A sublease agreement in Virginia is a legal contract between the original tenant of an apartment and a temporary tenant who will take his or her place while they are away. Though the new tenant (referred to as the Sublessee) will reside and pay rent just as the original tenant did, the sublessor (the original tenant) will be held responsible should anything unfortunate happen because the Sublessee does not have a contract with the landlord, he or she only holds a contract with sublessor. These types of agreements are common when a tenant must leave his or her apartment or rental property for an extended period of time. These types of agreements can be effective for a period of one month to several months and are extremely flexible for both the sublessor and sublessee.
In Virginia, a tenant can legally sublet his or her rental as long as the lease that he or she signed does not specifically prohibit it. As a good business practice, and to prevent any potential issues, the tenant should receive written permission from the landlord.