Most Nova Scotia leases contain at least one term that does nothing. Not because the landlord was dishonest, usually, but because the clause was inherited from an American template, a previous owner, or a form bought online, and nobody checked it against the Act.
It matters in both directions. A tenant who believes an unenforceable clause gives up something they were entitled to. A landlord who relies on one discovers, at the worst possible moment, that the term they were counting on was never there.
This is the landlord's side of that: what you can put in a Nova Scotia lease, what you cannot, and how to tell the difference.
The rule that decides it
Two provisions do most of the work, and both are written the same way.
Section 9(1) applies the statutory conditions:
Notwithstanding any lease, agreement, waiver, declaration or other statement to the contrary, where the relation of landlord and tenant exists ... there is and is deemed to be an agreement between the landlord and tenant that the following conditions will apply.
Section 10(1) does it again for notice periods: "Notwithstanding any agreement between the landlord and tenant respecting a period of notice..."
Read those carefully. It is not that a contradicting clause is unfair, or that a tenant could challenge it. The statutory conditions are deemed to be in the agreement regardless of what the paper says, and a term that contradicts them does not operate. A signature does not fix it, and neither does a tenant's written waiver, because "waiver" is listed by name.
So the test for any clause is simple: does it contradict the Act? If it does, it is decoration.
And the lease itself is a prescribed form
Section 8 says the rest of it, and it is stronger than most landlords here believe.
Section 8(2A): "The Director may prescribe a standard form of lease which must be used by all landlords and tenants", listing what it has to contain, including the statutory conditions and the terms of termination. The Director has done so: the Standard Form of Lease Regulations, N.S. Reg. 19/2025, effective 30 April 2025 and amended to N.S. Reg. 120/2026 effective 6 May 2026, provide that a standard form of lease under s.8(2A) "must be in the attached form". That attached form is what the province publishes as Form P.
A good deal of guidance still online describes Form P as recommended rather than required. Read s.8(2A) and the regulations together before relying on that, and note the April 2025 date: this changed at the same time as the arrears rules, and secondary summaries have been slow to catch up with both.
In any event the question is close to academic, because of section 8(4) and 8(5): a landlord and tenant who enter into or renew a written tenancy agreement without signing a standard form of lease "are deemed to have done so and all provisions of this Act and the standard form of lease apply", and the same is true of an oral agreement. You cannot escape the standard form by not using it. A handshake tenancy carries it too.
Three more provisions in the same section decide the fate of anything you add:
- s.8(1) lets you and the tenant agree "other benefits and obligations which do not conflict with this Act". That is the affirmative version of the same rule: extra terms are fine until they collide with the statute.
- s.8(2): an additional benefit or obligation "is void unless it appears on both the landlord's and tenant's copies". A term on your copy but not theirs does nothing.
- s.8(3): "Any alteration of or deletion from provisions that a standard form of lease prescribed by the Director is required to contain is void." Striking out a clause you dislike does not remove it.
The clauses that do not operate
"The tenant is responsible for repairs under $100"
This is the most common one, and it fails on two conditions at once.
Statutory Condition 1 puts repair on the landlord: "The landlord shall keep the premises in a good state of repair and fit for habitation during the tenancy and shall comply with any statutory enactment or law respecting standards of health, safety or housing."
Statutory Condition 4 sets the limit of the tenant's exposure: the tenant is responsible "for the ordinary cleanliness of the interior of the premises and for the repair of damage caused by wilful or negligent act of the tenant or of any person whom the tenant permits on the premises."
So the dividing line the Act draws is fault, not dollar value. A tenant pays for what they broke through a wilful or negligent act. A landlord pays for the furnace, the roof, the plumbing, and the tap that failed because taps fail. A clause that moves the first hundred dollars of every repair onto the tenant regardless of cause replaces the Act's test with an invented one, and it does not survive section 9(1).
There is a practical cost to keeping it, too. A tenant who has been told that small repairs are their problem does not report the small leak, and you meet it later as a large one.
Where the line actually falls in practice, and what Halifax's By-law M-200 adds on top of Statutory Condition 1, is worked through in repairs in a Halifax rental: who actually pays.
"First and last month's rent"
Section 12(1) is broader than most landlords realise:
Where a landlord obtains from a tenant any sum of money or other value that is in addition to the rent payable in respect of the residential premises, the sum of money or value is deemed to be a security deposit.
And section 12(2) caps a security deposit at one half of one month's rent.
Put those together. Last month's rent taken at the start of a tenancy is money in addition to the rent then payable, so it is deemed a security deposit, and half a month is the ceiling. First and last is over the limit before you add anything else.
The same reasoning catches everything else people invent:
- pet deposits
- key or fob deposits
- cleaning fees taken up front
- administration or "move-in" fees
- anything described as non-refundable
Section 12(1) does not care what you call it. Money or value beyond the rent is deemed a security deposit, which means it counts against the half-month cap, must be held in trust in a chartered bank, trust company or credit union under section 12(3), and accrues interest payable to the tenant under section 12(4).
Notice periods you invented
Section 10(1) sets the tenant's notice, notwithstanding any agreement:
| Tenancy | Notice the tenant gives |
|---|---|
| Year to year | At least three months before the year expires |
| Month to month | At least one month before the month expires |
| Week to week | At least one week before the week expires |
A lease demanding sixty or ninety days from a month-to-month tenant does not operate. Neither does one that promises the tenant can leave on two weeks' notice, because the section sets the period in both directions.
On your own side, section 10(3A) is blunt: "A landlord shall not give to the tenant a notice to quit residential premises except in accordance with this Section." Section 10(4) requires the notice to be in writing, signed by you or your agent, describing the premises and stating the day the tenancy terminates, and section 10(5) requires it to be in the form required by the Director. A letter you drafted yourself is not a notice to quit.
A late fee above one per cent
Nova Scotia permits a late fee, and caps it. Statutory Condition 9: "Where the lease contains provision for a monetary penalty for late payment of rent, the monetary penalty shall not exceed one per cent per month of the monthly rent."
Three things follow. It has to be in the lease, so you cannot introduce one part way through a tenancy. It is one per cent of the monthly rent, per month, not per day and not of the arrears. And on $2,000 rent the maximum is $20, which is small enough that it is not a collection strategy. Our rent collection guide covers what to do instead.
"The landlord may enter at any time"
Statutory Condition 7 sets out what entry requires: written notice, a stated purpose which must be reasonable, a date and time between 8am and 8pm unless the tenant agrees otherwise, given at least twenty-four hours and not more than thirty days before the day of entry, and delivered by a method in section 15(2) or by text to a phone number the tenant provided for that purpose.
Statutory Condition 7A lists the only exceptions: an emergency where entry is necessary to protect life or property, the tenant's consent at the time, the tenant's consent given not more than thirty days before, or the premises reasonably appearing to have been abandoned.
A clause saying the tenant consents in advance to entry on demand contradicts both, and a tenant's signature does not save it, because section 9(1) names waivers.
Entry is the rule most often broken by accident rather than by a bad clause, so it has its own guide: entering a tenant's unit in Nova Scotia works through all five elements of a valid notice, the delivery methods and their deeming dates, and the four exceptions.
"The landlord may change the locks"
Statutory Condition 8: "Except by mutual consent, the landlord or the tenant shall not during occupancy by the tenant under the tenancy alter or cause to be altered the lock or locking system on any door that gives entry to the premises."
It binds both of you equally. A tenant cannot rekey the door without your agreement, and you cannot lock a tenant out of a unit they still occupy, including for arrears. The route for arrears is a Form D and then a Form K, which we cover in the tenancy hearing backlog piece.
"No subletting under any circumstances"
Section 9B(1) gives the tenant the right, subject to consent: "A tenant may assign, sublet or otherwise part with possession of the residential premises, subject to the consent of a landlord."
Section 9B(2) limits your side of it: you "may not arbitrarily or unreasonably withhold consent or charge for consent ... unless the landlord has actually incurred expense in respect of the grant of consent."
So you have a right to refuse for a real reason, such as an assignee who fails the same screening you apply to everyone. You do not have a right to refuse because the lease says no. And you may not charge a fee for consenting unless you actually spent something.
Rules bolted on after signing
Section 9A(1) requires that "a copy of reasonable rules established by a landlord that apply to the residential premises shall be given to a tenant prior to executing a lease." Section 9A(2) allows rules to be changed or repealed "upon four months notice to the tenant prior to the anniversary date in any year."
A rule emailed to tenants in March that takes effect in April is not enforceable. Give the rules before signing, and change them only on the anniversary cycle with four months' notice.
The four-part test for a rule
This is where the interesting clauses live, and where a lot of received wisdom is wrong in both directions.
Take the one that turns up in real leases: one picture per wall. It is not automatically void, and it is not automatically enforceable either. Section 9A(3) sets an actual test. A rule is reasonable if:
- (a) it is intended to promote a fair distribution of services and facilities among occupants, promote the safety, comfort or welfare of people working or residing in the premises, or protect the landlord's property from abuse;
- (b) it is reasonably related to the purpose for which it is intended;
- (c) it applies to all tenants in a fair manner; and
- (d) it is clearly expressed so the tenant knows what they must or must not do.
Run the picture rule through it. The only limb it can plausibly sit under is protecting property from abuse. Then ask (b): is a fixed limit of one picture per wall reasonably related to preventing abuse of the property? Hanging pictures is ordinary residential use, and a numerical cap is not obviously connected to preventing damage. A rule against drilling into tile, or requiring holes to be filled at the end of the tenancy, is far easier to defend, because the connection to the purpose is direct.
And even where a rule stands, it does not change who pays for what. Statutory Condition 4 still reaches only damage from a wilful or negligent act. Ordinary nail holes from normal picture hanging are the kind of thing that sits on the wear side of that line, so charging a departing tenant for them is a separate problem from whether the rule was valid.
The honest summary: a rule is not void because it is fussy, and it is not enforceable because it is written down. It has to pass section 9A(3), and it has to be given before signing.
What actually is enforceable
A guide that says every clause is void would be as useless as the templates it is criticising. Plenty of terms hold:
- Reasonable rules that pass section 9A(3), given before signing and changed on notice.
- A no-pet term. The Act is silent on pets, unlike Ontario's, which voids no-pet provisions. A pet term in a Nova Scotia lease is not overridden by anything in the Act. A pet deposit is a different question, and section 12(1) catches it.
- A late fee at or under one per cent of monthly rent, if the lease provides for it.
- The tenant's liability for damage they or their guests cause wilfully or negligently, which is Statutory Condition 4 itself.
- A fixed term, with the consequences we set out in fixed-term versus year-to-year.
- Rent, due date, and the services included, which are the substance of the bargain.
- Requiring the tenant's electronic address for service, which is worth capturing at signing because electronic service of notices is unavailable to you later without it.
What to do with a lease that has one
If you are drafting: use the province's Standard Form of Lease (Form P). Section 8(2A) says a prescribed standard form must be used by all landlords and tenants, the Standard Form of Lease Regulations prescribe it, and s.8(4) and 8(5) deem you to have signed it even if you did not. A bespoke lease therefore gives you exactly the same obligations, plus the risk of clauses that do not operate and additions that are void for not appearing on both copies.
If you inherited a lease with a bad clause, on a purchase or from a previous manager: the clause is already not operating, so nothing is lost by correcting it, and something is gained. Tell the tenant in writing which term you will not be relying on. It costs nothing, it is the honest thing, and it is a great deal cheaper than discovering the position at a hearing.
If you are a tenant reading this and your lease contains one of these, the same law applies to you. That is rather the point.
General information for Halifax-area rental owners, not legal advice. Sources, all checked 16 August 2026: the Residential Tenancies Act, RSNS 1989, c. 401, as published by the Nova Scotia Legislature, sections 9, 9A, 9B, 10, 11 and 12 including the statutory conditions in section 9(1); and the Residential Tenancies Regulations. Section numbers refer to the Act unless stated. Confirm current requirements at novascotia.ca/rta or call the Residential Tenancies Program at 1-800-670-4357.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a landlord charge first and last month's rent in Nova Scotia?
No. Section 12(1) deems any sum of money or other value a landlord obtains from a tenant in addition to the rent to be a security deposit, and section 12(2) caps a security deposit at one half of one month's rent. Last month's rent collected up front is money in addition to the rent for the current period, so it is a security deposit, and it puts you over the cap on its own. The same reasoning catches pet deposits, key deposits, cleaning fees and administration fees: label them what you like, the Act deems them security deposits.
Can a lease say the tenant pays for repairs under a certain amount?
Not in a way that binds the tenant. Statutory Condition 1 requires the landlord to keep the premises in a good state of repair and fit for habitation, and Statutory Condition 4 makes the tenant responsible only for ordinary cleanliness and for damage caused by the wilful or negligent act of the tenant or someone they permit on the premises. A clause charging the tenant for any repair under $100 regardless of fault contradicts both, and section 9(1) applies the statutory conditions notwithstanding any agreement to the contrary. The tenant still pays for damage they cause.
Can a Nova Scotia lease require more notice than the Act?
No. Section 10(1) sets the notice a tenant must give 'notwithstanding any agreement between the landlord and tenant respecting a period of notice': three months on a year-to-year tenancy, one month on month-to-month, one week on week-to-week. A lease demanding sixty or ninety days from a monthly tenant does not operate. A landlord may not give notice to quit except in accordance with section 10, and the notice must be in the form required by the Director.
Are landlord rules enforceable in Nova Scotia?
Only if they are reasonable, and section 9A(3) defines that with a four-part test. A rule must be intended to promote a fair distribution of services and facilities, promote the safety, comfort or welfare of people working or living there, or protect the landlord's property from abuse; it must be reasonably related to that purpose; it must apply to all tenants fairly; and it must be clearly expressed. A copy has to be given to the tenant before the lease is signed, and rules can only be changed on four months' notice before the anniversary date.
Do I have to use the Standard Form of Lease in Nova Scotia?
Section 8(2A) provides that the Director may prescribe a standard form of lease which must be used by all landlords and tenants, and the Standard Form of Lease Regulations, N.S. Reg. 19/2025 effective 30 April 2025, prescribe it. Guidance still circulating describes the form as recommended rather than required, so read the section and the regulations before relying on that. Either way it makes little practical difference: under sections 8(4) and 8(5), a landlord and tenant who enter into a written or oral tenancy agreement without signing the standard form are deemed to have signed it, and all provisions of the Act and the standard form apply.
Can I add my own terms to a Nova Scotia lease?
Yes, within limits. Section 8(1) permits a landlord and tenant to agree other benefits and obligations which do not conflict with the Act. But section 8(2) makes an additional benefit or obligation void unless it appears on both the landlord's and the tenant's copies of the lease, and section 8(3) makes void any alteration of, or deletion from, provisions the prescribed standard form is required to contain. So you may add, you may not subtract, and whatever you add has to be on both copies.
Can a lease ban subletting entirely?
No. Section 9B(1) says a tenant may assign, sublet or otherwise part with possession subject to the landlord's consent, and section 9B(2) says the landlord may not arbitrarily or unreasonably withhold that consent, or charge for it unless the landlord has actually incurred an expense in granting it. A blanket prohibition is not the same as a right to refuse for good reason, and only the second one exists.