T2 Form: How Ontario Landlords Should Respond to a Tenant Rights Application

The T2 is the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) application a tenant or former tenant files when they say the landlord, the landlord's agent or the superintendent broke the tenant's rights under the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA). Typical claims are illegal entry, a lockout, harassment, a cut-off vital service, or substantial interference with reasonable enjoyment. The outcome usually turns on the landlord's records.

At a glance

What the T2 is for

Section 29(1) of the RTA lets a tenant or former tenant apply for an order that the landlord, superintendent or agent:

• withheld or deliberately interfered with a vital service, care service or food the landlord must supply (s. 21);
• substantially interfered with the reasonable enjoyment of the unit or complex by the tenant or a member of their household (s. 22);
• harassed, obstructed, coerced, threatened or interfered with the tenant (s. 23);
• changed the locks without giving the tenant replacement keys (s. 24); or
• entered the unit illegally (ss. 26–27).

The T2 form adds two related grounds:

• the landlord did not give an evicted tenant 72 hours to collect their property after the Sheriff enforced an eviction (s. 41(3)); and
• a care home tenant did not receive a written tenancy agreement with the required care services and meals details (s. 140).

Vital services are heat (from September 1 to June 15), fuel, electricity, gas, and hot or cold water. Maintenance and repair complaints under s. 20 go on the T6, not the T2.

When to use it (and when not to)

The T2 is the right form for conduct. It is the wrong form for money the landlord collected or kept (use the T1), for disrepair (T6), or for a bad-faith N12 or N13 after the tenant has moved out (T5). A tenant facing an L1 can raise T2 issues at that hearing instead, if they meet the s. 82 conditions; s. 87(2) extends the same right to the rent applications on an L9 or L10. For any of these applications filed on or after September 21, 2026, those conditions include paying half the arrears claimed (Rule 19.4). See Issues a Tenant Intends to Raise.

Landlords should know the rules a T2 is measured against:

• Entry without written notice is allowed in an emergency, with consent at the time of entry, for agreed cleaning, or to show the unit after notice of termination has been given, between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. after making a reasonable effort to inform the tenant (s. 26).
• Entry with written notice needs at least 24 hours' notice, stating the reason, date and a time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., for one of the reasons in s. 27.

Deadlines and limitation periods

• One year (s. 29(2)). No application may be made more than one year after the conduct occurred. For a single event such as an illegal entry, the year runs from that day. For ongoing conduct, such as a vital service withheld for weeks, Guideline 6 says the year runs from the date the conduct ended.
• Remedy window. Even when conduct began earlier, an abatement can only reach back one year before the application was filed (Guideline 6, citing Toronto Community Housing Corp. v. Vlahovich).
• Time-sensitive hearings. An illegal lockout application must be served at least 48 hours before the hearing (Rule 5.3). A claim of denied access to property after a Sheriff's eviction must be served at least 5 days before (Rule 5.4).
• Disclosure. Evidence goes to the other parties and the LTB at least 7 days before the hearing. Responding evidence goes at least 5 days before (Rules 19.1–19.2).

How to fill out the T2, section by section

The form is version 01/04/2022.

• Part 1: General Information. Unit address, tenants, landlord, any superintendent or agent also named (with a Schedule of Parties), move-in and move-out dates, and related file numbers.
• Part 2: Reasons. The tenant shades any of Reasons 1 to 7: illegal entry; locks changed without keys; substantial interference; harassment, coercion, obstruction or threats; vital services, care services or meals withheld; no 72 hours to remove property after eviction; care home agreement missing or incomplete. Each reason has its own box for names, dates and what happened. Approximate dates are allowed if marked as approximate.
• Part 3: Remedies. Remedies 1 to 11: (1) abatement; (2) stop the conduct; (3) fine to the LTB; (4) end the tenancy; (5) damaged property; (6) one year of rent differential; (7) moving and storage; (8) other out-of-pocket costs; (9) move back in after a lockout; (10) return of property after a Sheriff's eviction; (11) other. If the only ground is the 72-hour rule, only remedies 2, 3, 5, 8, 10 and 11 are available. If it is only the care home agreement, only an abatement is available.
• Part 4: Signature, then the accommodation and French-language request and the payment page.

Filing it

The tenant files on the Tribunals Ontario Portal, by mail or courier, or at a ServiceOntario centre that accepts LTB documents. The fee is $53, or $48 on the Portal, unless waived. The LTB serves the application and Notice of Hearing (Rule 5.1); each side gives its evidence directly to the other.

If you are the landlord responding

1. Check each claim against the limitation period. List every incident the tenant alleges with its date. Anything that ended more than a year before filing is outside s. 29(2).

2. Build the record for each ground: - Entry. Copies of every 24-hour notice of entry, how and when each was served, emergency calls or work orders, and messages showing consent. - Locks. When and why the locks were changed, and proof that keys were offered or delivered. - Vital services. Utility bills and disconnection notices, service call logs, and repair invoices showing how quickly service was restored. Heat must meet the minimum in s. 4 of O. Reg. 516/06 from September 1 to June 15. - Interference from work. If the complaint is about maintenance, repairs or capital improvements, s. 8 of O. Reg. 516/06 applies. The LTB cannot order an abatement if every condition in s. 8(4) is met. In summary:

   • you gave at least 60 days' notice (or, in an emergency, as soon as reasonable) describing the work, its expected impact and how long it would take, and updated it if things changed;
   • the work was of a listed kind, for example needed to protect the building's physical integrity, to meet legal standards, to maintain building systems, for accessibility, for energy or water conservation, or for security;
   • any required building permit was issued;
   • the work was done at reasonable or by-law-permitted times, took a reasonable time, and you took reasonable steps to limit noise.

   Keep the notice, the permit and the contractor schedule. - Harassment. Copies of every text, email and letter you or your staff sent the tenant. Context matters, and so does tone. 3. Disclose on time. Late evidence may be excluded (Rule 19.7). 4. Remember the consequences. Under s. 31(1) the LTB can: - order an abatement; - order you to stop the conduct; - award the tenant's property and out-of-pocket costs; - impose an administrative fine of up to the greater of $10,000 and the Small Claims Court limit; - terminate the tenancy; - make any other order it considers appropriate.

If the conduct induced the tenant to move out, it can add a year of rent differential and moving costs (s. 31(2)). After an illegal lockout of a vacant unit, it can order the tenant back in (s. 31(3)). 5. Settle through the LTB. Once a harassment claim is filed, the tenant cannot withdraw it without the consent of a Member or Dispute Resolution Officer (Rule 17.2). If you reach a settlement, put it before the LTB rather than relying on a private withdrawal.

Mistakes that get it refused, voided or dismissed

1. Conduct more than a year old. Barred by s. 29(2), and abatements cannot reach back past one year before filing.
2. Wrong form. Repairs belong on a T6 and money claims on a T1. A T2 that only describes disrepair may fail as pleaded.
3. Entry that was lawful. Entry with valid 24-hour notice for a s. 27 reason, or without notice in one of the s. 26 situations, is not illegal entry.
4. Ordinary friction is not "substantial" interference. For work done by the landlord, an interference is substantial only if it was unreasonable in the circumstances (O. Reg. 516/06, s. 8(3)(b)).
5. No particulars. Reasons with no dates, names or description give the landlord nothing to answer and are hard to prove.
6. No fee or fee waiver. The application will not be accepted.

What happens next

The LTB schedules a hearing, which may start with mediation. If the tenant succeeds, the order sets out the remedies. Breaching an order to stop prohibited conduct is an offence. Either party may request a review within 15 days of an order issued on or after July 1, 2026 (Rule 26.5), or appeal to the Divisional Court on a question of law within 30 days (s. 210).

Recent changes

The T2 form (2022) and instructions (August 2023) have not been reissued. Since July 1, 2026, a tenant may install a window or portable air conditioner if the conditions in s. 36.1 of the RTA are met, and Guideline 6 now covers air conditioners. The request-to-review deadline fell from 30 to 15 days for orders issued on or after July 1, 2026.

Frequently asked questions

What counts as harassment by a landlord in Ontario?

The RTA does not define it. Section 23 prohibits a landlord from harassing, obstructing, coercing, threatening or interfering with a tenant. Guideline 6 discusses how the LTB approaches these claims, and the LTB decides each case on its facts.

Can a tenant get a fine imposed on the landlord?

Yes. The LTB can order an administrative fine payable to the LTB of up to the greater of $10,000 and the monetary jurisdiction of the Small Claims Court (s. 31(1)(d)).

Is entering to do repairs illegal?

Not if you gave at least 24 hours' written notice stating the reason, the date and a time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. (s. 27), or there was an emergency or the tenant consented at the time (s. 26).

Official sources

• Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, ss. 20–27, 29, 31, 36.1, 41, 82, 87, 140, 207, 210
• O. Reg. 516/06, ss. 4, 8
• T2 Instructions
• T2 – Application about Tenant Rights (PDF)
• Interpretation Guideline 6: Tenant Rights
• LTB Rules of Procedure, Rules 5, 17, 19, 19.4, 26
• LTB Forms, filing and fees
• LTB Operational Update, July 1, 2026

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