Kentucky Security Deposit Law: How Many Days and What to Do
Kentucky does not set a fixed number of days to return a deposit. Your landlord must send you a written notice of any refund due, and you must answer it within 60 days or you lose it.
Last checked 2026-07-14
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Details of the return rules
In Kentucky, a landlord has No fixed statutory deadline (landlord shall send notification of any refund due when tenant leaves not owing rent) or 30 calendar days (landlord may then remove deposit from account and apply excess to the debt owing (application-to-debt rule, not a return deadline)) or 60 calendar days (if tenant does not respond, landlord may remove and retain deposit free of tenant claims (unclaimed funds rule)) to return a security deposit.
| When it applies | Deadline | Starts from |
|---|
Kentucky return rule: No fixed statutory deadline (landlord shall send notification of any refund due when tenant leaves not owing rent). Check the dates you entered above.
Key facts
| Deadline | No fixed statutory deadline (landlord shall send notification of any refund due when tenant leaves not owing rent) (no fixed statutory number of days after move-out to return the deposit; statute requires notification of refund amount but does not set a calendar return deadline); trigger: landlord shall send notification of any refund due when tenant leaves not owing rent |
|---|---|
| Additional deadline 2 | 30 calendar days (landlord may then remove deposit from account and apply excess to the debt owing (application-to-debt rule, not a return deadline)); trigger: after the tenant leaves without paying the final month of rent and does not demand return of the deposit |
| Additional deadline 3 | 60 calendar days (if tenant does not respond, landlord may remove and retain deposit free of tenant claims (unclaimed funds rule)); trigger: after landlord sends notification of refund amount due |
| Penalty formula | landlord not entitled to retain any portion of the deposit if deposit was not held in the required separate account and initial and final damage listings were not provided |
| Bad faith required | No |
| Statute citation | Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.580 |
How does Kentucky's deadline compare with other states?
Kentucky's return deadline is No fixed return deadline. The middle of the comparable state deadlines is ≈30 days. Use the dates and questions above to see which deadline applies to you.
| State | Return rule |
|---|---|
| Kentucky | No fixed return deadline |
| Colorado | 30 days |
| Georgia | 30 days |
| Iowa | 30 days |
| Louisiana | 30 days |
| Maine | 30 days |
See all 51 jurisdictions
| State | Return rule |
|---|---|
| Montana | 10 days |
| Alaska | 14 days |
| Arizona | 14 days |
| Hawaii | 14 days |
| Kansas | 14 days |
| Nebraska | 14 days |
| New York | 14 days |
| Vermont | 14 days |
| Florida | 15 days |
| Delaware | 20 days |
| Rhode Island | 20 days |
| California | 21 days |
| Connecticut | 21 days |
| Idaho | 21 days |
| Minnesota | 21 days |
| South Dakota | 21 days |
| Wisconsin | 21 days |
| Colorado | 30 days |
| Georgia | 30 days |
| Iowa | 30 days |
| Louisiana | 30 days |
| Maine | 30 days |
| Massachusetts | 30 days |
| Michigan | 30 days |
| Missouri | 30 days |
| Nevada | 30 days |
| New Hampshire | 30 days |
| New Jersey | 30 days |
| New Mexico | 30 days |
| North Carolina | 30 days |
| North Dakota | 30 days |
| Ohio | 30 days |
| Pennsylvania | 30 days |
| South Carolina | 30 days |
| Texas | 30 days |
| Utah | 30 days |
| Washington | 30 days |
| Wyoming | 30 days |
| Oregon | 31 days |
| District of Columbia | 45 days |
| Illinois | 45 days |
| Indiana | 45 days |
| Maryland | 45 days |
| Mississippi | 45 days |
| Oklahoma | 45 days |
| Virginia | 45 days |
| Alabama | 60 days |
| Arkansas | 60 days |
| West Virginia | 60 days |
| Kentucky | No fixed return deadline |
| Tennessee | No fixed return deadline |
Source: state statute records · checked 2026-07-14 · n=48 fixed rules among 51 jurisdictions · method: first listed return deadline; calendar months plotted as ≈30 days · computed, not measured · release 5c9b10e6dffc94d70cee7a2f28ed0379eb3ce9d6
What happens if the landlord misses the deadline?
landlord not entitled to retain any portion of the deposit if deposit was not held in the required separate account and initial and final damage listings were not provided The statutory amount depends on the facts and any conditions in Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.580; it is separate from the deposit owed.
Kentucky is one of 5 states where the cited remedy has no set multiple.
| Rule | States | Share |
|---|---|---|
| The law sets a multiple of the deposit | 36 | 71% |
| The law names another remedy (forfeiture, fees, damages) | 10 | 20% |
| Read the cited remedy; no multiple is set ← Kentucky | 5 | 10% |
Source: Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.580 · checked 2026-07-14 · n=51 · method: computed from state records · computed, not measured · release 5c9b10e6dffc94d70cee7a2f28ed0379eb3ce9d6
What do you have to do before you can claim the penalty?
Send the required information to start the clock.
Does the deadline move if it falls on a weekend or holiday?
Kentucky's general rule for counting legal time periods says: ... unless it is a Saturday, a Sunday, a legal holiday, or other day...legally closed, in which event the period shall run until the end of the next day that is not a Saturday, a Sunday, a legal holiday.
(KRS § 446.030). Whether a court applies it to a landlord's deposit deadline depends on the case, so this page does not move the deadline for you.
To be safe: if the last day falls on a weekend or holiday, treat the deadline as passed only after the next business day. Example: October 10, 2026 is a Saturday, so wait until October 12, 2026 before saying the deadline has passed.
What Kentucky law requires of the landlord
The deposit return rule is No fixed statutory deadline (landlord shall send notification of any refund due when tenant leaves not owing rent) or 30 calendar days (landlord may then remove deposit from account and apply excess to the debt owing (application-to-debt rule, not a return deadline)) or 60 calendar days (if tenant does not respond, landlord may remove and retain deposit free of tenant claims (unclaimed funds rule)). The law also requires an itemized statement when deductions are made.
- Return window
- No fixed statutory deadline (landlord shall send notification of any refund due when tenant leaves not owing rent) or 30 calendar days (landlord may then remove deposit from account and apply excess to the debt owing (application-to-debt rule, not a return deadline)) or 60 calendar days (if tenant does not respond, landlord may remove and retain deposit free of tenant claims (unclaimed funds rule))
- Itemization
- Required
- Receipts threshold
- No separate threshold recorded
- Interest
- Separate account required; interest on that account not mandated by KRS 383.580.
Is interest owed on a deposit in Kentucky?
Kentucky is one of 37 states where interest is not required by state law.
| Rule | States | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Required by state law | 3 | 6% |
| Owed only in some cases | 11 | 22% |
| Not required by state law ← Kentucky | 37 | 73% |
Source: Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.580 · checked 2026-07-14 · n=51 · method: computed from state records · computed, not measured · release 5c9b10e6dffc94d70cee7a2f28ed0379eb3ce9d6
FAQ
How do I confirm the Kentucky deadline?
Use the questions above to match your dates to Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.580, and keep proof of each date.
What is the small claims limit in Kentucky?
See the applicable court limits and jurisdictions in the state court guide. Kentucky court guide
City data on this page currently includes Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green, Owensboro, Covington, Georgetown, Richmond, Florence.
Statute text, sources and changes
Statute says
In the event the tenant leaves not owing rent and having any refund due, the landlord shall send notification to the last known or reasonably determinable address, of the amount of any refund due the tenant. In the event the landlord shall not have received a response from the tenant within sixty (60) days from the sending of such notification, the landlord may remove the deposit from the account and retain it free from any claim of the tenant or any person claiming in his behalf.
What this means
Sources
- https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=35733 · accessed 2026-07-14
- https://www.kyjustice.org/topics/evictions/security-deposits-only-places-passed-urlta-uniform-residential-landlord-tenant-act · accessed 2026-07-14
- https://www.kycourts.gov/Legal-Help/Documents/P-6_Small_Claims_Handbook.pdf · accessed 2026-07-14
Changes
- : Record verified against the cited statute.
Verified 2026-07-14 · release 5c9b10e6dffc94d70cee7a2f28ed0379eb3ce9d6