Guides
Quebec Lease Renewal Notice Deadline: What the Law Says
Quebec lease renewal notice deadline runs three to six months before a fixed-term lease ends. Tenant response and TAL filing windows follow if the tenant refuses.
What to take away
- A Quebec landlord must serve written notice of a rent increase or any other lease change three to six months before a fixed-term lease of 12 months or more ends. Article 1942 of the Civil Code of Quebec sets that window.
- Fixed terms under 12 months and indeterminate leases follow article 1943, which sets a window of one to two months before the end.
- The tenant has one month from receipt to accept, refuse and stay, or refuse and leave. Silence counts as acceptance under article 1945.
- A tenant who refuses in writing and stays forces the landlord to apply to the Tribunal administratif du logement within one month of receiving that refusal, under article 1947.
- Miss the landlord window and the lease renews on the same rent and conditions for another term.
Notice windows by lease type
The deadline is a window, not a single date. Count backwards from the day the lease ends.
| Lease type | Landlord notice window | Civil Code article |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed term of 12 months or more | 3 to 6 months before the end | 1942 |
| Fixed term under 12 months | 1 to 2 months before the end | 1943 |
| Indeterminate term | 1 to 2 months before the end | 1943 |
Timing and proof both matter. The tenant's response clock starts on the date of receipt, not the date of mailing. Log the delivery method and the receipt date for every notice you serve.
Quebec's civil law scheme differs from the common-law treatment of lease renewal and new terms in most U.S. states, where a fixed term simply ends unless the parties sign again.
Other provinces vary widely. Ontario publishes an annual rent increase guideline, while Alberta sets no cap on sitting tenants. The rent increase rules used across Canada comparison places both beside Quebec's tribunal model.
What the tenant's one month covers
Article 1945 gives the tenant one month from receipt. Three outcomes are possible. The tenant accepts. The tenant refuses and stays. The tenant refuses and leaves. No reply at all equals acceptance of your proposed rent and conditions.
The tenant's reply can be short. A written refusal needs no reasons and does not end the lease by itself. It only opens the door to a tribunal application.
A refusal alone changes nothing. The rent holds at the current amount until the tribunal rules. Article 1947 lets the landlord apply to the TAL within one month of receiving the written refusal, and the tribunal then sets the rent. Notice periods carry real weight in any rent control regime, and Quebec is no exception.
Landlords drafting notices in English should read Bilingual lease administration in Quebec to see how Bill 101 language rules and the TAL forms interact before serving a Quebec tenant.
Example: a Montreal lease ending June 30
Take a lease that runs from July 1 to June 30.
Lease Renewal Notice Timeline
- 3-6 months before endLandlord sends written notice
- On receiptTenant response window starts
- 1 month after noticeTenant accepts, refuses, or leaves
- 1 month after refusalLandlord files with TAL
- Confirm the term. A lease running July 1 to June 30 gives a notice window from early January through March 31.
- Serve the notice inside the window. A notice sent February 10 falls inside that January 1 to March 31 range.
- Record the receipt date. If the tenant receives the notice on February 14, the one-month reply period ends March 14.
- Wait for the written answer. Silence by March 14 means the proposed increase is accepted and no filing is needed.
- File with the TAL after a written refusal. A refusal received on March 10 gives until April 10 to apply.
Order of Lease Renewal Steps
- Confirm lease type and end date
- Serve notice within statutory window
- Tenant responds within one month
- If tenant refuses and stays, file with TAL
- File within one month of refusal
A turnover costs more than an accepted increase, and Lease Renewal vs New Tenant breaks down where the money goes when a renewal fails. Add vacancy loss, cleaning and advertising to that bill. The old rent, by contrast, is a known number for the next 12 months.
What a missed deadline costs
A landlord sends a June 30 lease notice in late April. The latest permissible date was March 31. The lease renews at the prior rent and conditions, and the landlord waits a full cycle for the next window.
That is the entire risk. A late notice locks in the old rent for another term, and the same winter timing returns a year later.
Nothing in the statute rewards waiting for a tenant to signal interest in staying. The landlord's clock runs on the lease end date alone, whether or not the tenant has answered a renewal call.
Once the deadline passes, the next chance to change the rent comes with the following renewal window. Track each notice date on a calendar that opens the task well before the statutory window starts.
Provincial paperwork differs as well. Canadian lease forms by province shows how a Quebec notice and form set differs from Ontario or British Columbia versions.
