T3 Rent Reduction Application in Ontario: What Tenants Can Claim and How Landlords Respond

Ontario's T3 is a tenant's request that the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) cut the rent. There are two possible reasons: something the landlord used to provide (a service or a facility) was scaled back or removed, or municipal property taxes on the building dropped. Tenants file it. Landlords respond to it. O. Reg. 516/06 sets out how a reduction is calculated, so cost records and tax bills usually carry the day.

Quick summary

The two grounds

Ground 1 — a service or facility was reduced or removed (s. 130)

Think of a parking space, a laundry room, a storage locker, a pool, or cable that came with the rent. If one was provided for the unit or the complex and then cut back or stopped, the tenant can ask for less rent. A former tenant can apply too, as long as the cut affected them while they still lived there.

What the LTB can do (s. 130(3)):

• lower the rent;
• order a rebate of rent that was collected unlawfully;
• lower the rent for a fixed period if the cut was temporary.

Effective date: back to when the cut began (s. 130(4)).

Ground 2 — municipal taxes went down (s. 133)

A tenant can ask for lower rent because the complex's municipal taxes and charges fell. Don't confuse this with the automatic rule. A tax drop above 2.49% lowers rents without any application (s. 131; O. Reg. 516/06, s. 41), and in bigger buildings the municipality sends notices to the landlord and tenants.

What a T3 can't do

• Disrepair? Use a T6.
• An illegal charge to recover? Use a T1.
• Care home residents can't use a T3 over reduced meals or care services.

Is the T3 the right choice?

• Was the service withheld to pressure the tenant? Then the issue is conduct — file a T2.
• Want to change the automatic s. 131 reduction? Landlords and tenants do that with an A4 (s. 132).

Timing rules

1. Lost services (s. 130(5)). One year from the reduction or discontinuance, then the door closes. (The form's own questions cover only the last 12 months.)
2. Which tax years count (O. Reg. 516/06, s. 45(1)). The "base year" is the most recent full calendar year before filing; the "reference year" is the one before that.
3. Tax appeals (s. 45(2), para. 3). When the decrease comes out of a tax appeal, file within 12 months of the appeal decision.
4. When a tax reduction starts (s. 45(6)). Day one of the earliest rental period that begins on the filing date or later.

Example. A tenant in Belleville files a tax-based T3 on Wednesday, February 10, 2027. The base year is 2026 and the reference year is 2025. Rent is due on the 1st, so any reduction would start Monday, March 1, 2027. In the same building, a storage locker taken away on Monday, November 2, 2026 can be claimed only if the T3 is filed within a year of that date.

Completing the form (version 01/04/2022)

1. Part 1 — General Information. Unit address; tenants' names and contact information; landlord's name and address; any related files.
2. Part 2, Reason 1 — Service or facility reduced or discontinued in the last 12 months. Fill in the table (what was affected, reduced versus stopped, the date), then a year of rent history and the payment frequency.
3. Part 2, Reason 2 — Municipal taxes decreased. Name the base year and the reference year and give the complex's total property taxes for each. Tax evidence for both years must be attached.
4. Part 3 — Signature. After it: accommodation/French-language requests, then payment.

For tenants filing this

• [ ] The cut happened within the last year (Reason 1), or you're a current tenant with tax evidence for both years (Reason 2).
• [ ] You're not trying to claim disrepair, an illegal charge, or care home meals or services.
• [ ] You're not using the Portal. Options: post or courier it (15 Grosvenor Street, Toronto), take it to a ServiceOntario location handling LTB documents, or email ltbpayments@ontario.ca.
• [ ] If emailing, watch for the payment link — it expires three calendar days after it's sent.
• [ ] The $53 fee is ready. A joint application covering several units costs $53 + $5 per extra unit (maximum $450) and is mailed or couriered.
• [ ] Tax claim going to a written hearing? Rule 5.6 gives you 20 days from the LTB's notice to serve every respondent with the application and that notice.

For landlords receiving this

1. Check the date of the cut. If it was more than a year before filing, s. 130(5) bars the claim.

2. Prove what the service cost. Under O. Reg. 516/06, s. 39, the answer changes with the reasonableness of the removal:

3. Temporary interruptions. No reduction is due if the cut was temporary and lasted a reasonable time considering its effect on the tenant (s. 39(7)). Keep work orders and dates that prove how long it went on.

4. Tax claims. Base-year and reference-year tax bills, appeal decisions if any, and your yearly rent roll. Without proof of total annual rents, the LTB applies a statutory factor that may not help you (s. 45(5)).

5. Evidence deadlines. A week ahead of the hearing; reply evidence, 5 days ahead (Rules 19.1–19.2).

Why T3 claims fail

1. The cut is over a year old — barred by s. 130(5).
2. A former tenant seeks a tax reduction — under s. 133 only people still renting may apply.
3. It's about care home meals or care services — outside the T3.
4. Reason 2 with no tax evidence attached.
5. Wrong channel or unpaid fee — Portal filings and fee-less filings don't work for a T3.
6. A short interruption that was reasonable — nothing owed (s. 39(7)).

After filing

After a hearing (possibly a written one, for tax claims) the LTB's order states the reduction, its start date and any rebate. Orders dated July 1, 2026 or later can be reviewed if requested inside 15 days (Request to Review an Order); a Divisional Court appeal, limited to legal questions, needs to be launched within 30 days.

Questions people ask

If I take away a tenant's parking spot, do I have to lower the rent?

Expect a claim if you don't. Removing something included with the unit lets the tenant apply for a reduction reflecting its cost or value; only a temporary cut of reasonable length escapes that.

Does rent drop by itself when property taxes go down?

Past a 2.49% decrease, yes — s. 131 applies automatically. Separately, a tenant can apply on a T3 under s. 133.

From what date is the lower rent paid?

Lost service: back to the first day of the cut. Tax decrease: the first rental period starting on or after the day you filed.

I've moved out. Can I still file?

Yes — but only about something cut back while you still lived there, and only inside the one-year limit.

Official sources

• Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, ss. 130–133, 207
• O. Reg. 516/06, ss. 39–41, 45
• T3 Instructions
• T3 – Tenant Application for a Rent Reduction (PDF)
• LTB Rules of Procedure, Rules 5.6, 19, 26
• LTB Forms, filing and fees

Last reviewed October 31, 2026. General information, not legal advice for your situation. Always use the current version of the form from the LTB.