In Ontario, a tenant can agree to pay more than the annual rent increase guideline if the landlord has done, or commits to do, capital work or adds a new or additional service. The Landlord and Tenant Board form that records that bargain is the N10. Three features define it: the increase is capped at 3% over the guideline (so 4.9% where the new rent starts in 2027), the tenant has five days to back out, and the new rent cannot start sooner than six days after signing. Once signed, the N10 does the job an N1 notice would otherwise do.
Summary
| Parties | Landlord and tenant of a unit subject to rent control |
| Occasion | Capital work done or promised, or a new or additional service provided or promised |
| Timing rules | No 90-day notice; starts 6 or more days after signing; 5-day cancellation window; 12-month rule still applies |
| Service or filing | Both sides sign; the LTB never receives it |
| Fee | None for the N10 itself; a tenant's T4 challenge costs $53 |
| Afterwards | Nothing to file. A tenant who never receives the work or service can apply on a T4 |
The statutory basis
Under RTA s. 121, landlord and tenant may agree to an above-guideline increase where the landlord either:
- has made, or undertakes to make, a specified capital expenditure; or
- has supplied, or undertakes to supply, a new or additional service.
For the agreement to be valid it has to be on the Board's approved form and must set out the new rent, the effective date and the tenant's right to cancel.
Section 121(3) caps the increase at 3% of the previous lawful rent on top of the guideline. The guideline for 2027 being 1.9%, the 2027 ceiling works out to 4.9%.
The agreement replaces the notice, which is why s. 121(6) switches off the 90-day notice requirement of s. 116. And under s. 121(7), any N1 you served earlier with an effective date the same as or later than the N10's is void once the N10 takes effect.
Proper and improper uses
The N10 is meant for something specific and concrete that the tenant actually gets. The N10 instructions use new kitchen cupboards as their example; new appliances, or a service the tenant did not previously have, would be others.
It is the wrong tool in four situations:
- Adding parking or another prescribed service to the tenancy. Section 123 allows that kind of increase "as prescribed" whenever the service is added, and it sits outside the 12-month rule.
- Units outside rent control. Section 6.1 takes units first occupied after November 15, 2018 out of s. 121, and s. 7 does the same for social housing and the other housing it lists; the guideline does not limit those units in any event.
- Recovering capital spending across a building from tenants who refuse to sign. The route there is an application to the LTB on an L5, together with an N1 for each tenant.
- Making renewal conditional on signing. A tenant need not sign anything to keep the tenancy going. An N10 has to reflect a genuine exchange for work or a service, and one obtained as the price of staying is an invitation to a T4.
The clocks
| Rule | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 12 months | No increase before a full 12 months from the tenant's move-in or most recent increase | Form, item 2; RTA s. 119 |
| 5 days | Cancellation by written notice to the landlord is open to the tenant for five days from signing | s. 121(4) |
| 6 days | The agreement cannot take effect sooner than six days after signing | s. 121(5) |
| No extension | The LTB has no power to shorten the 5-day or 6-day period | O. Reg. 516/06, s. 56 |
| 2 years | Where the landlord does not deliver, the tenant may apply up to two years after the increase starts | s. 122(2) |
Completing the N10
The form in use is the two-page version 01/04/2022.
Item 1 – Tenant's name and address. List every tenant, with a mailing address for anyone whose mail goes somewhere other than the unit.
Item 2 – Landlord's name and address. List every landlord and a mailing address.
Item 3 – Address of the Rental Unit. Full address, unit number and postal code included.
Item 4 – Your New Rent. Three entries:
- the effective date (dd/mm/yyyy), which must be six or more days after the final signature and 12 or more months after the last increase;
- the new rent in total;
- the rental period (month, week and so on).
Work from the current lawful rent. As an illustration for 2027, a lawful rent of $2,100.00 multiplied by 4.9% (1.9% plus 3%) gives $102.90, so the highest permissible new rent is $2,202.90.
Item 5 – what you are doing or providing. Precision matters here. The instructions want four things: what the work or service is; the specific item, including make or model number where that helps; how it is being installed; and when the work was or will be finished, or the service begun. Add pages if you run out of room.
Item 6 – Important Information (page 2). Do not alter this printed text. It tells the tenant about cancelling within 5 days, the 6-day and 12-month rules, and the 2-year window to apply to the LTB if you do not deliver.
Item 7 – Signatures. Every tenant and every landlord prints first and last name and phone number, signs and dates. The landlord's signature is also a commitment to carry out the work or provide the service.
Item 8 – Office Use Only. Leave it empty.
Giving it to the tenant
There is no service step as such; the N10 is signed rather than served. Hand the tenant a signed copy straight away, because the five-day window starts at signing. Keep the original, note when each person signed, and gather proof that the work was completed or the service started, such as invoices, photographs and delivery slips. If no written cancellation has arrived by the end of the five days, the increase starts on the agreed date.
How an N10 goes wrong
- Going over guideline plus 3%. Section 121(3) prohibits it, and anything above the limit is not lawful rent. Use whichever year's guideline matches the effective date.
- An effective date inside the six-day window. Section 121(5) prevents the agreement from taking effect that soon.
- Overlooking the 12-month rule. Section 119 still governs; the N10 does not displace it.
- Vague descriptions such as "upgrades" or "improvements". Without an identified capital expenditure or service, the agreement falls outside s. 121(1), handing the tenant an easy T4 argument.
- Failing to deliver. If the tenant files a T4 under s. 122, the Board may invalidate the amount above the guideline, wholly or partly, from its start date and order a rebate.
- Refusing a timely cancellation, or leaning on the tenant not to cancel. The right to cancel within five days is statutory (s. 121(4)).
- Using an N10 on an exempt unit. Because s. 121 does not apply, the agreement accomplishes nothing.
After signing
If the five days pass with no cancellation, the new rent starts on the effective date, and your next increase has to wait 12 months from then.
If the promised work or service never materialises, the tenant, or a former tenant, may file a T4 at any point up to two years after the increase took effect, and the LTB can order you to repay the amount above the guideline. Keeping clear records of what was delivered and when is your best protection if that application ever comes.
Questions about the N10
What is the most an N10 can add in 2027?
For an increase taking effect in 2027, the guideline of 1.9% plus 3%, which is 4.9% of the previous lawful rent.
Is an N1 still needed?
No. The signed N10 stands in for a notice of rent increase, and an earlier N1 for a later date is void once the N10 takes effect.
Can the tenant back out after signing?
Yes, by written notice within five days of signing. Either way, the increase cannot begin any earlier than the sixth day after signing.
What happens if the work is never carried out?
The tenant can apply to the LTB at any time within two years after the increase started. The Board can strike down the above-guideline portion in whole or in part and require you to pay it back.