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ONTARIO COMPLIANCE

LTB Form N13: demolition, conversion or major repairs

The longest notice in the N-series, for work extensive enough to genuinely require an empty unit — with a right of return that defeats the reason most landlords are tempted to use it.

Last reviewed 22 August 2026
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In short
How much notice does an N13 require?
120 days — the longest notice period in the N-series — terminating on the last day of a rental period or lease term.
When does work justify an N13?
Only when the repairs or renovations are extensive enough to genuinely require vacant possession, and require a building permit. Work that can be done around an occupied tenancy does not support an N13, however disruptive it would be.
Can the tenant come back after the renovation?
Yes, if they give written notice that they intend to. A tenant who exercises that right of first refusal returns at the rent they were paying before, not at a new market rent — which is what makes an N13 a poor instrument for repricing a unit.
Rules, rates and fees change — this page reflects publicly published sources as of 22 August 2026 and isn't legal or tax advice. Confirm current requirements against the sources linked below, or with a licensed professional, before making a compliance decision.

One hundred and twenty days

N13 carries the longest notice period of any N-form: 120 days, terminating on the last day of the rental period or lease term. Four months is a long lead time, and it exists because the disruption is correspondingly large — this is the form for demolition, for conversion to a non-residential use, and for repairs so extensive the unit cannot be occupied while they happen.

The work has to actually require an empty unit

The threshold is not how disruptive the work is or how much easier it would be with nobody there. It is whether vacant possession is genuinely necessary, and the renovation must be extensive enough to require a building permit. A kitchen refresh, new flooring or a bathroom refit generally will not meet it.

The Board looks at the permit, the scope and the schedule. A landlord who cannot produce a permit for work described as requiring vacant possession has answered the question against themselves.

Compensation, and the right of first refusal

N13 carries compensation obligations, and — for repairs and renovations, as distinct from demolition or conversion — a tenant who gives written notice of their intention to return has a right of first refusal on the renovated unit at the rent they were previously paying.

That last point is the one that decides whether an N13 makes commercial sense. A landlord renovating to reset a below-market rent, on a unit whose tenant has served notice of intent to return, arrives at the end of a four-month notice period and a construction programme with the same tenant at the same rent. The form is built for buildings that genuinely need the work, and it behaves badly when used for anything else.

Direct PMS links the work order and its permit to the unit, so the renovation an N13 depends on has a record attached to the tenancy it displaced.

Work orders and units →