Landlord-Occupancy Eviction Notices | British Columbia

A landlord's-use notice still has to be generated through the RTB's web portal, not written out on paper or sent by email. Each generated notice carries a unique Notice ID in the top corner, which is what makes it verifiable as an official notice rather than an informal letter. [Cite: Residential Tenancy Act, s. 49]

Landlords should also complete a Proof of Service form, RTB-34, documenting how and when the notice was actually delivered. That record matters if a dispute reaches a hearing, since the tenant's 21-day window runs from the date the notice is received, or deemed received, not the date it was generated in the portal. [Cite: Sample generated Notice, Form RTB-32L]

The occupancy obligation, and what happens if it isn't met

Ending a tenancy under this notice type isn't the end of the landlord's obligations. The person who claimed the unit, the landlord or a close family member, has to actually occupy it in good faith for at least 12 months after the tenant moves out.

If that doesn't happen, without a legitimate change in circumstances, the landlord can be liable to the former tenant for compensation. Separately from that risk, the tenant is owed one month's rent as compensation for the move itself, regardless of what happens afterward. This isn't a penalty tied to bad faith; it's a standard cost of using this notice type, built into the process from the start.

How this differs from a purchaser's-use notice

The two notice types now share a timeline, but they're triggered by different facts and use different forms. A landlord's-use notice applies when the current landlord, or a close family member, intends to move in. A purchaser's-use notice applies when the property is sold and the buyer, or the buyer's close family member, intends to move in instead, using Form RTB-32P rather than RTB-32L.

Confirming which situation actually applies matters before generating a notice, since using the wrong form for the underlying reason can create a dispute over the notice's validity separate from any dispute over whether the occupancy claim itself is genuine.