Significant changes to the Residential Tenancy Act¹ (RTA) and accompanying regulations will be implemented by Bill 14 – 2024: Tenancy Statutes Amendment Act (Bill 14).² Bill 14 introduces new measures aimed at increasing compliance with the eviction provisions of the RTA and preventing bad-faith evictions of tenants. A number of provisions contained in Bill 14 will come into force on July 18, 2024, with the remainder to be introduced in phases. In this article we highlight the key changes to the RTA to consider when navigating tenant evictions in this new regulatory landscape.

Ending a tenancy: Legislative framework

Section 49 of the RTA prescribes circumstances in which a landlord can evict a tenant where a landlord wishes to use its rental property. These circumstances encompass a range of personal and commercial purposes. Under Section 49(5) of the RTA, landlords may end a tenancy where the landlord enters into an agreement to sell a rental unit in good faith and the purchaser of the unit requests the landlord to give notice to end the tenancy because the purchaser or a close family member of the purchaser, intends, in good faith, to occupy the rental unit. Under section 49(6) of the RTA, a landlord may end a tenancy if the landlord intends to demolish a rental unit, convert the residential property into strata lots, a non-profit housing cooperative or into a caretaker, manager or superintendent suite or to convert the rental unit to a non-residential use.

The RTA requires all landlords to act in good faith when evicting tenants for personal or caretaker use. This means that landlords must have an honest intention to use the rental unit for the purposes stated in the eviction notice.³ If landlords provide an eviction notice but fail to use the rental unit for the purpose set out in the eviction notice, they are deemed to have acted in bad faith. As a result, they must pay the evicted tenant 12 months’ rent as compensation.⁴

In spite of the existing regulatory framework, the Provincial Government has highlighted that bad-faith evictions continue to be an ongoing issue in British Columbia.⁵ Bill 14 introduces a number of measures aimed at increasing landlord accountability and transparency during the eviction process to further strengthen tenant protection. Some key changes to the RTA which are introduced by Bill 14 are highlighted below.

1. New website for generating notices to end tenancy launches July 18, 2024

Bill 14 introduces the Landlord Use Web portal (the Website), which launches on July 18, 2024.⁶ Landlords who wish to evict tenants for personal or caretaker use of the rental unit will be required to generate a Notice to End Tenancy (the Generated Notice) using the Website.⁷  A Generated Notice is not required for other types of evictions.

The Website aims to eliminate bad-faith evictions by requiring increased transparency from landlords post-eviction. The Residential Tenancy Branch will, from and after July 18, 2024, have the ability to conduct post-eviction compliance audits of those evictions for which Generated Notices were created using the Website. The Website will also serve as a source of data for use by the Residential Tenancy Board about the frequency and types of evictions.⁸

2. Notice periods for certain eviction types increased

Effective July 18, 2024, the notice period to evict tenants for reasons of personal or caretaker use was increased from 2 months to 4 months.⁹ However, due to public feedback regarding concerns that a 4 month notice period for personal use could be prejudicial for first-time home buyers, the government responded by reducing the notice period for reasons of personal or caretaker use from 4 months to 3 months.¹⁰ This change is effective as of August 21, 2024.¹¹

In addition, effective August 21, 2024, the prescribed dispute period if a landlord gives notice to end a tenancy under Section 49(5) of the RTA will be 21 days after the date the tenant receives notice.¹²

Notice periods for other types of evictions remain unchanged.

Upcoming changes to monitor

In addition to the changes highlighted above that come into force on July 18, 2024, certain provisions of Bill 14 will come into effect at a later date. Some future key changes are summarized below.

1. Elimination of evictions for conversion of a rental unit to a non-residential purpose

Bill 14 will repeal Section 49(6)(f), which previously permitted landlords to evict tenants where a rental unit was being converted into a non-residential use. This section will be replaced by a prohibition on the conversion of rental units for non-residential uses unless such uses are prescribed by regulation.¹³ This amendment to the RTA will not come into force on July 18, 2024. The precise timing of this change is not yet known. Further, it is not yet known which purposes will be prescribed under the new Section 49(6)(f). Landlords should take note of this upcoming prohibition where they may be considering converting their rental units into non-residential purposes.

2. Increased time period required for landlord’s personal use or caretaker use of a rental unit

Bill 14 will increase the length of time a landlord must use a rental unit for personal or caretaker use following the eviction of a former tenant. This period will increase from 6 months to 12 months.¹⁴ If a landlord fails to demonstrate personal use or caretaker use for 12 months, they may be liable to pay an evicted tenant 12 months’ rent as compensation. This amendment will not come into force on July 18, 2024. The precise timing of this change is not yet known.

Conclusion

While the provincial government continues its efforts to improve access to affordable and stable rental housing, the impact of amendments to the RTA introduced by Bill 14 will remain a live issue as only particular amendments come into force on July 18, 2024, while the remainder of the changes will be enacted in phases. With that being said, landlords should ensure their property managers are well versed on these changes and the use of the Website as applicable when eviction is being carried out for personal or caretaker uses. Landlords should strictly comply with the use of the Website to create a Generated Notice for these types of evictions to avoid their eviction notice being deemed ineffective.

In parallel to these amendments, where developers are acquiring previously tenanted properties for development purposes, they are always encouraged to review local city bylaws, as the notice periods provided for in the RTA act as minimum requirements. Cities may have longer notice periods as well as detailed tenant relocation requirements as part of any development and rezoning project where residential tenancies are involved.

For more information on this topic, please contact the authors, Brigham Jagger, Emily LeDue or Amy Blandford

1. Residential Tenancy Act, SBC 2002, c 78.↩
2. British Columbia, Bill 14 – 2024: Tenancy Statutes Amendment Act, 42-5 (2024), (Hon. Ravi Kahlon). ↩
3. Gichuru v Palmar Properties Ltd., 2011 BCSC 827. ↩
4. Residential Tenancy Act, s 51(2). ↩
5. Government of British Columbia, “Website launched to protect renters from bad-faith evictions”, Gov. BC, (July 3, 2024), https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2024HOUS0115-001044#:~:text=A%20new%20website%20launching%20on,to%20the%20process%20for%20landlords ↩
6. Ibid.↩
7. Ibid.↩
8. Ibid.↩
9. Province of British Columbia, Order of the Lieutenant Governor in Council, OIC No. 396 (July 3, 2024). ↩
10. Government of British Columbia, “Personal-use notice period for homebuyers changing”, Gov. BC, (August 1, 2024), https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2024HOUS0141-001239.↩
11. Province of British Columbia, Order of the Lieutenant Governor in Council, OIC No. 555 (August 6, 2024). ↩
12. Supra note 9. ↩
13. Bill 14, section 18. ↩
14. Bill 14, section 23. ↩