Can a landlord say no to an ESA?

Not automatically. No province covered here gives emotional support animals the rights of a trained service dog. In Alberta, BC, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador, human rights law may require a landlord to accommodate one when it is needed for a disability and backed by medical information, up to the point of undue hardship. In Manitoba it must be trained to help with the disability to count, and in Nova Scotia and PEI untrained support animals are generally outside the protection. In Ontario, a lease cannot ban animals in the first place.

The same rules apply as for any ESA, so in many cases yes, unless human rights law requires an accommodation. The difference comes if the dog is trained to help with your disability: then it may be a service dog, which a landlord cannot refuse just because of the dog. In Manitoba, training, including self-training, is what makes a comfort dog a service animal, whatever you call it. See can a landlord refuse a service dog for those rules.

Questions that confirm the need, not the diagnosis. Manitoba's Human Rights Commission says a landlord can ask whether the animal is trained and for information that identifies or clarifies the disability-related need. New Brunswick's says documentation from a physician or psychologist can show the need, and Newfoundland and Labrador's says a landlord can ask for a medical note or evidence of training. None of the three requires you to share your diagnosis. Alberta's Commission refers to reliable medical information confirming the disability and the need for the animal.

Yes, in general. When you ask a landlord to accommodate an animal because of a disability, the landlord can ask for information that confirms the need: Newfoundland and Labrador's Human Rights Commission says you must provide a medical note if asked, and New Brunswick's says a doctor's note can be requested when the need is not obvious. In Ontario, where the need is not obvious, you must be able to show evidence such as medical evidence. The letter should confirm your disability-related need for the animal, not your diagnosis.

A landlord can question whether a letter shows what human rights law looks for, which is a disability and a need for the animal. New Brunswick's Commission says the general benefits of having a pet are not enough, and Nova Scotia's generally only takes complaints about trained, certified and medically required animals. If your landlord will not accept your letter, ask in writing what is missing and consider getting an updated note. If you still think the refusal is discrimination, contact your provincial human rights commission; in Alberta, the complaint must be made within one year.

The human rights guidance described on this page does not give an expiry date for a medical note; what it looks for is information confirming that you need the animal because of a disability. The simplest fix is to ask your doctor or other health professional for an updated note confirming you still need the animal, without stating the diagnosis. If the landlord still refuses, contact your provincial human rights commission.

Ask the landlord, in writing, to make an exception to the no-pets rule because of your disability, and include a note from your doctor or other health professional confirming the need. Keep copies of everything. If the landlord still says no, contact your provincial human rights commission, which can tell you whether your situation may be covered; in Alberta a complaint must be made within one year. Do not move the animal in against a no-pets term while you wait, because in most provinces that can be treated as a breach of the lease.

The tenancy laws in these provinces do not set a separate fee rule for ESAs, so it depends on whether the animal is treated as a pet or a service animal. As a pet, the normal rules apply: BC allows a pet damage deposit of up to half a month's rent and Manitoba one of up to one month's rent, while Ontario does not allow pet deposits or pet fees and Nova Scotia, PEI and Newfoundland and Labrador allow no deposit beyond the single security deposit. If the animal counts as a service animal, extra charges for it are not allowed in BC (for guide and service dogs), Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador.

If the animal is not protected, it is treated like any pet, and keeping it against a no-pets term can lead to the tenancy being ended in most provinces (see can a landlord refuse pets). If human rights law covers the animal, the landlord has to accommodate it up to the point of undue hardship rather than rely on the no-pets rule. In Ontario, the landlord can only apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board over an animal that substantially interferes with others, causes a serious allergic reaction, or is an inherently dangerous species or breed. Even a protected animal has to be kept under control.

Any rent increase has to follow your province's normal rent increase rules, whatever the reason. Ontario does not allow pet fees, BC does not allow monthly pet fees, and Alberta allows a non-refundable pet fee that is treated as part of the rent. If the animal counts as a service animal, Saskatchewan bars higher fees or surcharges for it and Newfoundland and Labrador bars any fee for it.

In provinces that let landlords refuse pets, an applicant with an unprotected ESA can be turned down the same way as an applicant with a pet. If the animal is tied to a disability and human rights law covers it, refusing to rent because of it can be discrimination unless accommodating it would cause undue hardship; this can apply in Newfoundland and Labrador and New Brunswick when the need is documented, and case by case in Alberta, BC and Saskatchewan. In Ontario, the rule voiding no-pets clauses covers lease terms, so it does not settle whether an applicant can be refused, but human rights law still applies. Raise the disability-related need in writing when you apply.

A landlord can ask for information that confirms you have a disability-related need for the animal, but not for details of your condition. Manitoba, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador all say the landlord should not ask for your diagnosis. A short note from your doctor or other health professional that confirms the need, without naming the condition, is the kind of document these commissions describe.

We found no rule that an ESA letter by itself gets a pet deposit refunded, because it depends on whether the animal counts as a service animal where you live. Where it does, extra charges are not allowed: Manitoba bars a pet damage deposit or cleaning fee, Saskatchewan bars higher fees, deposits or surcharges, Newfoundland and Labrador bars a fee, and British Columbia covers guide and service dogs. Ontario never allows a pet deposit or pet fee, and a tenant who paid one can apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board to get it back within one year. In other cases the normal deposit return rules apply at the end of the tenancy. SQRFT advice: ask in writing with a medical note, then go to the human rights commission or the tenancy office if the landlord refuses.

Not just because of the dog. Human rights law in each province covered here protects a tenant who relies on a service animal because of a disability, and a no-pets rule gives way to it unless accommodating the animal would cause undue hardship. Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador also have service dog or service animal laws that bar refusing housing because of the animal (Nova Scotia's covers certified service dog teams), and PEI's tenancy Act voids any lease term that bans service animals. In British Columbia a landlord cannot reject a tenant just because a guide or service dog is not certified, and in Manitoba a service animal is not a pet, so no pet damage deposit can be charged for it.

These laws are written around trained service animals. Whether an untrained support animal is protected depends on the province and on the disability-related need, and is decided case by case. For the full rules, see can a landlord refuse a service dog.