Security Deposits in Canada: Which Provinces Allow Them (and Which Ban Them)

If you are moving into a new rental in Canada, one of the first surprises is the deposit question — and the answer changes completely at every provincial border. Canada has no national deposit law. Each province sets its own rules, and two of the biggest provinces ban damage deposits outright. Paying a deposit you never owed is one of the most common ways renters lose money at move-in.

The two bans come first, because they are the rules most often broken. In Ontario, security, damage, pet, and cleaning deposits are all illegal under the Residential Tenancies Act — any lease clause demanding one is void. The only deposit a landlord can collect is a rent deposit equal to the last month's rent, plus a refundable key deposit capped at the actual cost of replacing the keys. That rent deposit earns you interest every year at the provincial guideline rate (2.1% for 2026). In Quebec, landlords generally cannot require any deposit beyond the first month's rent, under article 1904 of the Civil Code of Québec — no damage deposit, no pet deposit, no key money. If a Quebec landlord asks for more upfront, the demand itself is the violation, and tenants can have it ordered returned.

Everywhere else, deposits are legal but capped. British Columbia allows up to half a month's rent as a security deposit, plus a separate pet damage deposit of up to another half month (Residential Tenancy Act, s. 19). Alberta allows up to one month's rent, held in an interest-bearing trust account (RTA, ss. 43–44). Saskatchewan allows up to one month's rent — the landlord can require half up front, with the rest due within two months of move-in. Manitoba caps it at half a month's rent. Nova Scotia caps it at half a month's rent, held in a trust account. Prince Edward Island caps it at one month's rent, in an interest-bearing account. Newfoundland and Labrador caps it at three-quarters of a month's rent for monthly tenancies, or two weeks' rent for weekly ones.

New Brunswick runs its own system, and it is the one renters understand least. Deposits are allowed — up to one month's rent for standard tenancies, one week's rent for week-to-week ones, three months for mobile home sites — but the landlord does not hold the money. The landlord must remit it to the province's Tenant and Landlord Relations Office (TLRO) within 15 days, and the province holds it until the tenancy ends. Paying it to your landlord is fine, but if you never receive the province's Certificate of Deposit in the mail, ask why — that certificate is your proof the money is where it belongs.

Three move-in rules protect you in every province. First, get a receipt that states the amount, the date, and the unit address — in every province, this is your paper trail. Second, document the unit's condition with dated photos before you unpack; most deposit disputes are about damage that was already there, and landlords cannot charge you for ordinary wear and tear — faded paint, carpet flattened by normal use, small nail holes are not damage. Third, never send money to anyone before you have seen the unit, met the landlord, and signed a lease. No legitimate deposit is due before that moment.

If you already paid an illegal deposit, paying it does not make it legal — and the landlord has no right to keep it for damages. In Ontario, you recover it through the Landlord and Tenant Board on Form T1; in Quebec, through the Tribunal administratif du logement.

Moving to Ontario? Read our full guide to Ontario's deposit rules — what landlords can and can't ask for, the interest and top-up rules most people miss, and how to recover an illegal deposit. And wherever you are renting in Canada, our free damage deposit calculator shows exactly what your landlord can legally ask for in your province before you sign anything.