Can I deposit my rent with the tribunal?
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Short answer
Not on your own initiative: a rent deposit must be authorized by the Tribunal administratif du logement. Article 1907 of the Civil Code of Québec first requires prior 10 days' notice to the lessor, indicating the grounds for the deposit. Those 10 days run from the notice given to the lessor; the application for authorization, the "Deposit of rent" form (TAL-003-E), is filed afterwards.
In detail
The notice is given in writing. The Tribunal publishes a model, the "Notice of rent deposit" (TAL-805-E), given under article 1907 of the Civil Code of Québec. The Tribunal states the rule in these words: "Before filing an application to deposit rent with the Tribunal, the lessee must send the lessor a notice in writing of his or her intention to deposit the rent, indicating the reason for the deposit. This notice must be given 10 days prior to the filing of an application for authorization to deposit rent." The starting point of the ten days is therefore the notice itself · not the rent date, and not the date of the application.
A deposit is not open in every situation. The Tribunal lists three: "For serious grounds, where the lessor fails to perform his or her obligations"; "Where the lessee is not personally informed of the name and address of the new lessor or of the person to whom (s)he owes payment of the rent"; and "For any other serious grounds" · the lessee is not certain who must be paid, the lessor cannot be found, or the lessor refuses payment. The application is made on form TAL-003-E, which bears recourse codes 1907 DEP and 1908 DEP.
Once authorization is granted, the Tribunal "determines whether the grounds are serious and if so, fixes the deposit amount and conditions", and the rent is deposited at each due date. The Tribunal writes: "The lessee must deposit the rent by each due date, failing which the lease could be resiliated because the rent has been paid over three weeks late or is frequently paid late" · that three-week threshold is the one in art. 1971 C.C.Q. The decision authorizing the deposit is immediately executory, and "The remittance of the deposit of rent authorized by a decision of the Tribunal will be able to be completed as of the expiry of the time limit for an appeal of such decision", on production of a certificate of non-appeal.
What to document
The dates: of the notice, of its receipt, of each rent payment. A notice is proven by how it was sent; a payment, by the statement that carries it. The condition of the dwelling is photographed · an image carries its date, a recollection does not. And every exchange with the landlord or tenant keeps its timestamp.
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Official sources
- art. 1907, al. 2, du Code civil du Québec (RLRQ c CCQ-1991) · read on 2026-08-09
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What this page is not
This is general legal information about the law of Quebec and Canada, dated and sourced. It is not legal advice, not a strategy, and not a prediction about the outcome of a case. In Quebec, only lawyers and notaries may give legal advice (Act respecting the Barreau du Québec, ss. 128 and 133). Laws and amounts change: the official source always prevails over us.