This information is for reference only and is not legal advice. Consult a licensed lawyer before any transaction.
Civil and Commercial Code - Usufruct
Civil and Commercial Code ss.1417-1428
The information is reviewed and updated monthly against official sources.
In short
A registrable right to use another's land or building and take its income for life or up to 30 years. A common way to protect a foreign spouse.
1417: Nature and Content of Usufruct
A usufruct can only be established over immovable property and gives the holder rights to possess, use and derive benefit from it, plus authority to manage it. Where the asset is forestland, a mine or a quarry, the holder may extract and exploit its natural resources.
1418: Duration and Automatic Termination at Death
Parties may fix a term for the usufruct or grant it for the holder's lifetime; absent any stated term, a lifetime grant is presumed. A fixed-term usufruct follows the same maximum-duration rule as superficies. Regardless of form, the right always ends when the holder dies.
1419: Destruction, Compensation and Expropriation
If the property perishes with no compensation paid, the owner need not rebuild, though any voluntary restoration revives the usufruct proportionally. Where compensation is received, either party may be required to restore the asset; if restoration is impossible, the usufruct ends and compensation is split according to each party's loss. These rules extend to expropriation and partial destruction.
1420: Return of Property and Liability on Termination
When the usufruct ends, the holder must hand the property back to the owner. He answers for any loss or decline in value unless he shows the harm was not his fault, and must replace anything improperly consumed. No compensation is owed for wear resulting from reasonable, normal use.
1421: Standard of Care Required of the Holder
While exercising his rights, the usufruct holder must look after the property with the same diligence a reasonably careful person would apply to property of his own, avoiding neglect or careless treatment that a prudent owner would not tolerate.
1422: Transfer of the Exercise of Rights
Unless the founding instrument states otherwise, the holder may hand over the exercise of his usufruct rights to a third party. Once this occurs, the property owner gains a direct right of action against that third party, not only against the original holder.
1423: Owner's Objection, Security and Court-Appointed Receiver
The owner may oppose unlawful or unreasonable use of the property and, upon showing his interests are endangered, demand security from the holder (except where a donor retained the usufruct for himself). If security is not furnished in due time, or unlawful use continues despite objection, a court may appoint a receiver to manage the property instead of the holder, later lifting this appointment once security is given.
1424: Preservation of Substance and Repairs
The holder must keep the essential character of the property unchanged and attend to routine upkeep and minor repairs himself. Major repairs or urgent preservation measures must be promptly reported to the owner and permitted; if the owner fails to act, the holder may carry out the work and charge the owner for it.
1425: Extraordinary Expenses Borne by the Owner
All extraordinary costs fall on the owner, who may sell part of the property to cover them or the repair costs described above, unless the usufruct holder chooses to advance the needed funds interest-free.
1426: Running Costs, Taxes and Interest During the Usufruct
Throughout the usufruct, its holder covers ordinary management expenses, pays applicable taxes and duties on the property, and remains responsible for interest accruing on debts secured against it.
1427: Insurance Obligations of the Holder
If the owner so requests, the holder must insure the property against loss for the owner's benefit, or renew existing coverage when it falls due, and must pay the insurance premiums for as long as his usufruct continues.
1428: Limitation Period for Claims Between Owner and Holder
Claims between the owner and the usufruct holder or his transferee arising from the usufruct must be brought within one year after the usufruct ends. If the owner could not have known of the termination, the one-year period instead runs from when he learned or reasonably should have learned of it.