What's Your Unit Worth Right Now?
Get a free AI-powered price range for your condo in under 90 seconds — floor, exposure, view, parking and locker included. No name or address required.
Get My Free Estimate →Yes. Under s. 38(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act, a fixed-term tenancy that ends without being renewed or lawfully terminated is automatically deemed renewed as a monthly tenancy on the same terms. That has been the law since 2006 and it has not changed. In October 2025 the Ontario government proposed to consult on ending that automatic continuation. It was never in Bill 60, and the consultation was dropped on 26 October 2025. Any page telling you Ontario recently introduced automatic month-to-month conversion has the direction of the story backwards.
In October 2025 a lot of Ontario tenants were told their lease was about to stop rolling over. In the same week, a lot of Ontario landlords were told they were about to gain the right to end a tenancy at the end of a term. Neither happened. The law is exactly where it was, and it has been there since 2006. Here is what actually occurred, because the misreporting has outlived the story.
The rule, which has not changed
Residential Tenancies Act, s. 38(1): “If a tenancy agreement for a fixed term ends and has not been renewed or terminated, the landlord and tenant shall be deemed to have renewed it as a monthly tenancy agreement containing the same terms and conditions…”
That is automatic. Neither side has to sign anything, ask for anything, or give notice to make it happen. A one-year lease that reaches its end date without being renewed or lawfully terminated becomes a month-to-month tenancy on the same terms and at the same rent, subject to the ordinary rent increase rules. The end of a fixed term is not a ground on which a landlord can require a tenant to leave.
What was proposed in October 2025
On 23 October 2025, alongside the introduction of Bill 60, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing published a technical briefing deck. Page 15, under the heading “Lease Agreement Expiry”, described the current state accurately — “after a fixed-term lease ends, the tenancy typically continues on a month-to-month basis” — and then set out a future state:
“The government would consult on alternative options on lease agreement expiry that could allow landlords to control who occupies their units and for how long, allowing them to adjust tenancy arrangements based on market conditions, personal needs, or business strategies.”
Read the direction of that carefully. The proposal was to consult on ending the automatic continuation in s. 38. It was not a proposal to create automatic conversion — that already exists — and it was not in the bill. Nothing about lease expiry, security of tenure or s. 38 appears anywhere in Bill 60, in the first reading print or in the Royal Assent print.
What happened next
On Sunday 26 October 2025, three days later, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing announced that the government would not proceed with the consultation. The statement was made on the Minister’s social media account rather than through Ontario Newsroom.
A limit on this page I want to be open about. I could not find a record of the withdrawal on any Government of Ontario domain. I searched Ontario Newsroom by keyword and by release ID across the relevant period and found no release, statement or bulletin. The only contemporaneous primary record is the Minister’s own post of 26 October 2025, with press coverage the following day. The 23 October proposal, by contrast, is documented in a government PDF that is still online. If you need certainty for a legal purpose, the reliable fact is not the withdrawal announcement — it is that s. 38 of the Act is unamended and Bill 60 contains nothing on lease expiry. That you can verify yourself in one minute on e-Laws.
Why the misreporting stuck
Two proposals were briefed on the same day — one on lease expiry and one touching rent control on newer units — and both were dropped together. In the compression, a lot of coverage collapsed them into “the fixed-term lease change” and then, when the withdrawal was reported, described the withdrawn thing incorrectly. Some pages still describe Ontario as having introduced automatic conversion to month-to-month in 2025. It was introduced in 2006 and never left.
What is actually true about fixed-term leases in Ontario right now
| Question | Answer | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Does a fixed-term lease automatically continue month to month? | Yes, unless renewed or lawfully terminated. | RTA s. 38(1) |
| Can a landlord end a tenancy just because the term ended? | No. The end of a term is not a ground of termination. | RTA ss. 37, 39 |
| Do the same terms and the same rent carry over? | Yes, on the same terms and conditions, subject to the ordinary rent increase rules. | RTA s. 38(1) |
| Can a tenant end a month-to-month tenancy after a fixed term? | Yes, with 60 days’ notice ending at the end of a rental period. | RTA s. 44 |
| Did Bill 60 change any of this? | No. Bill 60 contains nothing on lease expiry. | Bill 60, Royal Assent print |
Buying a property with a tenant whose lease is “expiring”?
The end of a fixed term does not give vacant possession, and an agreement of purchase and sale written on the assumption that it does can put you in a difficult spot at closing. If a listing or a seller is telling you the lease “runs out” on a date, send it to me and I will tell you what the tenancy actually is.
connect@jatindua.com · 437-987-1925 · Book a free consultation
Confidential. Read personally and answered within 24 hours. I never share, sell or distribute your information.
Free tool — AI condo value estimator
Condo Valuation
What’s your condo
worth today?
Three quick steps. Condos don’t price like houses — your floor, your view, and whether you own parking move the number more than anything else. This weighs all of them.
Reading recent condo sales…
Estimated market value
—
$0–$0
Most likely $0 · about $0 per square foot
What moved the number
Starting from what comparable units in your area sell for, here’s what your specifics added or subtracted.
Market context
—
—
Two units, same floor plan,
$90,000 apart.
That happens constantly in condos — one has the parking, the right exposure, or a board that keeps the reserve fund healthy. A model can’t see your status certificate. I can.
Frequently asked questions
My one-year lease is ending. Do I have to move out?
No. Under s. 38(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act the tenancy is automatically deemed renewed as a monthly tenancy on the same terms and conditions unless it is renewed or lawfully terminated. The end of a fixed term is not by itself a ground on which a landlord can recover possession.
Can my landlord make me sign a new lease at the end of the term?
A landlord can offer a new agreement, and a tenant can agree to one. But a tenant who does not sign anything simply continues month to month on the existing terms under s. 38. Refusing to sign a new fixed term is not a ground of eviction.
Did Ontario change the fixed-term lease rules in 2025?
No. A consultation on ending automatic month-to-month continuation was floated on 23 October 2025 in a ministry technical briefing and dropped on 26 October 2025. It was never part of Bill 60, and s. 38 of the Act is unamended.
Does the rent change when the lease rolls over?
Not automatically. The tenancy continues on the same terms and conditions, including the same rent. A rent increase still requires proper written notice and is subject to the annual guideline unless the unit is exempt under s. 6.1 of the Act.
How much notice does a tenant give to leave a month-to-month tenancy?
Sixty days, ending at the end of a rental period, under s. 44 of the Act. A tenant cannot end a fixed term early on 60 days’ notice unless the agreement allows it or the landlord agrees.
Why does this page say the withdrawal could not be fully verified?
Because I could not find the withdrawal announcement on any Government of Ontario domain. The only contemporaneous primary record is the Minister’s social media post of 26 October 2025. The proposal itself is documented in a government PDF. The reliable fact is that s. 38 is unamended and Bill 60 says nothing about lease expiry, and that can be checked directly on e-Laws.
Related reading
- Bill 60 and Ontario tenancy law: the in-force tracker
- N12 compensation and the 120-day rule
- Above-guideline rent increases: what an AGI is and how to respond
Sources
Every figure on this page traces to one of these, and each was read on 30 August 2026. Primary sources only — statute, regulation, and the government or agency that administers the rule. Where I could not verify something from a primary source, the page says so instead of guessing.
- Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17 — e-Laws consolidation. Official consolidation. Consolidation period stated on the document: from July 1, 2026. Last amendment: 2025, c. 14, Sched. 12. Accessed 30 August 2026.
- Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act 2025 — MMAH technical briefing deck (PDF). Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, 23 October 2025. Page 14 sets out the 120-day landlord’s-own-use compensation proposal; page 15 sets out the lease-expiry consultation. Accessed 30 August 2026.
- Bill 60 as passed (PDF). The Royal Assent print. Schedule 12 amends the Residential Tenancies Act; s. 15 of that Schedule sets commencement by order of the Lieutenant Governor in Council. Accessed 30 August 2026.
- Bill 60, Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025 — Royal Assent print. Legislative Assembly of Ontario. First reading 23 October 2025; Royal Assent 27 November 2025. Enacted as S.O. 2025, c. 14. Accessed 30 August 2026.
- Residential rent increases — guideline. Government of Ontario. 2026 guideline 2.1 per cent; 2027 guideline 1.9 per cent. Accessed 30 August 2026.
- Landlord and Tenant Board. Tribunals Ontario. The tribunal with exclusive jurisdiction over most residential tenancy disputes in Ontario. Accessed 30 August 2026.
About the author — Jatin Dua, Etobicoke real estate agent
I’m the Broker of Record at RE/MAX Quantum Realty, 799 The Queensway in Etobicoke. I write these pages the same way I work a file: read the primary source, quote it, date it, and say plainly where the source is silent or where two sources disagree. If a figure on this page has no citation beside it, that is a mistake and I want to hear about it.
I work with buyers, sellers, renters and investors across Etobicoke, Mimico, Humber Bay Shores, New Toronto, Long Branch, Alderwood and Stonegate–Queensway. connect@jatindua.com or 437-987-1925.