In Ontario, a tenant facing an L1 eviction for unpaid rent can get the order voided without a hearing by telling the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) that everything owing was paid in time. If the landlord says that is not true, the S3 is how the landlord asks the Board to set that "order to void" aside. It leads to a hearing where both sides can be heard on one question: was the full amount actually paid?
Quick summary
| Filed by | A landlord or co-op whose L1 eviction order got voided on paper |
| Trigger | A void order made under s. 74(6) of the RTA; look for "-VO" at the end of the file number |
| Deadline | Ten days, starting from the void order's issue date |
| Filing | Tribunals Ontario Portal |
| Fee | None |
| Related forms | If you are late, a Request to Extend Deadline; if told to serve, a Certificate of Service |
How voiding works, and where the S3 fits
Before an L1 eviction order becomes enforceable, the tenant can void it by paying the arrears, any rent that has since come due, NSF charges and any costs ordered (RTA s. 74(4)). There are two paths:
- Everything paid into the LTB. No motion is needed; staff send out a notice declaring the order void (s. 74(5)).
- Some or all paid to the landlord. The tenant files a motion with a sworn list of payments. The landlord is not notified, and the Board decides on the papers, with no hearing (s. 74(6)–(8)).
The S3 answers the second path. The landlord has 10 days to move, on notice to the tenant, to set aside that one-sided order (s. 74(9)). The Board must then hold a hearing and, under s. 74(10), decide as follows:
| What the hearing shows | Result |
|---|---|
| Full payment arrived ahead of the enforceable date | Motion refused; eviction order remains void |
| Full payment arrived late, but it has now been made | Motion refused; eviction order remains void |
| Anything else | The void order is set aside and the eviction order is confirmed not void |
When the S3 is the right form
Yes: a tenant's s. 74(6) motion produced the void order and part of the money never reached you. Typical stories: a cheque or transfer bounced; money the tenant counts was for something else; the affidavit inflates the total.
No, if there was a hearing. By its own terms the S3 covers only no-hearing orders; a void order made at a hearing calls for the Request to Review an Order.
No, if the tenant paid the LTB in full. Full payment to the Board generates a staff notice (Rule 20.2; s. 74(5)), which is not an s. 74(6) order at all.
Not to be confused with the tenant's s. 74(11) motion, available once per tenancy agreement, for payment made after the enforceable date but before the Sheriff acts. The landlord gets notice of that one and a hearing is held.
Time limits
Ten days. Section 74(9) and the form's second note both set it. Count calendar days, skipping the issue date; a deadline landing on a weekend or an LTB holiday moves forward to the following business day (Rules 1.12 to 1.14). Example: an order to void issued on Monday, June 7, 2027 can be challenged until Thursday, June 17, 2027.
Late? You may ask for more time with a Request to Extend Deadline, but it has to be filed along with the S3 unless there are exceptional circumstances (Rule 16.2).
Service. Rule 5.11 requires the motion to be served two days (48 hours) or more before the hearing starts. Normally the Board mails out the hearing notice along with the motion itself; a party serves only if ordered to (Rule 5.1). Check your hearing notice for an instruction to serve. If you do serve, prove it with a Certificate of Service.
In the meantime. The form's third note is clear: the void order keeps operating while the motion is pending, so nobody can enforce the eviction.
Completing the S3
The current version is v. 01/04/2022, one page.
- File Number. Copy the "-VO" number from the void order.
- Between. Both parties' names, spelled as the orders spell them.
- Address of Rental Unit. Full address with unit number.
- The request line. Your name, the "-VO" order number, and the date of that order.
- Reasons. Show your math. List:
- the voiding figure from the eviction order, with any rent that fell due later added on;
- each payment received: when, how much, and how it was paid;
- each payment that bounced or was reversed;
- what was still unpaid on the enforceable date.
Then identify each error in the tenant's affidavit. Your ledger and bank statements are your hearing evidence. - Signature. Mark landlord, co-op or representative, give your name and a phone number, then sign and date.
A worked example of the math. The eviction order required $3,400 to void it, and $1,700 in rent fell due before the payment date, so $5,100 was needed. The tenant's affidavit lists $3,400 paid by e-transfer and a $1,700 cheque. The cheque came back NSF. On the enforceable date, $1,700 was still outstanding.
Filing
File on the Tribunals Ontario Portal; it is free, and a hearing date follows. Rule 25.1 sends tenants' set-aside motions to the Court Enforcement Office, but not a landlord's S3.
What each side should do
The landlord
- File within 10 days, with the numbers laid out as above.
- Recheck the ledger before the hearing. Full payment since the deadline leaves the Board no option but to refuse your motion (s. 74(10)(b)).
- Do not send the eviction order to the Sheriff while the S3 is pending. The void order is still in effect.
The tenant
- The S3 does not reinstate the eviction by itself. The order voiding it stays in effect until the Board rules.
- Bring proof of every payment: e-transfer confirmations, bank records, receipts, and the date each amount went to the landlord.
- Remember what the Board looks at. If you paid the full s. 74(4) amount, including rent that came due up to the payment date, before the eviction order became enforceable, or if you have paid it in full since, the Board must refuse the landlord's motion (s. 74(10)).
Reasons S3 motions fail
- Late filing. Day 11 with no S3 (and no extension request filed alongside one) leaves the void order standing and the eviction order lost.
- Wrong form after a hearing. A void order from a hearing is challenged by review, inside the review time limit.
- No numbers. A bare "they never paid" does not help. The Member has to decide if the whole s. 74(4) sum came in; give the figures.
- Overlooking new rent. Under s. 74(4)(b), voiding also requires any rent falling due before the payment date. This point decides a lot of S3 hearings.
- Overlooking later payments. If the tenant has caught up fully since, s. 74(10)(b) requires the Board to say no.
- Service problems. Serving inside 48 hours, or serving when directed and filing no proof (Rules 5.11, 5.17).
- Going to the Sheriff early. The void order binds until the S3 is decided.
After the hearing
The ruling follows s. 74(10). Win, and the void order is cancelled, the eviction order is declared valid, and the landlord can take it to the Court Enforcement Office. Lose, and the eviction order is still void and the tenant stays.
Common questions
What is an LTB "order to void"?
It is a no-hearing order under s. 74(6) of the RTA. It declares an L1 eviction order void on the basis that the tenant paid the full amount in time, with at least part of it going to the landlord.
What is the deadline for an S3?
Ten days, measured from when the void order was issued (s. 74(9)).
The tenant paid the LTB directly. Is an S3 available?
Usually no. That payment produces a staff notice under s. 74(5), not a motion order the S3 can attack. If you believe the amount paid was wrong, check whether a review is available.
What should be brought to the S3 hearing?
Landlords: the ledger, deposit records from the bank, NSF notices, the eviction order (it shows the voiding amount), and a Certificate of Service if you did the serving. Tenants: proof of every payment.