specific 10-day route and the general 30-day route. Each has its own rules.
Updated October 8, 2026.
Set an Oregon pet policy you can enforce
You can set rules for ordinary pets, such as limits on their number, type or size and a need for prior approval. ORS 90.220 allows lease terms that do not conflict with law. Under ORS 90.262, rules must be clear, fair and disclosed in writing to be enforced. A later rule that makes a substantial change to the bargain needs the tenant’s written consent under the law in force today.
State what the tenant must do before bringing a pet home. List approved pets, who will care for them, waste cleanup rules and any lawful charges. Give assistance-animal requests their own review process. Our guide to pet-friendly rentals can help you weigh a pet policy; Oregon law controls the terms you adopt.
This guide concerns residential house and apartment tenancies. Manufactured-dwelling and floating-home space tenancies in facilities have separate provisions. ORS 90.405 expressly excludes tenancies governed by ORS 90.505–90.850.
Separate pet deposits, pet rent and fees
Refundable pet deposits
ORS 90.300 sets no general statewide dollar cap on security deposits, but local limits still matter. A pet deposit secures the lease. You must treat it as a refundable security deposit, give a receipt and list it in the written lease.
During the first year, you generally cannot demand a new or higher deposit. An exception applies when you and the tenant agree to change the lease to allow a pet. The extra deposit must relate to that change. After the first year, you must allow at least three months to pay a required new or higher deposit. You still cannot charge a pet deposit for a qualifying assistance animal.
You have 31 days after both the tenancy ends and the tenant gives back possession to return the unclaimed balance. Send a written account of any amount you keep and the specific reasons. You cannot deduct for ordinary wear and tear. Finding a pet does not itself give you a right to keep the deposit.
Portland’s deposit limits
For covered rentals within Portland, City Code 30.01.087 caps the total deposit. Without last month’s rent, the usual limit is one month’s rent. If you collect last month’s rent, the extra security deposit cannot exceed half a month’s rent. For a qualifying conditional approval under the city’s screening rules, you can collect another half-month deposit. Allow installments over up to three months for that addition.
Count a pet security deposit within that total. It cannot go above the limit. Portland also requires you to hold deposit funds apart from your own accounts and keep detailed condition records. A Portland-area mailing address alone does not mean a home falls within the city.
Monthly pet rent and nonrefundable charges
ORS 90.100 defines rent to include payment for a tenant and a permitted pet to occupy the home. Agreed pet rent is separate from a refundable deposit. Before you add or raise it during a tenancy, check the lease and rent-change rules. Finding a pet does not give you a right to raise the rent at once.
HB 2070 in the 2025 session proposed a ban on extra pet rent and fees. Its official record shows only introduced text, a committee location and no enacted chapter. It did not become law. That old session record does not mean the bill is still active in 2026 or that you must accept ordinary pets.
ORS 90.302 does not generally allow a flat, nonrefundable fee just to admit a pet. It limits the fees you can charge and requires written lease terms. Certain later breaches can support a fee, but only through the warning process described below.
Review assistance animals separately
Ordinary pets, ADA service animals and housing assistance animals fall under different rules. Under the ADA, a service dog has training to perform tasks related to a person’s disability. An animal that gives comfort just by being present is not an ADA service animal. Review housing requests under fair-housing law.
ORS 659A.145 bars disability discrimination in housing. You must make reasonable changes to rules when needed for a person with a disability to use and enjoy the home equally. This is a reasonable accommodation. ORS 90.300(4) forbids a pet security deposit for a service or companion animal required as such an accommodation. A no-pet clause does not settle that request.
If a tenant says they need the animal because of a disability, review that request before treating it as an unapproved pet. Review pet limits and any request to waive pet rent or fees as part of the accommodation. Do not decide from the animal’s breed, weight or a bought registration certificate alone. Use the housing law and the facts of that tenant’s case.
What HUD changed in 2025 and 2026
HUD withdrew its 2013 and 2020 animal guidance on September 17, 2025. Its May 22, 2026 memo permanently rescinded the 2020 notice. It told FHEO staff to find reasonable cause and recommend charges only in cases where an animal has training to assist with a disability.
The same memo says people can still bring private court actions. It describes plans for new rules; it does not replace the Fair Housing Act. That Act still requires necessary, reasonable accommodations, as does Oregon’s own law. These texts do not support approving every claimed emotional support animal or rejecting every untrained animal.
Get Oregon legal advice before you deny a disputed request or impose pet charges while it remains open. Ask only for what you need to assess the request. Keep disability-related records private. Oregon Laws 2026, chapter 61, took effect June 5. It restricts what landlords can disclose about medical and disability records, with listed exceptions.
Document the animal before choosing a remedy
A neighbor’s complaint is a reason to check the facts. It does not prove that the tenant broke the lease. Start with a short written record:
- Check the signed lease, animal addenda and earlier approvals or accommodation requests.
- Record what you observed, when and where. Separate a visitor’s animal from one the tenant keeps at the property.
- Ask the tenant to explain the animal’s presence and whether they are requesting a disability-related exception.
- Document any actual noise, waste, injury or damage separately from the approval issue.
Follow the access rules when you gather evidence. For an ordinary inspection, ORS 90.322 generally requires at least 24 hours’ actual notice and entry at a reasonable time. It also sets rules for consent, refusals and exceptions. A suspected pet alone does not give you a right to enter as an emergency. Keep your inspection records focused on the home’s condition.
Choose the right Oregon notice
The pet-specific 10-day route
ORS 90.405 applies when a tenant keeps a pet that breaks the lease and is capable of harming people or property. The law considers the pet’s nature, size or behavior. It also considers risks from how it is kept, such as water damage from medium or larger fish tanks. You do not need to show that damage has already occurred.
The written notice must describe the breach and give at least 10 days from service before the tenancy ends. It must state that removing the pet before that date avoids termination. If substantially the same breach recurs within six months after the first notice, subsection (3) permits another notice with at least 10 days. Ask counsel to check the grounds and wording before you use that repeat-breach route.
The general lease-violation route
ORS 90.392 covers material lease breaches. For an ongoing breach the tenant can fix, the usual month-to-month or fixed-term notice gives at least 30 days before the tenancy ends. It must describe at least one remedy and allow at least 14 days to cure, meaning fix the breach.
If substantially the same breach follows a notice under that section within the past six months, a later notice can end the tenancy without another chance to cure. Allow at least 10 days from service and do not set a date earlier than the first notice’s end date. Week-to-week tenancies have different periods. Do not mix parts of these notice routes into a homemade form.
For serious injury or threats, check ORS 90.396. It sets specific grounds and rights to cure by removing the pet. A dispute over whether you approved a pet does not itself meet those emergency grounds.
Serve the notice correctly
ORS 90.155 permits personal delivery or first-class mail. Mail alone adds three days to the required compliance or termination period. Mail plus secure door attachment is available only under a qualifying written lease provision.
Email service needs a qualifying addendum signed after the tenant moves in. To use this option for a termination notice, send both first-class mail and email. A text message or portal alert alone is not enough. Under ORS 90.160, count day-based periods in consecutive calendar days. Leave out the day you serve the notice.
A termination notice does not give you a right to lock the tenant out. If they remain, use the court process to regain possession. ORS 90.435 also prohibits cutting essential services, such as water or heat, to force them out.
Warnings, fees and actual damage
Under the current ORS 90.302, an unauthorized pet covered by ORS 90.405 can support a fee of up to $250 for a second or later breach. Your written rules must describe the conduct and fees. Give a written warning that states the first breach and the later charges. The later breach must occur within one year of that warning.
You must wait at least 48 hours after the warning before charging that pet fee. Give the warning or charge the fee within 30 days of the conduct, as applicable. When you charge a later fee, send a notice that describes the breach. You cannot charge this fee and terminate for the same breach, or take it out of rent payments. Permitted waste-cleanup fees have their own limits.
The June 5, 2026 change to ORS 90.302 left these pet-fee rules in place. It changed rules for electronic payments, not the right to charge for admitting a pet.
Keep lawful rent, deposits and fees separate in your rent ledger. At move-out, compare any damage with the home’s condition at the start. Use Oregon’s rules for deductions and Portland’s extra rules where they apply.
Frequently asked questions
How much can an Oregon landlord charge for a pet deposit?
Oregon sets no general statewide cap on security deposits, but Portland limits the total for covered rentals. A pet deposit must stay refundable. Under ORS 90.300, send the accounting and refund within 31 days after both the tenancy ends and the tenant gives back possession. You cannot charge a pet security deposit for a qualifying service or companion animal.
Can I evict an Oregon tenant for an unauthorized pet?
A lease breach can support termination, but first review any request based on a disability. When its conditions apply, ORS 90.405 gives a pet-specific 10-day notice route and an initial right to remove the pet. ORS 90.392 has a different route for material lease breaches. Serve the proper notice before going to court to regain possession.
Did HUD’s 2026 change end emotional support animal protections?
No. HUD narrowed its enforcement approach and rescinded earlier guidance. Its May 22 memo says people can still bring private court actions. Oregon’s law still requires necessary, reasonable accommodations and protects qualifying service or companion animals from pet deposits. Review each request under housing law. Do not approve or reject it just because the animal is untrained.
Help with your Oregon rental
Check the lease and the pet’s status before you choose a notice. For help with your rental, speak with our Portland team or Bend team. You can also contact Utopia and tell us where you own property.
Sources
Checked 2026-10-08. Oregon statutes below use the official 2025 edition together with the applicable 2026 session laws. Portland requirements apply within the city to covered rentals.
- Oregon Legislature: ORS chapter 90 — lease terms, rules, deposits, rent, access, notices, pet-specific termination and possession; particularly ORS 90.100, 90.155, 90.160, 90.220, 90.262, 90.300, 90.322, 90.392, 90.396, 90.405 and 90.435. Checked 2026-10-08.
- Oregon Legislature: 2026 amended and repealed statutes table — identifies amendments checked against the statutory edition. Checked 2026-10-08.
- Oregon Laws 2026, chapter 23, SB 1523 — current ORS 90.302 fee text and June 5, 2026 effective date. Checked 2026-10-08.
- Oregon Laws 2026, chapter 61, HB 4123 — confidential-information disclosure restrictions, exceptions and June 5, 2026 effective date. Checked 2026-10-08.
- Portland City Code 30.01.087 — deposit limits, conditional-approval addition, segregated funds and condition records. Checked 2026-10-08.
- Oregon Legislature: HB 2070, 2025 session record — proposed pet-rent prohibition, introduced version and absence of an enacted chapter. Checked 2026-10-08.
- Oregon Legislature: ORS 659A.145 — disability discrimination and necessary reasonable accommodations in housing. Checked 2026-10-08.
- U.S. Government Publishing Office: 42 USC 3604 — Fair Housing Act reasonable-accommodation provision, subsection (f)(3)(B). Official 2024 code edition. Checked 2026-10-08.
- U.S. Department of Justice: service animals and the ADA — trained-task definition and distinction from comfort-only animals; ADA scope, not a current HUD housing manual. Checked 2026-10-08.
- HUD: September 17, 2025 withdrawal notice — withdrawal of the 2013 and 2020 animal guidance. Checked 2026-10-08.
- HUD: May 22, 2026 animal-accommodation enforcement guidance — rescission, trained-assistance enforcement standard, private court actions and planned rulemaking. Checked 2026-10-08.
This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm the law, property jurisdiction and tenancy type with a qualified Oregon attorney before imposing disputed charges, denying an accommodation or serving a termination notice.
