That is section 46 of the Residential Tenancies Act in one paragraph. What follows is the sequence to run in the last two weeks of every tenancy so you are never on the wrong side of it. If you want the full legal background first, start with the Alberta landlord inspection guide; this article assumes you know the rules and need the process.
The timeline at a glance
| When | What has to happen | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 7 days before move-out | Move-out inspection may be done | RTA s. 19; Reg. s. 4 |
| Day 0 | Tenant gives up possession (keys returned, unit empty) | RTA s. 46 clock starts |
| Day 0 to 7 | Move-out inspection must be completed if not done before | RTA s. 19; Reg. s. 4 |
| By day 10 | Return the deposit with interest, or deliver a statement of account, or deliver an estimated statement plus any amount you do not expect to use | RTA s. 46 |
| By day 30 | If you used an estimate, deliver the final statement and any remaining balance | RTA s. 46 |
"Delivered" means handed to the tenant or their agent, or postmarked, within the window. An e-transfer counts only if both of you agreed in writing to settle that way.
Step 1: Pull the move-in report before you do anything else
The move-out inspection is a comparison, not a fresh look. Before you walk the unit, have the signed move-in report and its photos open. Every deduction you make in ten days' time has to point to a line in the move-out report that differs from the corresponding line in the move-in report. If you cannot find the move-in report, stop and read step 7, because your options have just changed.
If you have been doing routine inspections during the tenancy, pull those too. They are what let you show the damage happened recently rather than being a pre-existing condition you missed at move-in.
Step 2: Schedule the inspection properly
The report must be completed within one week before or one week after the tenant moves out. The tenant has the right to attend, and you should want them there: a tenant who signs the move-out report agreeing with its contents has very little to argue at the RTDRS later.
Offer a specific date and time. If the tenant will not or cannot attend, you must offer two inspection times, between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., on two different days that are not holidays. Put both offers in writing and keep them. If they decline both, you can do the inspection without them, and the report must say so (the Regulation requires a specific statement for that case).
The inspection should be done with the premises vacant unless both of you agree otherwise. In practice, "vacant" means the tenant's belongings are out; a few boxes by the door are not a reason to delay.
Step 3: Walk the unit the same way you walked it at move-in
Same rooms, same order, same items. For each item, record the condition and a photo, and note whether it matches the move-in report. Where it differs, photograph the specific defect close up and wide enough to show which room and which wall. Date and time on every photo.
The things that most often turn into disputes in Alberta are worth slowing down on: walls (nail holes and scuffs are usually wear; gouges, large patches and unapproved paint colours are usually damage), flooring (traffic wear versus burns, pet stains and water damage), appliances (grease build-up versus a broken element or a cracked crisper), bathrooms (grout discolouration versus a cracked tub surround or a missing towel bar), and cleanliness (ordinary dust versus a unit that needs a professional clean because of how it was used).
Test the smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, record the meter readings if the tenant paid utilities, and count the keys, fobs and garage remotes returned.
Step 4: Complete the report so it meets the Regulation
Section 4 of the Residential Tenancies Ministerial Regulation sets out what the move-out report has to contain, and the RTDRS does check. The report needs the inspection date, the names of everyone present, and the landlord's signature. It needs a statement the tenant signs if they agree with the contents, and a separate statement they sign if they disagree, with room for their reasons. It needs a statement for the landlord to complete if the tenant refused to sign, and another if the inspection was done without the tenant. And it needs the line about the inspection being done while the premises are vacant unless both parties agreed otherwise.
Give the tenant a copy at the end of the inspection. Keep yours, with the photos, for at least three years after the tenancy ends.
A tenant who disagrees with the report is not a problem. Let them write their reasons and sign. A signed disagreement is still a signed report, and it is far better evidence than a report with no tenant signature and no explanation why.
Step 5: Decide the deductions
Section 43 of the Act allows the deposit to be used for four things only.
Damage beyond normal wear and tear. The cost to repair or replace. Age matters: a ten-year-old carpet with a burn is not a new carpet, and adjudicators routinely reduce replacement claims to the remaining useful life of the item. Keep the invoice or a written quote.
Cleaning caused by extraordinary or abnormal use. Not a standard turnover clean. A unit left with grease on every surface, smoke residue or pet waste qualifies; a unit that just needs the usual clean between tenants does not, unless the lease specifically made the tenant responsible for a professional clean and they agreed to it.
Unpaid rent. Straightforward, and it does not depend on the inspection reports.
Other amounts the tenant agreed to in the tenancy agreement. Utilities in the tenant's name that were left unpaid, late fees the lease sets out, NSF charges, unreturned keys at the cost stated in the lease.
Everything else comes off the table. You cannot deduct for repainting a unit that was simply lived in, for carpet that wore out on schedule, for your own time, or for upgrades you were planning anyway. Alberta landlords lose deposit disputes far more often by over-reaching on wear and tear than by missing a deadline, and the companion article on why Alberta landlords lose deposit disputes goes through the pattern in detail.
Step 6: Deliver the refund or the statement of account by day 10
The statement of account must show the tenant's name, the address of the premises, the amount of the deposit, the interest owed, each deduction, and the balance being returned. Here is a layout that covers every required element.
Statement of Account: Security Deposit
Tenant: [Name]
Premises: [Unit, street address, city, Alberta]
Tenancy ended / possession returned: [Date]
Statement date: [Date, within 10 days of the line above]
Security deposit held: $[amount]
Interest accrued (at the prescribed Alberta rate for each year held): $[amount]
Total owed to tenant before deductions: $[amount]
Deductions (see attached move-in and move-out inspection reports and photos):
1. [Item, room, nature of damage] [invoice or quote reference] $[amount]
2. [Cleaning beyond normal use, description] [invoice reference] $[amount]
3. [Unpaid rent for period] $[amount]
4. [Lease charge, clause reference] $[amount]
Total deductions: $[amount]
Balance returned to tenant: $[amount] by [cheque enclosed / e-transfer as agreed in writing on (date)]
[Landlord or agent name, signature, phone, address]
On interest: the Alberta government sets the rate every year. It was 0.5% for 2025 and is 0% for 2026. So any deposit you held during 2025 accrued interest for that year, and the statement has to show it even though the amount is small. A deposit held only in 2026 accrues nothing. If the lease promised a higher rate, the lease governs. The deposit calculator on this site does the arithmetic for multi-year tenancies.
If you do not have final invoices by day 10, use the estimate route: deliver an estimated statement and return any part of the deposit you do not expect to need. The final statement and any remaining balance are then due within 30 days after the tenancy ends. Do not treat the 30 days as the real deadline; the estimate has to go out by day 10 regardless.
If the tenant left no forwarding address, the Act still expects you to try. Make reasonable efforts to locate them, then mail the refund and statement to the last address you have, which may be the rental unit itself. If it comes back, keep the unopened envelope with the file. The money is not yours to keep because the tenant was hard to find.
Step 7: If there is no move-in report
This is the question that brings a surprising number of Alberta landlords to this site, and the answer is blunt. If the move-in inspection report was never done, or was done but does not meet the Regulation, you cannot deduct from the security deposit for damage. The same applies if the move-out report is missing. The deposit, less any unpaid rent or lease charges unrelated to the unit's condition, goes back to the tenant within the same 10 days.
You have not lost the claim itself. You can still apply to the RTDRS or the Provincial Court for a judgment for the cost of the damage, and you will be arguing it with photos, invoices and whatever routine inspection records you have. You just cannot help yourself to the deposit first. Landlords who deduct anyway, and then have the tenant apply to the RTDRS, tend to end up returning the deposit plus facing the damage claim on worse footing than if they had followed the Act.
The practical lesson is that the move-out process starts on move-in day. A move-in report that meets section 4 of the Regulation, signed by both parties, with timestamped photos of every surface, is the asset that makes every later step possible.
Checklist for the file
By the time the statement of account goes out, the file for that tenancy should contain the signed move-in report with photos, every routine inspection report with photos, the written offers of inspection times if the tenant did not attend the move-out, the signed move-out report with photos, invoices or written quotes for every deduction, the lease clauses relied on for any non-damage deduction, the statement of account with proof of delivery date, and the trust account record showing the deposit was held in an Alberta interest-bearing trust account from within two banking days of receipt (section 44), which the RTDRS can ask about.
If that sounds like a lot of paper, it is, which is why Three North Capital runs every Calgary and Edmonton move-in and move-out through Tenatur on a phone. The app produces the Regulation-compliant report, keeps the photos with their timestamps, lays the move-out beside the move-in item by item, and emails the signed report to the tenant on the spot. The statement of account is then a ten-minute job instead of a weekend.
Frequently asked questions
How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit in Alberta?
Ten days from the day the tenant gives up possession, either the full deposit with interest or a statement of account showing deductions. If an estimated statement is used, the final statement and balance are due within 30 days after the tenancy ends.
Does a landlord have to do a move-out inspection in Alberta?
Yes. The report must be completed within one week before or after the tenant moves out, in the form set by section 4 of the Residential Tenancies Ministerial Regulation. Without it, no damage deductions can be taken from the deposit.
What can a landlord deduct from a security deposit in Alberta?
Damage beyond normal wear and tear, cleaning caused by abnormal use, unpaid rent, and other amounts the tenant agreed to in the lease. Normal wear and tear can never be deducted.
What is the maximum security deposit in Alberta?
One month's rent, meaning the amount payable for the first full month, and it cannot be increased during the tenancy. Refundable fees count toward the limit.
Does the landlord have to pay interest on the deposit in Alberta?
At the rate the Alberta government sets each year. The rate was 0.5% for 2025 and is 0% for 2026. Interest is paid annually unless the lease provides for it to compound and be paid at the end of the tenancy.
What happens if the landlord did not do a move-in inspection in Alberta?
The landlord cannot deduct from the deposit for damage. They can still deduct unpaid rent and lease charges, and can pursue a separate claim for the damage at the RTDRS or in court.
What if the tenant refuses to attend the move-out inspection?
Offer two times on two different non-holiday days between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., in writing. If they decline both, do the inspection without them and record that on the report.
What if the tenant did not leave a forwarding address?
Make reasonable efforts to find them, then mail the refund and statement to the last known address. If it is returned, keep the unopened envelope as proof. The landlord cannot keep the deposit.
Can I use the deposit for cleaning in Alberta?
Only for cleaning caused by extraordinary or abnormal use, or where the lease specifically made the tenant responsible for a particular clean and they agreed to it. A standard turnover clean is the landlord's cost.
Make the move-out report the easy part
Tenatur builds the move-in and move-out reports on your phone, timestamps every photo, lays move-out beside move-in item by item, and collects both signatures on the spot.
Start a free inspectionRenting in a specific city? See the Calgary landlord inspection guide and the Edmonton landlord inspection guide.
Sources
- Service Alberta, RTA Handbook for Landlords and Tenants, May 2024, security deposit and inspection report chapters (RTA sections 19, 43, 44, 46; Residential Tenancies Ministerial Regulation section 4).
- Government of Alberta, Annual security deposit interest rate (Security Deposit Interest Rate Regulation).
- Residential Tenancies Act, SA 2004, chapter R-17.1, Alberta King's Printer.
General information for Alberta landlords, not legal advice. Confirm current rules against the Act and consult a lawyer for your situation.