How the LTB Runs a Case: Ontario's Rules of Procedure in Plain Language for Landlords and Tenants

Every case at Ontario's Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) runs on the same playbook: the Rules of Procedure. They cover how documents get delivered, how applications are filed, when evidence must be exchanged, how to move a hearing and how to challenge an order. Practice Directions sit alongside them and describe what the Board expects day to day. Both were revised on September 21, 2026. Landlords and tenants are bound by the same Rules, so this guide is organized around the questions both sides ask most, using the current rule numbers.

Quick reference

Where the Rules fit

1. The law is the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA). Section 184 brings in the Statutory Powers Procedure Act; s. 193 says time is calculated under the Rules.
2. The Rules set procedure. The Board can relax or waive one unless legislation or a particular rule says it can't (Rule 1.4.2).
3. Practice Directions (made under Rule 1.2) explain how the Rules operate in practice. All of them are on the LTB's Law, rules and decisions page.
4. Guidelines on interpretation — a different category altogether, describing how Members may approach legal issues (overview).

The September 21, 2026 revision

Tribunals Ontario describes the update as improving "clarity and formatting", reflecting new legislation and matching current practice. Two things matter most:

• New numbering. Pre-2026 materials use "A"-prefixed general rules with lettered sub-paragraphs. Example: the representation Practice Direction's "Rule A3.1(b)" (participating with or without a representative) has become Rule 1.3.1, paragraph 2, and its "Rule 1.6(q)" (representatives giving evidence) is now Rule 1.6, paragraph 17. Use today's numbers when you write to the Board.
• Bill 60 content. Three additions: Rule 19.4 (the s. 82 payment of half the arrears), Rule 19.5.1 (old approach preserved for arrears cases filed pre-September 21, 2026), and Rules 26.4–26.5 (review deadlines of 30 or 15 days, keyed to the order's issue date).

Counting days (Rules 1.12–1.16)

• Use calendar days.
• Don't count the first day; do count the last.
• Deadline on a "holiday"? (Rule 1.1: holidays = weekends plus any day the LTB's offices are shut.) Then the following non-holiday works.
• Notices may still be given — and become effective — on holidays.
• The Board has no power to relax these counting rules.

Delivering documents (Rule 3)

Rule 3.1 adds to the RTA s. 191 methods. To serve someone living in the unit, you can:

• [ ] hand it to them (or to a person in the unit who appears to be an adult);
• [ ] leave it where mail is usually delivered, or slide it under the door or through a mail slot;
• [ ] mail it;
• [ ] courier it;
• [ ] fax it (fewer than 20 pages, unless the recipient agrees);
• [ ] email it — only with the person's written consent;
• [ ] upload it to the Tribunals Ontario Portal — only with written consent to Portal service.

Door-posting: entry notices only (Rule 3.2).

Ex-tenants: a narrower menu of methods (Rule 3.3), and any alternative-service request must come no later than 40 days pre-hearing (Rule 3.4).

When service counts (Rule 3.9):

Notice periods must allow for these.

Filing (Rule 4)

Rule 4.1 routes: the Portal; LTB@ontario.ca; a ServiceOntario counter handling LTB filings; courier or mail to 15 Grosvenor Street. Card numbers in an email get it rejected.

Portal applications need their supporting papers — termination notice, affidavit if any, proof of service — uploaded alongside (Rule 4.4) or inside five calendar days (Rule 4.5); after that, administrative dismissal is possible. Licensees have an extra obligation to use the Portal under the relevant Practice Direction (Rule 4.2.1). See the Portal guide.

Delivering the application itself (Rule 5)

The Board usually delivers the application and Notice of Hearing itself — but never your evidence (Rule 5.1). When the job falls to you, the clocks are tight:

• L10 and its Notice of Hearing: serve 30+ days before the hearing, and file the Certificate of Service 20+ days before (Rules 5.8, 5.16);
• most other directed service: 15+ days before (Rule 5.9).

Applications that won't be accepted (Rule 6)

Examples the LTB refuses:

• an L1 filed on or before the N4's termination date (6.7);
• an application on an N5-type notice (ss. 62, 64, 67) brought while the 7-day remedy period is still running (6.8);
• an eviction application brought over 30 days past termination, unless it's for unpaid rent (6.9);
• an incomplete application (6.10);
• an N12/N13 case with Part C of Schedule A or B left blank (6.11).

And if you owe the LTB a fine, fee or costs, no new non-urgent application until it's paid (6.1).

Hearings, representation and summonses (Rule 7)

Format. Video, phone, paper, in person, or a combination — the Board's call (Rule 7.1). Objecting to an electronic format requires a written objection demonstrating significant prejudice (Rule 7.2). Expect an open, public hearing unless ordered otherwise.

Who can speak for you (Rule 7.13). You; an LSO-licensed lawyer or paralegal; or someone unlicensed who falls within a Law Society exemption. Examples from the representation Practice Direction: a friend or neighbour helping for free (max three matters yearly), a family member helping for free, people at legal clinics (paid or volunteer), and employees representing only their own employer. Corporate landlords may send an employee or anyone else able to bind the company.

Witnesses. To force someone to come, ask the Board for a summons promptly (Request for the LTB to Issue a Summons); licensed representatives draft the summons themselves (Rule 7.5). Service and attendance money are on you (Rule 7.6).

Case management and rent hearings (Rules 9 and 10)

• Case management hearings. An applicant's no-show, absent exceptional circumstances, risks dismissal for abandonment (Rule 9.4).
• L1/L9 Information Update. Landlords deliver a completed update to each tenant and the Board no later than five days pre-hearing (Rule 10.2). If not, the Member can have it done at the hearing or deny the filing fee as costs (Rule 10.3).

Evidence: what to share, when and how (Rule 19 and the Practice Direction on Evidence)

The basic deadlines.

Example. Hearing on Tuesday, January 26, 2027: main evidence to the other side and the LTB by Tuesday, January 19; replies by Thursday, January 21.

The Portal trap (Rule 19.1.1). A Portal upload reaches the Board, not the tenant. It counts as service on the tenant only where their written consent to Portal service is itself on the Portal.

Tenants raising other issues at a rent hearing. On an L1, L9 or L10 filed September 21, 2026 or later, a tenant who wants to raise maintenance, harassment or other s. 82 issues must, 7 or more days before the hearing:

• [ ] pay the landlord half the arrears claimed;
• [ ] describe every issue in writing (Rule 19.4);
• [ ] provide their evidence (Rule 19.6).

Landlord reply: five days or more ahead (Rule 19.6.1). Rule 19.4 is waivable only when the Human Rights Code demands it.

Format rules from the revised Practice Direction on Evidence:

• legible, sequentially paginated, and indexed (table of contents) if you have several items;
• one copy of each item per application — joined or heard-together files excepted;
• Portal: 500 MB cap, approved formats. Email: only to LTB.Evidence@ontario.ca, subject "EVIDENCE" + file number + hearing date, 35 MB each;
• no social media or website links, and no cloud links like Dropbox or iCloud;
• audio or video? You must be able to play it yourself at the hearing;
• the Member decides what's admitted, and may refuse late material after considering how late, why, and any prejudice.

Mediation, amendments, time limits, withdrawals (Rules 13–17)

• Mediation and online dispute resolution discussions are private (Rule 13.5).
• Pre-hearing amendments: a written request, served on the others, filed with proof of service (Rule 15.1).
• Rule 16 gives the Board flexibility on many deadlines; termination notice periods aren't among them (O. Reg. 516/06, s. 56).
• Before the hearing begins, an applicant may withdraw unilaterally (Rule 17.2).

Moving a hearing (Rule 21)

Rescheduling. Unanimous consent, received at least 5 business days out (Rule 21.1), listing every party's blackout dates over the coming three months (Rule 21.3). For a Tuesday, January 26, 2027 hearing, that means by Tuesday, January 19. Contested or late? Only if on-time compliance wasn't reasonably possible. No answer yet? Attend anyway — the hearing will run, and an applicant who isn't there risks dismissal (Rule 21.4).

Adjournment. Raised when the hearing opens; Rule 21.8's factors (prejudice, the file's history and others) decide it. For L5s, moving the date takes exceptional circumstances.

Orders, costs and corrections (Rules 22–24)

• Reasons: ask orally at the hearing, or by written request no later than 30 days after a reasons-free order (Rule 22.2).
• Costs: a winning applicant can recover the filing fee from the respondent (Rule 23.1); representation/preparation costs max out at $100 hourly and $700 overall (Rule 23.2).
• Clerical errors: an amendment request, filed inside 30 days (Rule 24.1).

Stays and the Sheriff (Rule 25)

Whoever files a set-aside motion — or receives a stay, or a notice voiding an eviction order — must get a copy to the Court Enforcement Office immediately (how the Enforcement Office works).

Reviews (Rule 26)

• Deadline: 15 days for orders issued July 1, 2026 or later (Rule 26.5; RTA s. 209(3)); 30 days for earlier orders. Example: an order issued Thursday, February 4, 2027 can be reviewed on a request made by Friday, February 19.
• Format (Rule 26.7): 12-point font or larger, about a 40 mm left margin, 10 double-spaced pages at most (form, evidence and cases not counted), signed, with the fee.
• Grounds (Rule 26.8; O. Reg. 178/26): inability to reasonably participate; a serious error behind the order; or fresh evidence, unobtainable before, likely to have changed the result.
• Process: early dismissal on paper is possible, and a single order can be reviewed only once (Rule 26.18).

More: the review request page.

Questions people ask

When does my evidence have to reach the other side?

A week ahead to the other party and the Board, five days ahead for replies, absent a different direction (Rule 19).

What's the deadline and fee for a review?

Fifteen days from the issue date, for orders issued on or after July 1, 2026. The fee is $58.

How early do I need to ask to move a hearing?

Get all parties on board and have the request land five business days or more before the date, with three months of unavailable dates for each party (Rules 21.1, 21.3). Otherwise you'd need to show on-time compliance wasn't reasonably possible.

When is something I mailed or couriered treated as served?

Mail: five days after posting. Courier: one day after hand-off, or the following business day if that's a weekend or holiday (Rule 3.9). Your notice periods have to absorb this.

I don't want a video hearing. Can I object?

You can, by written objection filed by the deadline on your notice of hearing, explaining the significant prejudice a remote format would cause (Rule 7.2).

Official sources

• LTB Rules of Procedure
• Practice Direction on Evidence
• Practice Direction on Representation before the LTB
• Practice Direction on Hearing Formats
• LTB Law, rules and decisions
• Operational Update, September 21, 2026
• Residential Tenancies Act, 2006

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