Quick answer
Bill 60, the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025, received Royal Assent and is Chapter 14 of the Statutes of Ontario, 2025. Its Schedule 12 amended the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006. The changes include a notice for non-payment of rent that can take effect not earlier than the 7th day after it is given, a requirement that a tenant who raises other issues at a non-payment hearing pay half of the rent arrears claimed, a 120-day notice route for landlord’s own use that removes the compensation requirement, a 15-day deadline to ask the Landlord and Tenant Board to review a decision, and new regulation-making powers.
Schedule 12 came into force on a day set by order, and the current version of the Act on e-Laws includes these changes. The Act has transition rules, so which version applies to your notice or application depends on its date. Speak with a real estate lawyer who handles landlord and tenant matters before you give, or respond to, a notice.
“Bill 60” is often described as a housing and planning bill, and it is: it amended acts about transit, development charges, planning and construction. But it also changed the rules for landlords and tenants, and that part matters to every landlord who rents out a property. This article explains the changes to the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), using the Bill 60 text on the Legislative Assembly of Ontario website and the current RTA on e-Laws. It covers the RTA only. For tenancy questions generally, see our residential leases service page.
What Is Bill 60?
Bill 60 was introduced in the 44th Parliament of Ontario and has 16 schedules, each amending a different statute, including the Construction Act, the Development Charges Act, 1997, the Planning Act and the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006. Its preamble says the government is committed to, among other things, reducing delays at the Landlord and Tenant Board to help tenants and landlords reach resolutions faster. Each schedule comes into force as provided in that schedule.
Schedule 12, which amended the RTA, says it comes into force on a day to be named by order of the Lieutenant Governor in Council. The current version of the RTA on e-Laws, which began on September 21, 2026, includes the amendments, with the source note 2025, c. 14, Sched. 12. If your notice or application is from around that time, ask a lawyer which version of the Act applies. The Act has transition rules (see below). For the development charges changes, see our development charges guide.
What Changed in the Residential Tenancies Act
1. Notice for non-payment of rent (section 59)
Section 59(1) now says that if a tenant fails to pay rent lawfully owing, the landlord may give the tenant a notice of termination effective not earlier than the 7th day after the notice is given. The notice must still set out the amount of rent due and say that the tenant may avoid termination by paying the rent due on or before the termination date (section 59(2)).
2. Tenants who raise other issues at a non-payment hearing (section 82)
At a hearing of a landlord’s application to terminate a tenancy and evict a tenant based on a non-payment notice, the Board must permit the tenant to raise any issue that could be the subject of a tenant application, if the tenant meets the requirements in section 82(2). Those requirements now include giving advance notice in writing within the time set out in the Board’s Rules and, unless the regulations provide otherwise, paying the landlord (or, if the regulations say so, the Board) half of any rent arrears claimed in the application when it was filed, plus any other prescribed amounts. These amounts must be paid before the hearing and within any prescribed timelines.
Transition rules in section 82(4) and (5) say the earlier version continues to apply to an application made before the amendment came into force and not finally determined before that day, even if the hearing is later.
3. Landlord’s own use: compensation and the 120-day notice (section 48.1)
When a landlord gives a notice of termination under section 48, section 48.1(1) requires the landlord to compensate the tenant with an amount equal to one month’s rent, or to offer the tenant another rental unit acceptable to the tenant. New section 48.1(2) says that requirement does not apply if the notice meets three conditions: it is given on or after the day the amendment came into force, the termination date is at least 120 days after the notice is given, and the termination date is the day a period of the tenancy ends or, for a fixed term, the end of the term.
4. Notices must be in the approved form (section 43)
Where the Act permits a landlord or tenant to give a notice of termination, section 43(1) now says the notice must be in a form approved by the Board, unless a form is prescribed, in which case the prescribed form must be used.
5. Persistent late payment (sections 58 and 94.2)
New sections 58(1.1) and 94.2(2.1) say that what counts as a persistent failure to pay rent (or, for the provision that covers non-profit housing co-operatives, regular monthly housing charges) on the date it becomes due is to be determined in accordance with the regulations, if any. The Act now gives the government power to make regulations setting rules and guidelines for this.
6. The Board’s powers to set aside orders and postpone evictions (sections 77, 83, 94.10, 94.12)
The Board’s power to set aside certain orders, in sections 77(8)(b) and 94.10(8)(b), now applies if the prescribed circumstances, conditions or tests are met. The Board’s power in sections 83(1)(b) and 94.12(1)(b) to order that enforcement of an eviction order be postponed is now subject to any prescribed limitations or conditions.
7. Reviews of Board decisions (section 209)
The Board’s power to review its own decision or order is subject to any prescribed limitations or conditions. A request to review all or part of a decision or order must now be submitted within 15 days of the issuance of the decision or order, unless the Board considers it just and appropriate in the circumstances to extend the time. The 15-day rule applies only to a decision or order made on or after the day that section came into force (section 209(4)).
8. Regulations and transition
Schedule 12 also adds regulation-making powers, including to prescribe the rules for persistent late payment, the circumstances and conditions in the provisions above, and forms of notices, and a new section 241.5 allowing transition regulations. I did not check whether any regulations have been made under these powers, so check the current regulations before you rely on a rule.
What This Means for Landlords
- Use the correct form. A notice that is not in the approved or prescribed form may not meet section 43(1).
- Check the dates. The 7-day period, the 120-day route and the 15-day review period each depend on dates and transition rules.
- Keep records of arrears. The half-arrears requirement in section 82 turns on the arrears claimed in the application when it was filed.
- Plan an own-use notice early. A notice that gives at least 120 days and ends at the end of a rental period or fixed term is treated differently from a shorter one under section 48.1.
- Do not use self-help. Changing locks or removing a tenant’s belongings is not a substitute for the Board process. See our article on squatters and tenants in Ontario for how the RTA treats a person who may be a tenant.
What This Means for Tenants
- A non-payment notice can be short. A landlord may give notice effective not earlier than the 7th day after it is given, so read it right away.
- Raising issues has conditions. To raise other issues at a non-payment hearing, you must give advance written notice and generally pay half of the arrears claimed, unless the regulations provide otherwise, before the hearing.
- Watch the 15-day deadline. A request to review a Board decision or order must generally be submitted within 15 days.
- Keep every notice and receipt. Dates and amounts decide which rules apply to you.
Other Schedules That Matter to Real Estate
Bill 60 also amended the Construction Act (Schedule 2), the Development Charges Act, 1997 (Schedule 3) and the Planning Act (Schedule 10), among others. The explanatory note on the Legislative Assembly website summarizes each schedule. For how development charges work, see our development charges guide. This article does not cover those schedules in detail.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Bill 60 in Ontario?
Bill 60 is the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025, Chapter 14 of the Statutes of Ontario, 2025. It has 16 schedules amending different statutes, including the Planning Act, the Development Charges Act, 1997, the Construction Act and the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006.
What did Bill 60 change in the Residential Tenancies Act?
Schedule 12 changed the notice for non-payment of rent (effective not earlier than the 7th day after it is given), what a tenant must do to raise other issues at a non-payment hearing (including paying half of the arrears claimed), compensation for landlord’s own use notices of at least 120 days, notices in an approved form, the Board’s powers on set-asides and postponed evictions, a 15-day deadline to request a review, and regulation-making powers.
How many days is a non-payment of rent notice in Ontario now?
Section 59(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act says the landlord may give notice of termination effective not earlier than the 7th day after the notice is given. Check that the notice is in the approved form and has the contents section 59(2) requires.
Does a landlord have to pay compensation for an own-use notice?
Section 48.1(1) requires compensation of one month’s rent or an offer of another rental unit. Under section 48.1(2), that requirement does not apply if the notice is given after the amendment came into force, ends at least 120 days after it is given and ends at the end of a rental period or the term of a fixed-term tenancy.
Does a tenant have to pay arrears to raise issues at a hearing?
Under section 82(2), unless the regulations provide otherwise, a tenant who wants to raise other issues at a hearing of a landlord’s non-payment application must pay half of the rent arrears claimed when the application was filed, plus any other prescribed amounts, before the hearing, and must give advance written notice.
How long do I have to ask the Board to review a decision?
A request to review all or part of a decision or order must be submitted within 15 days of the issuance of the decision or order, unless the Board considers it just and appropriate to extend the time (section 209(3)). It applies to decisions and orders made on or after the day that section came into force.
When did the Bill 60 changes to the Residential Tenancies Act take effect?
Schedule 12 says it comes into force on a day named by order. The current version of the Act on e-Laws, which began on September 21, 2026, includes the amendments. The Act has transition rules, so check which version applies to your notice or application.
Related: our residential leases service, our article on squatters, trespass and tenancy in Ontario, our development charges guide and our article on the 2026 rental market for landlords.
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Legal Information, Not Legal Advice. This article is general information about the Residential Tenancies Act amendments in Schedule 12 of Bill 60 (the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025), based on the Legislative Assembly of Ontario’s text of the Act and the current Residential Tenancies Act on e-Laws (currency date November 10, 2026), checked on November 13, 2026. Regulations, forms and Board rules may add detail, and transition rules decide which version of the Act applies to a notice or application, so speak with a real estate lawyer who handles landlord and tenant matters about your situation.
