How long do i have to reply to a notice of rent increase?
Short answer
In Quebec, a tenant has one month from the receipt of the notice to reply. With no reply within that time, the law treats the tenant as having accepted the increase.
In detail
The time limit is one month, counted from the receipt of the notice, not from the date written on it. The date of receipt therefore matters a great deal.
Silence counts as acceptance. This is the rule that surprises people the most: doing nothing is not neutral, it amounts to saying yes.
The reply can be made in writing on paper, by email, or using the reply form of the Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL, Quebec's rental board). What matters is being able to prove later that it was sent within the time limit.
What to document
The date you received the notice, a photo of the notice and of the envelope, then the date and the method of sending your reply. Keep the acknowledgment of receipt, the screenshot of the email you sent, or the registered mail receipt.
Put your facts in writing, free. Writing your version down early, keeping your documents dated and preparing your questions for a lawyer: the tool is there to document, never to advise.
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Official sources
- JuridiQC — Refusing a rent increase: how to do it
- TAL — Modification of a condition of the lease
- JuridiQC — Rent increase: when and how must your landlord notify you?
Related questions
- When must my landlord send me the notice of rent increase?
- If i refuse the rent increase do i have to move out?
- How do i know if a rent increase is too high?
- My landlord did not send a notice of rent increase does the lease renew?
- What is section g of the lease and what is it for?
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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.