Quebec Landlords Have Until Jan. 15 to Ban Cannabis in Rentals

Landlords in Quebec, Canada have until January 15 to notify tenants if they intend to ban cannabis smoking, The Montreal Gazette reports.

Quebec and Quebec’s largest city, Montreal, have some of the strictest cannabis laws in Canada. Not only has the province considered raising the legal consumption age to 21 — which would be the highest age in the nation — but officials have also been eyeing a ban on outdoor smoking and have allocated additional funds for enforcement.

The situation with landlords and tenants is particularly complicated because a large percentage of Quebec‘s population are renters. In fact, more than 60 percent of Montreal citizens pay rent. If a ban on public consumption is implemented, there would be very few places left for adults to legally consume cannabis.

Landlords have been able to establish bans on indoor cannabis smoking inside their properties since adult-use cannabis became legal on October 17, 2018.

Tenants are allowed to challenge a ban if they are consuming cannabis for medical reasons. They have 30 days from the date they receive the landlord’s notification to submit a refusal. The landlord should then contact the Quebec Rent Control Board if they do not want to accept the tenant’s refusal.

Otherwise, the ban on smoking goes into effect 30 days following the notice.