An Ontario landlord serves the N5 for three kinds of problem: substantial interference with others, wilful or negligent damage to the unit or building, and more people living in the unit than the law permits. The conduct can be the tenant's, an occupant's, or a guest's. On a first N5 the tenant gets 7 days to put things right, and doing so cancels the notice. A second N5 served within six months cannot be cancelled. Either way, the N5 comes before any L2 eviction application.

Key facts
Served by A landlord facing interference, undue damage or overcrowding caused by a tenant, occupant or guest
Timing After the problem has happened, not in anticipation of it
Notice length 20 days minimum on a first N5 (and a week for the tenant to make it right); 14 days minimum on a second N5 (no do-over). Posting or couriering it lengthens both
Delivery To each tenant by a permitted method; taping it to the door does not count
Cost The notice is free. An L2 is $201, or $186 if filed on the Tribunals Ontario Portal
Next form The L2, filed once the 7 days pass (first N5) or straight away (second N5), and at the latest 30 days after the termination date

The three grounds

A single N5 can rest on any of three provisions of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA):

  1. Reason 1 – substantial interference (s. 64). Someone connected to the unit (tenant, occupant, visitor) behaves in a way that seriously disrupts another tenant's or the landlord's reasonable enjoyment of the property, or some other legal right or interest of theirs.
  2. Reason 2 – undue damage (s. 62). Through carelessness or on purpose, the tenant, an occupant or a visitor did undue damage to the rental unit or the wider complex.
  3. Reason 3 – overcrowding (s. 67). The number of people regularly living there breaks a health, safety or housing standard set by law.

Whichever ground applies, the notice has to give a termination date 20 days or more ahead and has to tell the tenant what to do within 7 days: stop the conduct, fix or pay for the damage, or bring the head count down. Compliance within that week (or, in a damage case, an arrangement the landlord accepts) wipes the notice out; that is the effect of subsections 62(3), 64(3) and 67(3).

Section 68 then opens a second door. New trouble that starts after the first week has passed, yet inside half a year from the first notice, lets the landlord serve a second notice the tenant cannot undo, with a 14-day termination date.

Picking the right notice

Think of the N5 as the notice for fixable behaviour: parties at 2 a.m., bullying other residents or building staff, hoarding that draws bugs or odours, careless damage, a head count above what the local by-law permits. Board decisions on interference, damage and overcrowding are summarized in Guideline 10.

Other notices may fit better:

Situation Better choice
Landlord lives on site, the property has no more than three residential units, and the disruption is to the landlord's own enjoyment N7 – 10 days' notice, no voiding (RTA s. 65)
Deliberate damage that can be proven, or a serious threat to someone's safety Also N7 territory; but where intent may not be provable, the LTB instructions say stick with the N5
Illegal activity, or a tenant in subsidized (RGI) housing who misstated income N6
The goal is just money for damage or costs, not eviction Skip the notice and seek compensation through an L2 (Guideline 10)

Counting the dates

The basic rules

Day zero is the service day; the termination date counts as a full day (Rule 1.13). A mailed notice picks up 5 extra days (s. 191(3)), and a couriered one is treated as given one day after the courier took it, or on the next business day if that day is a Saturday, Sunday or holiday (Rule 3.9; under Rule 1.1, "holiday" includes weekends). Notice periods are fixed; Guideline 10 confirms the Board can neither lengthen nor shorten them.

First N5 timeline

Stage Rule Source
Termination date At least 20 days past service ss. 62(2), 64(2), 67(2)
Tenant's fix-it period The week following receipt ss. 62(3), 64(3), 67(3)
L2 – earliest After that week ends unremedied (day 8, per the instructions) RTA s. 70
L2 – latest Day 30 after termination; miss it and the notice dies ss. 69(2), 46(1)

Worked example. A landlord hands an N5 to the tenant on March 3, 2027. The tenant's 7 days are March 4 to March 10. The earliest valid termination date is March 23. An L2 can go in from March 11 and no later than April 22. If the same notice had been mailed on March 3, it would be treated as given on March 8, pushing the earliest termination date to March 28.

Second N5 timeline

  • Prerequisite: an earlier, valid s. 62, 64 or 67 notice, and then fresh conduct or a fresh situation that arises once the first week is over but before the six-month mark (s. 68(1)).
  • Termination date: two weeks or more past service of the second notice (s. 68(2)).
  • L2: can be filed the same day (s. 71); the outer limit is still day 30 after termination (s. 69(2)). There is no voiding.

Example. Continuing from above, new damage happens on April 20, 2027, well over 7 days and well under 6 months after March 3. The landlord hands over a second N5 on April 22. The termination date can be no earlier than May 6, and the L2 deadline is June 5.

If you are the tenant

Work out the same dates from your side. On a first N5, the 7 days after you receive the notice are your chance to stop the conduct, repair or pay, or reduce occupants, and doing so voids the notice for that issue. Check the termination date: if it is shorter than the law requires, the notice is defective. And if no L2 is filed within 30 days after the termination date, the notice is void.

Filling in the N5

Download the current version through the LTB forms page, with the official instructions beside you. The opening pages are a checklist for landlords; take them out before the notice is served.

To, From and Address. List every tenant in possession, along with any subtenant or assignee (children and guests are left out), and every landlord. The address needs the street number and name, the unit, apartment or suite (or "Basement"), the municipality and the postal code.

Termination date. Write a single calendar date (dd/mm/yyyy) that leaves enough room: three weeks less a day on a first N5, two weeks on a second, more if it is posted or couriered.

Reasons for ending the tenancy. Tick each reason that applies. Then, under every reason ticked, tick exactly one of two choices:

  • the box giving the tenant a week to stop or correct things and stay (first N5); or
  • the box saying the landlord may go to the LTB right away because this is a second N5 within six months (second N5).

Mixing is not allowed. According to the landlord checklist, one N5 is either entirely voidable or entirely non-voidable, even across different reasons.

A first N5 has two more blanks to fill. Under Reason 2, put a dollar figure on repairing the damage (or replacing the item where repair isn't sensible). Under Reason 3, state the occupant count the tenant has to reach: the legal maximum under the governing statute or by-law.

Details about the reasons. Every N5 must include this Date/Time and Details of the Events table. Each entry should answer: who did it (tenant, occupant or a visitor), when (date and time; for damage with no known date, the discovery date), what occurred, and whom it affected. Damage entries need a description and an explanation of how it was caused wilfully or negligently. Overcrowding entries need the number of people you believe live in the unit and the law or by-law being breached. On a first N5, spell out the exact steps that would cancel the notice. Attach more pages as needed, and serve them together with the form.

Signature. Choose Landlord or Representative, print a name and phone number, sign, and date. Representatives complete their own block too: name, LSO number if they have one, firm, mailing address, phone and email.

Delivering it

The instructions accept: personal delivery to the tenant (or any adult in the unit); the tenant's mailbox or usual mail drop; the mail slot or the space beneath the door; courier; fax; regular mail or Xpresspost. Email needs the tenant's prior written consent (Rule 3.1). Never post it on the door.

Serve each tenant named. Hold on to a copy and get a Certificate of Service from the person who delivered it. The notice and certificate are uploaded together with the L2, or at the latest 5 calendar days afterward (Rules 4.4 and 4.5).

How an N5 fails

There is no fixing a flawed notice after service (Guideline 10). Section 212 of the RTA forgives small errors that cause the tenant no significant prejudice, yet the Board refused that lifeline for an N5 built on the wrong reason; see Guideline 10's reference to Royal Bank of Canada v Scott, 2025 ONLTB 83472. Watch for:

  1. The voidable/non-voidable box left blank, or both ticked. One box per reason, and all reasons must point the same way.
  2. Mislabelling a notice as a second N5. Section 68 needs a valid prior s. 62, 64 or 67 notice and genuinely new events between day 8 and the six-month mark. Re-using the first notice's incidents, or things that happened during its correction week, does not work (Guideline 10).
  3. Too few days. Twenty for a first N5, 14 for a second, then 5 more for mail or one business day for courier. Even a single day short sinks the notice.
  4. Thin details. A line like "excessive noise" leaves the tenant guessing what to answer or correct. Guideline 10, relying on Ball v Metro Capital Property, says a voidable N5 must be specific enough that the tenant can choose whether to comply in the week allowed.
  5. First-N5 damage claim with no cost estimate, or overcrowding claim with no legal maximum. Sections 62(2)(c) and 67(2)(c) make the notice state what is required of the tenant, and the form has a blank for each.
  6. Doubling up with an N7 (or another non-voidable notice) on the same facts. Saying "you can fix this" and "I'm applying regardless" in the same breath confuses tenants; the Board has thrown out applications on all such notices (Guideline 10).
  7. Filing inside the 7 days. Section 70 forbids it.
  8. Filing too late. Past day 30 after termination, s. 69(2) requires dismissal and s. 46(1) voids the notice.
  9. The tenant fixed it. A timely cure voids that issue. Where the notice listed several, the landlord may proceed only on the uncured ones, and the hearing is confined to them (Guideline 10).
  10. Basic defects: a tenant left off, an incomplete address, improper service, or no signature.
  11. Old paperwork. The Board issued a new N5 on September 21, 2026; from November 30, 2026 the earlier versions are refused.

What comes next

Fixed within the week (first N5 only). Notice cancelled. Any fresh problem in the months that follow can still ground a second N5.

Not fixed, or a second N5. Next comes the L2, filed through the Tribunals Ontario Portal with the N5 and Certificate of Service attached, by day 30 after termination. Cost: $186 on the Portal ($201 otherwise). Landlords seeking repair costs as well as possession put both claims on the L2 and show how the figure was reached (Guideline 10).

At the hearing. Proving the grounds is the landlord's job. Separately, RTA s. 83 obliges the Board to think about refusing or delaying eviction, and that is the tenant's opening to explain their situation. If the landlord does not agree to a delay, O. Reg. 516/06, s. 8.4 now demands two things: compelling grounds, and no unfairness to the landlord or the other tenants. Review requests on orders dated July 1, 2026 or later are due within 15 days.

Recent changes

  • September 21, 2026. New N5 form (prior versions refused from November 30, 2026); tougher standard for postponing an eviction the landlord opposes.
  • July 1, 2026. Reviews of orders issued from this date must be sought in 15 days, not 30.

What stayed the same: 20 days, 14 days, and the one-week cure period.

FAQ

How does a first N5 differ from a second?

The first carries 20 days' notice and a one-week cure. The second, for fresh conduct arising after that week but before six months are up, carries 14 days, has no cure, and allows an immediate L2.

Does paying for the damage cancel an N5?

On a first N5, yes. RTA s. 62(3) gives the tenant three ways out in that week: pay the estimate, repair or replace the item, or reach an arrangement satisfactory to the landlord.

Can a second N5 be served if the tenant never voided the first?

Yes. Under Guideline 10, voiding is irrelevant; what matters is that the new conduct falls after day 7 and before the six-month point measured from the first N5.

N5 or N7?

Reach for the N7 only where one of its 10-day grounds clearly applies, such as provable deliberate damage. If intent may be hard to prove, the LTB suggests the N5. Do not serve both for the same conduct.

Official sources