How to Serve a Termination Notice on a Tenant in Newfoundland and Labrador

A termination notice that names the right ground and the right date still fails if the landlord cannot prove it was served using a method authorized by the Residential Tenancies Act, 2018. Section 35 lists seven service methods and a set of deemed-service rules that shift the calendar for each one. Miss a rule and an adjudicator can throw the whole notice out at the hearing — before looking at the merits.

Service Methods Under Section 35

Section 35(2) authorises these methods for serving a notice of termination on a tenant in Newfoundland and Labrador:

Personal delivery — hand the signed notice directly to the tenant. Service is effective on the day of delivery. This is the cleanest method because there is no deemed-service delay to calculate.

Delivery to another resident — give the notice to a person aged 16 or older who apparently lives with the tenant at the rented premises. Service is effective the same day, but record the recipient's name.

Registered mail or express post — send the notice by prepaid registered mail or express post to an address provided by the tenant or where the tenant carries on business. Under section 35, postal delivery is deemed served on the fifth calendar day after mailing, regardless of when the tenant actually picks it up. That five-day buffer must be added on top of the minimum notice period when selecting a move-out date.

Electronic delivery — send the notice in the same or substantially the same form as the written notice, to an electronic address the tenant has provided for receiving documents. A message sent before 4:00 p.m. is deemed served the same day. A message sent after 4:00 p.m. is deemed served the next day that is not a weekend or statutory holiday.

The other authorized methods are posting the notice in a conspicuous place on the tenant's premises, placing it in the tenant's mailbox or under a door, and sending it by courier to an address provided by the tenant or where the tenant carries on business. If reasonable efforts to serve the tenant by the listed methods fail, the landlord may apply to the Director for an order authorizing another method of service.

Deemed Service Date Examples

Getting the deemed date wrong is one of the most common causes of invalid notices. Here is how the calendar shifts:

• You mail a standard section 18 notice by registered post on January 3. Deemed service date: January 8. The three-month notice period runs from January 8, not January 3.
• You email a section 19 rent-arrears notice at 3:45 p.m. on a Tuesday. Deemed service: the same Tuesday. The 10-clear-day window starts the next day.
• You email a section 22 notice at 5:30 p.m. on a Friday. Deemed service: the following Monday (next business day). The five-clear-day count starts Tuesday.

When the notice period must also align with the end of a rental period (as section 18 requires), the deemed date can push the effective termination into the following month.

Building an Affidavit of Service

For an RTO hearing, each respondent must be served individually with the Application for Dispute Resolution and Notice of Hearing at least 10 days before the hearing. Submit a completed Affidavit of Service for each respondent to the RTO before the hearing. The affidavit must state:

1. The method of service used.
2. The date and time of delivery, mailing, or electronic transmission.
3. The address, email, or other destination.
4. The name of the adult recipient (for substituted personal delivery).

Attach supporting proof: a Canada Post tracking receipt, an email header screenshot showing the send timestamp, or a delivery confirmation. Landlords who hand-deliver should have a witness note the date, time, and location.

Common Service Mistakes

Placing a notice under the door or in the tenant's mailbox is an authorized service method under section 35(2); it does not require a substituted-service order. Keep evidence of when and how it was delivered. Registered mail is another option because Canada Post tracking records establish the mailing date.

Sending a notice to an electronic address the tenant never provided for receiving documents is another trap. Section 35(2)(f) requires the tenant to have provided that address for receiving documents.

How Service Connects to the Wider Process

Service of notice is one step in the full termination process. The guide walks through selecting the correct statutory ground, choosing the right prescribed form (RT-2018-00039 or RT-2018-00040), calculating the notice period with clear-days counting, and preparing for a hearing if the tenant stays.

Getting the service step right is worth the effort — it is the difference between a notice that holds up at the Residential Tenancies Tribunal and one that gets dismissed before the adjudicator hears a word about the underlying dispute.

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