If my landlord gives me an eviction notice, do I have to move?

If your landlord wants to evict you, they must first give you a written notice on a Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) form.

The form should have a name that starts with Notice to End Your Tenancy. It might have one of these numbers at the top: N4, N5, N6, N7, N8, N12, or N13.

Some notices tell you how to cancel the notice so you will not have to move out. For example, you can pay rent that the notice says you owe. Or you can stop doing something that the notice says you have done.

If you cannot cancel the notice, it does not mean you have to move out. But your landlord can take the next step and apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) for an order to evict you.

What the notice should say

The notice must include:

• the address of the rental unit
• the date your landlord wants you to move, called the termination date
• the reason your landlord wants you to leave and details about the issue

The notice must be signed by your landlord or their representatives.

Delivery of the notice

There are several ways that your landlord can give you the notice. For example, they can mail it, put it in your mailbox, or hand it to you.

Your landlord can only give a notice to you by email if you have agreed to this in writing. For example, your rental agreement might say your landlord can send notices by email. Or you might have signed the LTB form Consent to Service by Email.

If you do not want your landlord to send you documents like notices by email anymore, you can write to them and say you no longer want them to do this.

Your landlord is not allowed to attach the notice to your door.

Alternative delivery methods

Your landlord may want to send you a notice using a different way than what the LTB usually allows. But the landlord must first ask the LTB for permission to use that delivery method.

For example, you might regularly communicate with your landlord by email. But you did not sign the Consent to Service by Email form to say you will accept documents by email. In this situation, your landlord must ask the LTB to accept email delivery as an alternative method. Your landlord must also explain that you will get the notice or documents in time.

If the LTB does not give the landlord permission to use the delivery method, the LTB can make a decision without those documents.

But if the LTB accepts your landlord's delivery method, they can decide the case using those documents. You should be prepared:

• to explain why the delivery method does not work, and
• to argue your case including those documents.