The N4 notice for non-payment of rent in Ontario: the new 7-day rule

Since September 21, 2026, an Ontario landlord whose tenant has not paid rent can give a notice of termination with a termination date as early as the 7th day after the notice is given, for every type of tenancy. Before that date, the 7-day minimum applied only to daily and weekly tenancies; monthly and all other tenancies needed at least 14 days. The notice must still state the rent owing, and it is still void if the tenant pays before the landlord applies to the Landlord and Tenant Board.

This is one of the more practical changes to the Residential Tenancies Act in recent years, and it lands directly in the material students study for Course 3 and Simulation 1. Monthly tenancies are the norm in Ontario, so for most landlords the minimum notice for unpaid rent has been cut in half.

What has not changed matters just as much. A notice is still only a notice. The tenancy ends early only if the tenant leaves or the Board orders it, and the tenant's right to fix the problem by paying is intact.

What changed in the N4 notice period?

Section 59(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act was repealed and replaced by the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025 (S.O. 2025, c. 14, Sched. 12, s. 4), effective September 21, 2026.

The wording is now one rule: if a tenant fails to pay rent lawfully owing, the landlord may give notice of termination effective not earlier than the 7th day after the notice is given (RTA, s. 59(1)).

The Board's form for this notice is commonly called the N4. Use the version the Board currently publishes; a form printed before the change may carry the old period.

What must a non-payment notice say?

Every landlord's notice of termination must be in the Board's approved form, identify the rental unit, state the termination date and be signed by the landlord or the landlord's representative (RTA, s. 43(1)). It must also give the reasons and tell the tenant that a landlord can apply to the Board if they stay, and that they may dispute any application (s. 43(2)).

A non-payment notice adds two specific requirements (s. 59(2)):

• the amount of rent due; and
• a statement that the tenant can avoid termination by paying, on or before the termination date, the rent due in the notice plus any additional rent that has come due by the date of payment.

When does a tenant's payment void the notice?

The notice is void if, before the landlord applies to the Board for an eviction order based on it, the tenant pays the arrears and any additional rent that would have come due had the notice not been given (s. 59(3)).

The tenant's chances to pay do not end there:

The landlord cannot apply until the day after the termination date in the notice (s. 74(1)). Unlike most other notices, there is no 30-day deadline for applying on a non-payment notice (s. 69(3)).

How do you count the 7 days?

Count from the day the notice is given. The termination date can be no earlier than the 7th day after that. How the notice is delivered matters: a notice sent by mail is deemed given on the fifth day after mailing (s. 191(3)), so mailing pushes the earliest termination date back. Handing it to the tenant, or to an apparently adult person in the unit, or leaving it in the unit's mailbox are all permitted methods (s. 191(1)).

A worked example: a basement unit in Kingston

Farida Osei rents the basement of her house on Sydenham Street in Kingston to Leon Bouchard at $1,780 a month, due on the 1st. On the 4th, the rent is still unpaid.

• Hand delivery on the 4th. The earliest termination date Farida can put in the notice is the 11th. Under the old rule it would have been the 18th.
• Mailed on the 4th. The notice is deemed given on the 9th, so the earliest termination date is the 16th.
• Leon pays $1,780 on the 10th, before any application. The notice is void and the tenancy carries on.
• Leon does not pay. Farida can apply to the Board from the 12th, the day after the termination date. If Leon then pays the arrears, any further rent due and her application fee before the order issues, the application is discontinued.

At no point can Farida change the locks or remove Leon's belongings. A landlord may recover possession only if the tenant vacates or the Board orders an eviction (s. 39), and seizing a tenant's property for unpaid rent without legal process is prohibited (s. 40).

What should an exam candidate know?

Two things, kept separate.

Know the current rule. Seven days for every residential tenancy, with the contents and voiding rules unchanged. That is what you will use in practice.

Answer course questions as the course teaches. Course material, practice sets and older questions written before September 21, 2026 may describe 14 days for a monthly tenancy. If a question is clearly built on the course's version, answer it the way the course teaches, then move on. Do not argue with the question; read what it is actually testing.

The traps the exam likes are mostly unaffected by the change:

• Paying the arrears before the landlord applies voids the notice. Paying after still helps, but through the Board process.
• The notice does not evict anyone. Only a Board order, enforced by the sheriff, does.
• Persistent late payment is a different ground, ended at the end of a period or term (s. 58(1), para. 1), not with a non-payment notice.
• Commercial tenancies are different law entirely. Under the Commercial Tenancies Act, unless the lease says otherwise, a landlord may re-enter once rent is 15 days overdue (s. 18(1)). Do not mix the two regimes; see net vs gross leases for the commercial side.

For how this fits the wider residential tenancy material, see how to study Course 3.

What should landlords and salespersons do now?

Landlords should use the Board's current form, recalculate any template or diary system built around 14 days, and record exactly how and when each notice was delivered. The earliest date is a minimum, not a requirement: a landlord can always give a later termination date.

Salespersons meet this in two places. When a landlord client asks for help with a tenant in arrears, explain the lawful route in general terms, point them to the Board's form and its information, and suggest a lawyer or paralegal for anything beyond that. Never suggest a lockout or holding belongings. When you list or buy a tenanted property, ask whether rent is current and whether any notice or Board application is outstanding, because both affect what a buyer is taking on. In Simulation 1, tenancy questions often turn on exactly this kind of conversation.

Frequently asked questions

Does the 7-day rule apply to monthly tenancies? Yes. Since September 21, 2026 the minimum is the 7th day after the notice is given for every residential tenancy.

Can the tenant still stop the eviction by paying? Yes. Paying the arrears and any newly due rent before the landlord applies voids the notice. Later payments can still discontinue the application or void the order.

Can a landlord give more than 7 days? Yes. Seven days is the earliest termination date, not the only one.

What if my course says 14 days? Answer course questions as the course teaches, and know that current law is 7 days.

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