1. Review the notice
Question and answer
What can happen if I do not pay my rent on time?Unpaid rent
If your rent is late by even one day, your landlord can try to you. But they must follow certain steps.
First, your landlord must give you a Form N4: Notice to End your Tenancy Early for Non-payment of Rent. This must include details about the amount of rent your landlord says you owe.
You have 7 days to cancel the Form N4 by paying all the rent that you owe. Make sure the landlord gives you a receipt for your payment.
Your payment must also include any rent that comes due after the date on the notice.
If you do not pay everything that you owe by the deadline, your landlord can apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) to evict you.
Use CLEO's free Eviction Solution Explorer to learn what you can do if your landlord wants to evict you because you owe rent. It can help you build defences, make a payment plan, and create speaking notes for your hearing.
If your rent is often late
If you are often late with your rent, your landlord might give you a Form N8: Notice to End your Tenancy at the End of the Term. On the form, your landlord would check the box called, “You have persistently failed to pay your rent in full on the date it became due.” This is also called “persistent late”.
“Persistent late” payment means that you have not paid rent within 7 days of the due date, at least 3 times, within a 6-month . The LTB can also make a different decision about what is persistent late.
Your landlord can give you this notice even if you have paid all your rent.
After giving you this notice, your landlord can apply to the LTB to evict you.
If your landlord wants payment only
Your landlord might choose to ask for payment without asking you to move out. Your landlord could apply to the LTB just for an to make you pay.
Landlords sometimes ask only for payment when they do not want to lose a long-standing tenant or think they will not be able to find a new tenant. They might also do this if you have a and they want to keep you responsible for the rent until the end of the .
And the landlord might also ask for payment if you have already moved out. But they must apply to the LTB within one year after the date you moved out.
Credit reporting agency
Your landlord could also report your overdue rent to a credit reporting agency. This can affect your credit rating and make it harder in the future for you to rent a place or get a loan.
If you want to know whether your landlord has reported you to any credit agencies, you have the right to get a free copy of your credit report. You can request a copy from either of the two main credit reporting agencies in Canada: Equifax and TransUnion.
You can also ask for your credit record to be corrected if it contains wrong information.