Ontario T5 Bad-Faith Claims: How Landlords Defend an N12 or N13 After 2026

A former tenant in Ontario who left because of an N12 or N13 and now believes the notice was not given in good faith brings that claim to the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) on a T5. It also serves a tenant displaced by renovations who claimed the right to return and was refused. A new version of the T5 came out on September 21, 2026, and a fresh move-in presumption for own-use N12s now applies, which changes how these cases are defended.

At a glance

The claims a T5 can make

Ontario's Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA) sets out three bad-faith scenarios in s. 57(1):

• Own-use N12 (s. 48). A bad-faith notice, followed by nobody from the s. 48(1) list (you, a family member, or a caregiver) taking up residence within a reasonable time of the tenant's departure.
• Purchaser's N12 (s. 49). A bad-faith notice, followed by none of the named occupants moving in within a reasonable time.
• N13 for demolition, conversion or renovation (s. 50). A bad-faith notice, followed by the work not being done within a reasonable time.

In all three, the tenant's departure must have been caused by the notice itself or by an application or order founded on it.

Section 57.1 creates a distinct claim: the tenant told you in writing, under s. 53, that they intended to come back once renovations were done, and you did not honour that first-refusal right.

"Bad faith" here means you never genuinely meant to do what the notice said. The tenant bears the burden of proving each element, except where one of the presumptions below shifts it to you.

Presumptions against the landlord

Own-use N12s (s. 48). Two triggers create a presumption of bad faith that you then have to rebut on a balance of probabilities.

Trigger one, the 60-day rule. It applies to any T5 filed from September 21, 2026. If nobody on the s. 48(1) list has moved in by the end of the O. Reg. 240/26 period, bad faith is presumed (s. 57(6.1), (7)). That period runs 60 days from:

• the termination date in the N12, if the tenant was out by then; or
• the actual move-out date, if the tenant stayed past the termination date.

Trigger two, steps pointing away from personal use. Under s. 57(5)–(6), the presumption also arises if, between serving the N12 and the first anniversary of the move-out, you did any of these: listed the unit for rent; leased it to a new tenant; put the unit or the building up for sale; tore it down; or began converting it to a non-residential purpose.

Purchaser N12s and N13s are not subject to either trigger.

For first refusal (s. 57.1(1.1)), you are deemed to have denied the right in either of these cases:

• after receiving the tenant's written notice to return (given September 21, 2026 or later), you failed to keep them informed in writing, without delay, of the expected completion date, any revision to it, and the actual date the unit became ready (s. 53(2.1)); or
• once the unit was ready (on or after September 21, 2026), you allowed the tenant less than 60 days to move back in (s. 53(2.2)).

A worked example of the 60-day window

Your N12 for a family member's use sets a termination date of April 30, 2027. If the tenant leaves on April 30, the presumption arises unless the family member moves in by June 29, 2027. If the tenant stays on and leaves on May 20, 2027, the window instead closes on July 19, 2027.

When the T5 is not the right route

• The tenant has not moved out. No T5 can be filed. Bad faith is argued at your L2 hearing instead.
• Only unpaid compensation is in issue. Unpaid N12 or N13 compensation is recoverable through a T1 claim, and a T5 can also award it where the tenant asks for it plainly.
• The named person moved in promptly and stayed. The instructions rule out Reason 1 where the named occupant arrived within a reasonable time and remained a full year or longer.

Time limits

• Reasons 1–3: an application is out of time if made more than a year after the former tenant left (s. 57(2)).
• Reason 4: under s. 57.1(2), the tenant has until the later of two dates: two years from moving out, or half a year from when the renovation or repair work was completed. Since September 21, 2026 this rule also governs applications filed earlier that were still undecided on that date (s. 57.1(3)). A former tenant whose application was dismissed as late under the old rule can file again (s. 57.1(4)).
• An earlier good-faith finding does not end the matter. Section 57(4) lets the Board reach a bad-faith conclusion despite having accepted your good faith earlier, and according to Guideline 12 even a consent order does not rule out a successful T5.

What the former tenant fills in

The current T5 (2026/09) runs six pages plus an information sheet.

• Part 1, General Information. The unit address and related files; contact details and present address for each former tenant, with a choice of email or mail (selecting email consents to service that way); your information; and the date the tenant left. Additional tenants and landlords, and any purchaser, are listed on the T5's own Schedule of Parties. The instructions caution that if a purchaser is left off, the hearing may be unable to proceed without them.
• Part 2, Reasons. Reason 1 is an own-use N12; Reason 2 a purchaser's N12; Reason 3 an N13 where the work did not happen; Reason 4 a refused return after renovation. The tenant then explains the facts in a free-text box.
• Part 3, Remedies. Six options: rent abatement; an LTB fine; rent differential for one year; costs of moving and storage; general compensation capped at 12 months' rent; and other relief, which can include orders against a purchaser or a return to the unit.
• Part 4 holds the signature and any representative's information, and a payment page completes the form.

How it is filed

Filing routes are the Portal, mail, courier, or a ServiceOntario counter that accepts LTB material. The fee is $48 on the Portal or $53 otherwise; a fee waiver may be requested. A multi-unit application costs $53 plus $5 per additional unit, capped at $450, and must go in by mail or courier. Respondents are served with the Notice of Hearing by the LTB (Rule 5.1).

Defending a T5

1. Start with the limitation period. The one-year bar covers Reasons 1–3. For Reason 4, work out the second anniversary of the move-out and the six-month point after completion; the later one governs.

2. Find out whether a presumption applies. On an own-use N12 with a T5 filed from September 21, 2026, compute the regulation's 60-day period. A late move-in, or any rental ad, re-letting or sale listing inside the s. 57(6) period, puts the onus on you to establish good faith.

3. Prove real occupation (N12). Useful records include changes of address on identification, utility accounts and insurance in the occupant's name, mail delivered there, moving invoices, and evidence that the occupant's previous home was sold or given up. Be ready to explain any delay, or a departure before the year was up, since s. 48(1) requires an intention to occupy for a minimum of one year.

4. Prove the work (N13). Assemble the building permits, contractor agreements and invoices, a timeline of the work, photos with dates, and proof of when it finished. On a first-refusal claim, add the tenant's written notice, every written update you sent (the estimated date, any changes, and the notice that the unit was ready), and proof that you allowed at least 60 days for the tenant to return.

5. Purchaser N12s. Following a Court of Appeal ruling, the Board can hold a buyer responsible for bad faith and make the buyer pay; Guideline 12 adds that responsibility can be divided between seller and buyer. As the seller, preserve the buyer's declaration and all correspondence about what the buyer intended.

6. Compensation. Prove that whatever ss. 48.1, 49.1, 52, 54 or 55 required reached the tenant on or before the termination date (s. 55.1). No compensation was owed on an own-use N12 served from September 21, 2026 that gave 120 or more days' notice and ended at the close of a rental period or term (s. 48.1(2)).

7. Disclose on time. Evidence is due 7 days or more before the hearing, or 5 days or more for reply evidence (Rules 19.1–19.2).

8. Understand the exposure. The menu in s. 57(3) includes twelve months of rent differential, general compensation capped at a year's rent, moving and storage expenses, a rent abatement, a fine of $10,000 or the Small Claims ceiling if higher, and any other order the Board thinks fit. The instructions set the monetary limit at $50,000.

Where T5 applications fail

1. The applicant still lives in the unit. Only former tenants qualify.
2. Late filing. Past one year from move-out (Reasons 1–3), or past whichever Reason 4 date is later.
3. The buyer is missing from a purchaser-N12 claim. Without the purchaser, the hearing may stall.
4. No causal link to the notice. If the tenant moved for unrelated reasons, or before receiving any notice, the s. 57 requirement that the notice (or an application or order based on it) caused the move-out is not met.
5. Relying on the wrong presumption. Only own-use N12s, and only T5s filed from September 21, 2026, attract the 60-day rule; purchaser N12s and N13s do not.
6. No fee and no waiver. The application will not be accepted.

After the hearing

Where bad faith or a first-refusal breach is proven, the order identifies each remedy and each party liable, which may include a named buyer. Orders dated July 1, 2026 or later can be reviewed on a request made within 15 days, and legal errors can go to the Divisional Court within 30 days (s. 210). Given the size of the possible awards, these short windows deserve attention as soon as the order arrives.

Recent changes

September 21, 2026 brought a cluster of changes. A new T5 (2026/09) replaced the old form, which the Board stops accepting after November 30, 2026. The own-use 60-day presumption began to apply, landlords took on the new first-refusal obligations, tenants got more time for Reason 4, and Guideline 12 was rewritten. Details are in the LTB Operational Update.

Frequently asked questions

After an N12, how quickly must my family member or I move in?

The legal test is a reasonable time, with an intention to stay a year or more. In addition, any T5 filed from September 21, 2026 will presume bad faith if the occupant is not in within 60 days of the later of the termination date and the actual move-out. Evidence can rebut that presumption.

If the L2 ended in a consent order, can the tenant still bring a T5?

Yes. Under s. 57(4) a prior good-faith finding is not conclusive, and Guideline 12 says a consent order does not prevent a successful T5.

Is a purchaser's N12 subject to the 60-day presumption?

No. Section 57(6.1) is limited to own-use N12s under s. 48. For a purchaser's notice, the questions remain whether the named person took occupancy within a reasonable time and whether the notice was genuine.

Official sources

• Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, ss. 48–57.1, 135, 207, 210
• O. Reg. 240/26, Prescribed Period of Time
• T5 Instructions
• T5 application (PDF)
• T5 Schedule of Parties (PDF)
• Interpretation Guideline 12
• LTB Rules of Procedure, Rules 5.1, 19, 26
• LTB Operational Update, September 21, 2026
• LTB Forms, filing and fees