What Ontario’s New Bill 60 Means for Tenants and Landlords.

Updated November 2026 with the changes now in effect.

Introduction: A Big Shift in Ontario’s Rental Rules

Ontario’s rental market has been running hot for years: rising demand, tight supply, and a Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) so backlogged that some hearings took months, even years. Both landlords and tenants felt stuck in a system that wasn’t working.

Enter Bill 60, a sweeping update to Ontario’s Residential Tenancies Act. It’s designed to speed up decisions, reduce delays, and (according to the province) help restore fairness between tenants and landlords.

And from where we sit, this bill feels like a welcome shift, one that begins to balance the scales of fairness while creating clearer, more predictable rules for everyone involved.

Updated November 2026: What’s in Effect Now

When we first wrote this post in November 2025, Bill 60 had just passed and most of its changes didn’t have start dates yet. They do now. The Landlord and Tenant Board rolled them out in two waves, on July 1 and September 21, 2026, along with related changes from the Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act (Bill 97). Here’s what changed and when, with links to our detailed guides.

Date	What changed	More detail
July 1, 2026	15 days, down from 30, to ask the LTB to review an order
July 1, 2026	Repayment plans must use the LTB’s Payment Agreement form	Our N4 guide (coming November 19)
July 1, 2026	Maximum fines for offences under the Act doubled, to $100,000 for individuals and $500,000 for corporations
July 1, 2026	Tenants can install a window or portable air conditioner if conditions are met; landlords can charge a seasonal increase if electricity is included
September 21, 2026	An N4 gives a tenant 7 days to pay, down from 14	Our N4 guide (coming November 19)
September 21, 2026	To raise other issues at an arrears hearing, a tenant must first pay the landlord half of the arrears claimed	Our N4 guide (coming November 19)
September 21, 2026	“Persistent late payment” defined: rent more than 7 days late, 3 times in 6 months	Our N4 guide (coming November 19)
September 21, 2026	Tighter test for delaying an eviction	Our N4 guide (coming November 19)
September 21, 2026	No N12 compensation for landlord’s own use with 120+ days’ notice (purchaser’s own use unchanged)	Our N12 guide (coming November 16)
September 21, 2026	Bad faith presumed if the person named on an N12 doesn’t move in within 60 days	Our N12 guide (coming November 16)
September 21, 2026	N13 renovations: written updates to returning tenants, 60 days to move back in, longer T5 deadline	Our N13 guide (coming November 24)
September 21, 2026	New N5, N6, N8, N12, N13, L1, L2, L9, L10 and T5 forms; older versions not accepted after November 30, 2026	Our N12 guide (coming November 16)

If you’re a landlord, the November 30 forms deadline is the one to act on now. If you’re a tenant, the shorter N4 is the change most likely to affect you.

What Is Bill 60?

Bill 60, formally known as the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, introduces several changes to how rental disputes are handled in Ontario. It tightens timelines, limits last-minute curveballs at hearings, and adjusts how certain evictions work.

The goal? Faster resolutions. More predictability. And fewer situations where good landlords (and good tenants) are stuck navigating endless delays.

Key Changes Landlords & Tenants Need to Know

1. Faster Path to Eviction for Non-Payment of Rent

Under the old rules, an N4 had to give a tenant at least 14 days to pay before the landlord could apply to the Board. For N4s given on or after September 21, 2026, that’s 7 days. The tenant can still cancel the notice by paying everything owed before the landlord files.

What it means:

• For landlords: quicker action on serious arrears.
• For tenants: less time to catch up once an N4 arrives, so it pays to talk to your landlord early.

2. Limits on Tenants Raising New Issues at LTB Hearings

Historically, tenants could introduce last-minute concerns (maintenance, safety, harassment) during a non-payment hearing, often leading to adjournments.

With Bill 60, new issues can only be raised if the tenant pays the landlord directly half of the arrears claimed, at least seven days before the hearing. It applies to applications filed on or after September 21, 2026.

It’s a big shift, aiming to reduce delays, but critics argue it may silence legitimate tenant concerns.

3. Less Time to Ask for a Review

Since July 1, 2026, anyone who wants the LTB to review one of its orders has 15 days to ask, down from 30. The Board can still allow more time in some cases.

Faster decisions mean:

• Landlords can regain units sooner.
• Tenants need to act quickly if they plan to challenge a ruling.

4. Changes to Landlord-Use Evictions (N12)

When a landlord or an immediate family member wants to move into a rental unit, Bill 60 removes the requirement to:

• offer the tenant another available unit, or
• provide one month’s rent as compensation.

For N12s served on or after September 21, 2026, a landlord who gives at least 120 days’ notice, ending on the last day of a term or rental period, no longer has to pay. This only applies when the landlord or their family is moving in. When a seller serves an N12 for a buyer, the month’s rent is still owed. There’s also a new check: if the person named on the notice doesn’t move in within 60 days, the Board presumes the notice was given in bad faith.

This reduces costs for landlords and may reduce disputes around bad-faith claims, but it raises questions about tenant security.

5. Other Process Improvements

Future system upgrades aim to:

• Digitize more of the LTB process
• Increase staffing
• Reduce decision timelines

We’ll be watching closely to see how quickly these improvements materialize.

Why the Government Says These Changes Were Needed

Bill 60 was pitched as a solution to Ontario’s long-standing rental logjam:

• Massive LTB backlogs
• Slow eviction processes
• Investors pulling back due to risk and unpredictability
• Rapid growth in renter households

The province claims a faster system benefits everyone: tenants get timely decisions, and landlords avoid months of uncertainty.

How Tenants Are Affected

Reduced Security of Tenure

Cutting timeframes makes eviction processes faster and more decisive. For tenants who fall behind due to emergencies, this leaves less flexibility.

Barriers to Raising Maintenance Concerns

If a tenant can’t pay 50% of arrears, it becomes harder to bring legitimate complaints forward during a hearing.

Concerns Around Personal-Use Evictions

When a landlord gives 120 days’ notice instead of paying, displaced tenants get more time to find a place but no payment toward moving, in a city with high rents.

How Landlords & Investors Are Affected

More Predictability and Stability

Bill 60 brings clearer expectations around timelines, reducing risk for small landlords who depend on rental income.

Fewer Bad-Faith Claims

Limiting last-minute hearing surprises should reduce delays and adjournments.

Greater Confidence for Purpose-Built Rentals

With smoother dispute resolution, developers may feel more comfortable building much-needed rental supply.

Our Take: Does Bill 60 Actually Balance Things Out?

The rental system wasn’t working — not for landlords, not for tenants. Bill 60 doesn’t fix everything, but it does introduce more structure, fewer delays, and clearer expectations.

From our perspective, this is a welcome change. It begins to restore balance, making the process more fair for everyone involved.

Practical Advice for Tenants and Landlords

For Tenants:

• Stay on top of payments. Once an N4 arrives, you may have as little as 7 days to pay.
• Document all issues with the unit.
• Know your rights around eviction and notices.

For Landlords:

• Update your tenant communication and onboarding materials.
• Keep records of all correspondence.
• Use N12 responsibly. Penalties for misuse still apply.
• Replace saved copies of LTB forms before November 30, 2026.

Conclusion: A New Chapter for Ontario’s Rental Landscape

Bill 60 brings meaningful updates to an overburdened system. While not perfect, the changes aim to improve predictability, fairness, and efficiency.

For landlords and tenants navigating Toronto’s tight rental market, understanding these new rules is essential, and staying informed will help everyone adapt to this new chapter.