Private Legal Practitioner, Lawyer Mildred Acheampong, has warned Landlords and Landladies to desist from renting apartments to non-citizens who do not have resident permits.
Speaking in an interview on XYZ TV, she stated that renting apartments has legal implications.
“It is so important to know whether a foreigner seeking to rent your apartment has a residence permit or not,” she said.
She stressed that the laws of the state frowns upon accommodating foreigners without permits since some may be fleeing their countries over various reasons, including running away from authorities in their home countries after committing crimes.
Additionally, she said Landladies and Landlords who fail to comply with the laws in relation to this are likely to be fined by the state.
She noted that although citizens from neighboring countries can come to Ghana using their ECOWAS cards and engage in trade activities due to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and other policies aimed at boosting trade and cooperation among African countries, such persons who wish to stay longer than the stipulated time for their trading activities need to seek resident permits.
“If someone does not have the permit and you host the person, it only means you’re hosting an illegal immigrant in your house,” she stated.
“Someone may have committed a crime in their native country and is seeking to take refuge in Ghana and has come to stay in your house. So any non-Ghanaian citizen seeking to reside in Ghana needs a definite resident permit,” she added.