As of November 9, 2020, the BC government has extended the freeze on rent increases in BC until July 10, 2021, under the powers of the Emergency Program Act and COVID-19 Related Measures Act.
The ban on rent increases originally came into effect on April 1, 2020 and was set to expire on December 1, 2020. Any rent increases previously served that would have come into effect on December 1, 2020, are now cancelled, along with any pending increases until July 2021. Tenants are instructed to disregard any rent increase notices received after March 30, 2020 and continue to pay their current rent until the expiration of the rent freeze.
Landlords must account for any overpayments that have been received by tenants. It is recommended that landlords simply deduct the overpayment amount from the following month's rent or pay tenants directly for the difference.
Landlords and tenants with questions can contact the Residential Tenancy Branch at 1 800 665-8779 or at HSRTO@gov.bc.ca.
Visit this Government of BC webpage for more information on COVID-19 policies for residential tenancies.
