Standard Form Lease Agreement (RTA)

Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17

12.1 (1) Every tenancy agreement that is entered into in respect of a tenancy of a prescribed class on or after the date prescribed for that class of tenancies shall comply with the following requirements:

1. The tenancy agreement shall be in the form prescribed for that class of tenancies.

2. The tenancy agreement shall comply with the requirements prescribed for that class of tenancies. 2017, c. 13, s. 5.

O. Reg. 9/18: TENANCY AGREEMENTS FOR TENANCIES OF A PRESCRIBED CLASS

1. The following class of tenancies is prescribed for the purposes of subsection 12.1 (1) of the Act:

1. The class that consists of all tenancies for occupancy of accommodation with respect to which all or part of the Act, other than Part V.1, applies, except for tenancies for occupancy of any of the following:

i. A rental unit in a care home.

ii. A rental unit that consists solely of a site for a mobile home.

iii. A rental unit that consists solely of a site on which there is a land lease home.

iv. Accommodation described in clause 6 (1) (a) or (b) of the Act.

v. A rental unit described in subsection 7 (1) of the Act.

vi. A rental unit described in subsection 6 (1) or (3) of Ontario Regulation 516/06 (General) made under the Act.

vii. Any accommodation which is not described in subparagraphs i to vi and for which the tenant pays rent in an amount geared-to-income due to public funding.

Prescribed date 2. For the purposes of subsection 12.1 (1) of the Act, the prescribed date for the prescribed class of tenancies described in paragraph 1 of section 1 of this Regulation is April 30, 2018.

TSL-04079-19 (Re), 2019 CanLII 87637 (ON LTB)

9. The Tenant withheld one month’s rent because the Landlord failed to provide her with a standard lease pursuant to section 12.1 of the Act. The Tenant submitted that she is entitled to retain the rent withheld.

10. Pursuant to section 12.1 of the Act, effective April 30, 2018, Landlords, except those exempt under Ontario Regulation 9/18, must use the prescribed standard lease for tenancy agreements. The tenancy commenced in January 2019 and the Landlord is not exempt. On March 2, 2019, the Tenant requested in writing that the Landlord provide a proposed tenancy agreement based on the standard lease form. The Landlord did not respond within 21 days, therefore the Tenant was entitled to withhold one month’s rent and did withhold the rent for April 2019 in the amount of $2,000.00 (section 12.1(6) of the Act). At the time of the hearing, more than 30 days after the first rent payment was withheld, the Landlord had not provided the Tenant with a proposed standard lease. Thus, the Landlord may not require the Tenant to pay the withheld rent (section 12.1(9) of the Act). The withheld rent has been deducted from the amount of rent owing.