The Province’s Residential Tenancy Branch (RTB) is offering real-time interpretation services in more than 200 languages for dispute resolution and other information.

“Renters and landlords have been clear that the former residential tenancy dispute-resolution services, offered only in English, were not adequately addressing their needs,” said Ravi Kahlon, Minister of Housing. “We’ve heard those concerns and are taking action to provide assistance to people in multiple languages so both renters and landlords can get the fair treatment and timely support they deserve.”

Interpretation in multiple languages, offered free as of April 1, 2023, encourages more British Columbians whose first language is not English to access the RTB’s services.

Previously, people requiring interpretation in a different language were advised to engage a family member or friend, potentially preventing them from accessing the RTB’s services.

“This change will help bring greater access for everyone involved in a tenancy inquiry or dispute,” said Spencer Chandra Herbert, chair of the Rental Housing Task Force and MLA for Vancouver-West End. “Offering these services in multiple languages responds to feedback received by the Rental Housing Task Force to ensure greater assistance for people with English as a second language so they can access the services they need at the RTB."

Some of the more-common languages in which these services are being offered are Arabic, Cantonese, Farsi (Persian), French, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Punjabi, Spanish, Tagalog, Urdu and Vietnamese. Services are also being offered in many of the Indigenous languages spoken in the province.

“The outcome of a dispute-resolution hearing can be the difference between retaining one’s home and being made homeless on short notice,” said Andrew Sakamoto, executive director at the Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre, a tenant-welfare organization. “All B.C. tenants, regardless of their first language, deserve access to justice when it comes to their housing. Today’s announcement will help ensure fewer tenants fall through the cracks when trying to pursue their rights at the RTB.”

The new service builds on multiple actions the B.C. government has taken to better protect renters since 2017, including:

• capping rent increases below inflation at 2% in 2023;
• banning illegal "renovictions," an eviction that is carried out to renovate or repair a rental unit;
• launching Canada’s first provincewide rent bank;
• closing the fixed-term lease loophole;
• ending all strata rental-restriction bylaws;
• limiting age-restriction bylaws in strata housing except for 55 and older; and
• increasing the RTB’s operating budget and staffing by 40%.

Quick Facts:

• To access interpretation services, people can email: HSRTO@gov.bc.ca
  or call the RTB (toll-free): 1 800 665-8779
• Each year, the RTB receives approximately 200,000 calls requesting information or assistance and more than 20,000 applications for dispute resolution.
• Approximately 18% of people living in B.C. speak a language other than English as their first language.
• There are approximately 34 Indigenous languages in B.C., the highest in Canada.

Learn More:

To learn more about residential tenancies, including how to apply for dispute resolution, visit:
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/residential-tenancies

To learn more about the Residential Housing Task Force’s recommendations:
https://engage.gov.bc.ca/app/uploads/sites/121/2018/12/RHTF-Recommendations-and-WWH-Report_Dec2018_FINAL.pdf