When a tenant in Ontario has given written notice to end the tenancy (normally an N9), or has signed a written agreement with the landlord to end it (normally an N11), the landlord can file an L3 with the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) to have an eviction order ready if the tenant does not go. The LTB usually decides an L3 ex parte, meaning the tenant is not notified and there is no hearing. That speed is the advantage, and it is also why the documents have to be correct from the start: the first time anyone tests them may be on the tenant's motion to set the order aside.
At a glance
| Filed by | A landlord who holds the tenant's signed notice of termination, or a signed agreement to terminate |
| Timing | Any time once the notice is given or the agreement signed; the termination date does not have to have passed |
| Deadline | Within 30 days after the end date written on the N9 or N11 (RTA s. 77(3)); s. 77(5) stops the order taking effect any earlier than that end date |
| Filing route | Tribunals Ontario Portal, with mail or courier also described in the instructions; the tenant gets no notice before the order issues |
| Fee | $186 on the Portal or $201 by other routes, not refundable |
| What follows | Nothing further from the landlord; the tenant has 10 days to move to set the order aside |
The legal basis
Section 77(1) of the RTA allows a landlord to apply, without notifying the tenant, for an order terminating the tenancy and evicting the tenant where either:
- the tenant gave the landlord a notice of termination, typically on the tenant's form, the N9; or
- the landlord and tenant agreed to end the tenancy, typically using the N11, the Board's agreement form.
An affidavit verifying the notice or agreement must accompany the application (s. 77(2)), though the LTB will take a signed declaration in its place (s. 192.1; Rule 1.5). Once the application is received, the LTB can make the eviction order with no hearing (s. 77(4)).
The L3 has two firm limits:
- No money. For arrears or damage you need a separate application: an L10 after the tenant has gone, or, while they still occupy the unit, an L9, L2 or L1.
- No rescue for a void document. RTA s. 37(4) and (5) make a tenant's notice or a termination agreement void if it was signed at the time the tenancy agreement was made or as a condition of getting the unit. There are narrow exceptions for some student housing (s. 37(6)–(7)).
The right tool, and the wrong one
The L3 fits when the tenancy was already under way when a genuine N9 or N11 was signed, and you want an order you can enforce if the tenant stays on.
It does not fit when:
- The notice was yours. An N4 is followed by an L1, and the other landlord notices (N5 through N8, N12, N13) by an L2.
- The "agreement" is a lease clause or a move-in form. Section 37(5) makes it void.
- The tenant just told you they were leaving. RTA s. 43(1) requires a tenant's notice to be on the approved form, identify the unit, give the termination date and be signed. Under s. 53 of O. Reg. 516/06, you file a copy of any termination agreement. A verbal understanding leaves you with nothing to file.
- The tenant wants out faster than s. 44 permits. For a monthly tenancy, the tenant must give 60 days' notice or more, ending on a rental period's final day, with certain exceptions in February and March. For an earlier move-out, an N11 is safer: under RTA s. 37(3) the parties can pick any date they like.
Time limits
- Earliest you can file: as soon as you hold the N9 or the signed N11 (Section A of the L3 Instructions).
- Latest you can file: day 30 after the end date on the document (RTA s. 77(3)). Being statutory, it is beyond the LTB's power to extend (s. 56 of O. Reg. 516/06). The form puts it as "no later than 30 days" after the date.
- When the order takes effect: no sooner than the document's end date (s. 77(5)); the Board cannot advance it (s. 56 of the regulation).
- The tenant's window to challenge: 10 days from the date the order issues (s. 77(6)).
- Uploads on the Portal: the N9 or N11, plus your declaration or affidavit, go up with the application, or within 5 calendar days at the latest (Rules 4.4–4.5).
Worked example. A tenant signs an N11 on April 12, 2027 agreeing to leave on May 31, 2027. You can file the L3 the same day. The last day to file is June 30, 2027, 30 days after May 31. Whatever date the LTB issues the order, it cannot take effect before May 31.
Completing the L3
The L3 PDF (version v. 01/04/2022) is brief. It has three numbered parts, then a declaration and a payment page. The September 21, 2026 form replacements did not include it.
Part 1 (general details). - Rental unit: the complete address, with unit number and postal code. The PDF splits out street type and direction into their own boxes. - Landlord: name, any company name, address, phone and email; extra landlords go on a Schedule of Parties. - Tenants: names exactly as they appear on the N9 or N11. Add a mailing address only if it is not the unit. - Related Applications: file numbers for open LTB matters about the same unit, filed by either side.
Part 2, Reason for your Application. Shade the one box that applies, either that the tenant gave you a notice to end the tenancy or that the tenant agreed to end it. Then enter the date the tenancy is to end, copied exactly from the notice or agreement.
Part 3 (signing). Signature and date from the landlord or a legal representative, who also gives a name, contact details and Law Society number.
Declaration. In the declaration that comes with the L3, you confirm the contents are accurate and complete, and accept that RTA s. 234 makes it an offence to provide false or misleading information. Section C of the L3 Instructions says the declaration or affidavit should cover:
- the date the tenancy agreement was made;
- the end date on the N9 or N11;
- who signed it, and on what date or dates the tenant signed;
- a statement that it was not signed at the time the tenancy agreement was made; and
- for an N11, a statement that nothing signed afterwards changed or replaced it.
These statements can go on the LTB's general Declaration or Affidavit. An affidavit has to be sworn or affirmed in front of a commissioner.
Payment Information Form. Select a certified cheque or money order (made out to the "Minister of Finance"), or a credit card. Portal filers pay directly by credit or debit card.
Using the Portal. You answer the same questions online and upload the N9 or N11 with your declaration. Review everything before reaching the "Ready to Submit" page, because the draft cannot be changed after that. Tribunals Ontario does not publish a screen-by-screen walkthrough of the Portal, so follow the prompts as they appear.
What to file
Under Rule 6.10 and Section C of the L3 Instructions, a missing item means refusal:
- the completed L3;
- a copy of the tenant's N9 or the signed N11;
- a signed declaration or sworn affidavit confirming what the notice or agreement says; and
- payment of the fee (or an approved fee waiver).
According to the LTB forms page, the L3 is filed on the Tribunals Ontario Portal at $186. The L3 instructions also cover mail and courier filing, where the fee is $201. The Portal is mandatory for lawyers and paralegals with a Law Society of Ontario licence.
Where L3s go wrong
- Missing the 30-day limit. No extension exists for s. 77(3); a late L3 is dismissed, and you would have to start again with a new N9 or N11.
- Relying on paperwork from the start of the tenancy, or demanded as a term of renting. It is void under s. 37(4)–(5), and if a set-aside motion brings that out, s. 77(8)(a) requires the order to be set aside for want of any valid N9 or N11.
- A missing or thin declaration. No declaration or affidavit means refusal. One that never says the document post-dates the start of the tenancy leaves the order exposed if the tenant moves to set it aside.
- Forgetting to attach the N9 or N11. The regulation prescribes filing a copy of an agreement (s. 53), and the instructions require a copy of a notice too.
- An end date on the L3 that does not match. The Board measures both the effective date of the order and the 30-day filing limit from the date on the document itself.
- Signatures from only some tenants. With co-tenants, one signature may leave the other's tenancy intact. There is no published LTB guidance on this, so have all of them sign.
- An N9 that does not comply with the RTA. Too short a period under s. 44, or a missing signature or date, opens it to challenge. If the tenant wants an early date, use an N11 instead.
After filing
Ordinarily the order arrives without any hearing, effective no earlier than the document's end date. If the tenant stays, you have six months from the effective date to file the order with the Sheriff's Court Enforcement Office (RTA s. 81).
If the tenant moves to set it aside
The tenant has 10 days from the order's issue date to bring a motion to set it aside (s. 77(6)). Filing that motion stays the order automatically (s. 77(7)), and Rule 25.1 requires the tenant to deliver copies of the motion, the stay and the Notice of Hearing to the enforcement office immediately. The motion has to be served no less than 48 hours before it is heard (Rule 5.11). At that hearing, s. 77(8) gives the LTB three options:
- (a) set the order aside because no N9 or N11 actually existed;
- (b) set it aside because the prescribed test is met; or
- (c) lift the stay, either right away or from a later date.
The test since September 21, 2026
Under clause (b), the LTB may set the order aside only if it is satisfied, having regard to all the circumstances, that doing so "would not be unfair" (s. 8.2(1) of O. Reg. 516/06). Critically, under s. 8.2(2) it must disregard any change in the tenant's situation occurring after the N9 was given or the N11 signed. Someone who signed an N11 and later failed to find somewhere to live cannot rely on that difficulty by itself.
Come to the motion with the signed original, proof of the date and manner of signing, and whatever shows the tenant's situation when they signed. That evidence is what decides whether your order survives.
Recent changes
- September 21, 2026: O. Reg. 241/26 added s. 8.2 to O. Reg. 516/06, creating a set-aside test for L3 orders: only where not unfair, and without regard to any later change in the tenant's situation. The L3 itself (v. 01/04/2022) was not replaced that day, so the old-version cut-off of November 30, 2026 is aimed at other forms, not this one.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to wait for the move-out date before filing?
No. File as soon as you have the tenant's notice or signed agreement; the order simply will not take effect until the termination date.
Will there be a hearing?
Usually not. The tenant is not notified, and a hearing only happens if they bring a set-aside motion inside 10 days.
The tenant signed the N11 along with the lease. Can I use it?
No. Under RTA s. 37(5) that agreement is void, apart from narrow exceptions for some student housing, so it cannot support an L3.
Can the tenant undo the order because they could not find a new home?
Not on that basis alone. Since September 21, 2026, the Board must ignore developments in the tenant's life after signing, and sets the order aside only where that would not be unfair on the facts as they stood.
Do I need a lawyer or commissioner for an affidavit?
No. Rule 1.5 lets you use a signed declaration in place of an affidavit, provided it states the contents are true and recognizes that a false declaration is an offence.
Official sources
- Form L3 and L3 Instructions
- N11 – Agreement to End the Tenancy
- Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, ss. 37, 43, 44, 77, 81, 192.1
- O. Reg. 516/06, ss. 8.2, 53, 56
- LTB Rules of Procedure
- LTB Operational Update, September 21, 2026
- LTB Forms, filing and fees