What to know
- If rent isn’t paid on time, landlords can issue an N4 notice as early as the next day—but tenants can stop the process by paying what’s owed within the deadline.
- Tenants typically have seven to 14 days (depending on lease type) to repay arrears before further legal action can begin.
- If the deadline is missed, landlords can file for a hearing at the Landlord and Tenant Board, where both sides can negotiate or present their case.
- Tenants may still avoid eviction by paying all arrears and fees before the hearing, or by agreeing to a realistic payment plan.
- Even in later stages, supports like rent banks, housing funds, and legal clinics can help tenants stay housed or delay eviction.
With the cost-of-living soaring in Ontario, many tenants might find themselves struggling to pay their rent on time.
Amid rising prices across the country, almost half of Canadians are now living paycheque to paycheque, and when that happens, it might be very difficult to manage their monthly payments.
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While data shows average Toronto rent prices have gone down in 2026, a one-bedroom apartment still goes for $2,201 a month in the city, according to a Rentals.ca and Urbanation report.
Between rent, food, clothes, transit, and other essential payments, some renters might find themselves struggling to meet rent payments on time.
Now Toronto spoke with the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario’s (ACTO)‘s Tenant Duty Counsel Staff Matthew Benoit to find out what happens if tenants can’t meet rent payments, and what they can do to avoid eviction in those cases.
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What happens if tenants can’t pay rent on time?
If Ontario tenants fail to pay their rent by the date set on their lease, their landlord would be allowed to serve them with an N4 Form, which is a notice to end their tenancy early for non-payment of rent.
This notice can be filled as soon as the day after the rent was due. For example, if the rent payment should have been done by April 1, the landlord would be able to file the notice starting April 2.
But tenants shouldn’t panic; this doesn’t mean the landlord can evict them right away.
As explained by Benoit, through the N4, the landlord must give the tenant a notice to pay the owed amount by a certain date before they can’t take further action.
“If a tenant is renting by the day or week, the termination date only needs to be seven days after the landlord serves the tenant [the N4]. If a tenant is renting by the month or year, it is 14 days,” he said.
If the tenant then pays the amount that is claimed by the landlord by that deadline, they can avoid the N4, and no further action will be taken at that time.
What if the tenant misses the N4 deadline?
First of all, Benoit strongly recommends tenants who miss payments to reach out to the landlord and try to negotiate the situation before they take any further action.
“Some people will have a brief lapse in their employment. They’ve lost their job, so they’re late on this month’s rent, but they’ve got a new job, so and they’re going to be on time for next month, and they just need to break up that one month arrears into a couple of payments to make sure that they’re not going to default on any future rent amounts. And a lot of landlords are really perceptive to that,” he explained.
But in case they can’t first work it out and end up missing the N4 termination date, the landlord can then file a L1 form, which will grant them a hearing at the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) before moving onto an eviction process.
If by the scheduled board date the tenant is able to pay all arrears, including the outstanding rent and any filing fees the landlord had to pay, the landlord representative will typically withdraw their application at the hearing.
Benoit also says the tenant can also take this time to negotiate with the landlord prior to the hearing, and potentially work out a payment plan. At the hearing, the tenant and landlord will be given an opportunity to negotiate with the help of mediators.
“If the landlord [and] tenant have already come to a complete agreement on how the arrears are going to be cleared up, like a full payment plan schedule, they just take the terms of that payment plan and put it into a formal settlement agreement. If they haven’t really firmed out details…they can discuss it [with] mediation,” he said.
When negotiating an agreement, the lawyer says tenants should be cautious about getting a payment plan they can feasibly achieve because if they fail to do so, landlords might then apply to evict them without another hearing.
“That settlement order will have language to the effect that all rent and arrears payments are to be made in full and on time. If a tenant is a day late or $1 short on either payment for the entire duration of that payment plan, the landlord can apply to the board for an order of eviction without a hearing,” he emphasized.
What if they can’t negotiate?
If the landlord and tenant don’t reach an agreement, the tenant will have an opportunity to explain their side of the story to the board and ask for more time to complete payment.
“A tenant can tell the board about their circumstances to try and get some more time, like disability, employment, other forms of income, age, dependence, length of tenancy,” Benoit said.
In addition, at the hearing, they may also present their own applications, including any out-of-pocket expenses that need to be reimbursed for, including maintenance or repairs, which might reduce the arrears payment significantly.
“Now, there are conditions on that, which is that a tenant does need to disclose those issues in advance, at least seven days before their hearing needs to be in writing. If the landlord has not agreed to receive any documents via email in the lease, then the tenant needs to serve it in physical form,” Benoit warns.
All things considered, the LTB will then determine how much in arrears the tenant does owe to the landlord and how long they have to pay it.
If they do so, the order will then be resolved and no further action will follow, but if they don’t, the landlord may then begin an eviction process.
How does the eviction process work?
In case the owed amount has not been paid in full by the deadline, the landlord will bring that order to the Sheriff (Court Enforcement Office), who will then carry the eviction.
Through this process, the Sheriff might visit the unit and post an eviction notice. However, they are not legally required to do so, and may carry the eviction from their first visit, which can happen anytime since the moment the landlord brings them the order.
“They can just essentially show up on any weekday after the landlord has brought that order down to the Sheriff. When the Sheriff does show up, either this second time or…the first time, they will change the locks on the unit, which will be the kind of a formal eviction of the tenant,” he explained.
After the locks are changed, the landlord then has to hold onto the tenant’s belongings for at least 72 hours, and grant them reasonable access to collect them.
However, after the eviction process begins, the tenant still has a chance to fight it by paying the remaining amount and filing the payment with the LTB. But this must be done before the Sheriff changes the locks.
Benoit also stresses that tenants are not completely safe from eviction if they do manage to void the order by paying the amount on time.
The landlord might also be able to file an eviction order for the end of their current lease agreement on the basis that the tenant is constantly late to make rent payments. If this happens, the tenant might have to move out at the end of their current lease, be it daily, weekly, monthly, or annually.
“If a tenant is daily or weekly, the termination date needs to be at least 28 days after the landlord gives them that notice, and it must go up to the end of a rental period. If the tenant is weak monthly, on a yearly lease, it needs to be at least 60 days, and again, go to the end of the rental period,” Benoit said.
Note that for this to happen, the landlord would have to prove to the board that the tenant is constantly late with payments, meaning this doesn’t apply if they were only late once.
Where can tenants get help to pay rent?
As pointed out by Benoit, there are supports tenants can access if they are unable to pay rent on time.
If they are not on Ontario Works or the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP), they can access:
Those who are on Ontario Works or ODSP might be able to access the Housing Stabilization Fund, with Benoit recommending they speak with a caseworker as soon as possible.
Those who find themselves in need of legal assistance can look for community legal clinics that can help them with their case online or through 1-800-668-8258.
