Can the tenant legally operate the intended business here—and is it protected?
Use this page to compare the permitted-use wording with the real operating plan and to understand any exclusive-use protection, restrictions and exceptions.
See what this page does ↓A guide that turns this lease term into a practical next step.
Use this page to compare the permitted-use wording with the real operating plan and to understand any exclusive-use protection, restrictions and exceptions.
What are you trying to do?
Choose your side and the situation you are dealing with. We will show you what it probably means, what to check first and where to continue.
Important: This helps you understand and organize the issue. The signed lease, amendments, facts and applicable law still need qualified review.
Use this when one of these situations is real.
Make sure ordinary products, services and future business changes fit the permitted use.
Protect the property and tenant mix without creating an unadministrable restriction.
Turn the clause into a controlled decision.
- 01
Write the actual operating brief in practical language.
- 02
Compare it with the lease use, prohibitions and ancillary rights.
- 03
Check zoning, permits and licences separately from landlord consent.
- 04
Map exclusive-use scope, exceptions, enforcement and remedies.
This page is a practical checklist—not lease wording.
The actual meaning depends on the complete lease, amendments, facts and governing law. Use the prompts below to extract and brief the issue; do not paste this page into a lease as a substitute for drafting and legal review.
What the business team needs to know
- Does the permitted use cover current and planned activities?
- Which approvals are conditions versus ongoing tenant obligations?
- What remedy applies if an exclusivity is breached?
What to capture from the document
Permitted and prohibited uses
Record the complete wording, ancillary uses and restrictions.
Approval responsibility
Capture zoning, permit, licence and occupancy-condition allocation.
Exclusive/protected use
Record scope, exceptions, enforcement and remedy.
Terms that can change the practical outcome
- Landlord consent presented as confirmation of legal use
- A use so narrow that ordinary business changes require consent
- Exclusive-use exceptions that swallow the protection
What qualified counsel needs to test
Compare the use clause with the actual operating brief, diligence results, transfer needs, exclusive restrictions and the separate approval path.
Leasing-pipeline handoff: Carry only the sourced space, current stage, proposed term, economics, conditions, activity and next action into the landlord pipeline. A stage or probability does not establish authority, market rent, tenant credit, legal completion, collection, accounting treatment or occupancy.
Amendment-control handoff: Carry the executed source, authority, effective date, changed categories, revised term and approval evidence into Lease Amendment & Change Control. The workspace sequences entered facts; it does not interpret wording, establish enforceability or replace legal, accounting or tax review.
Commencement-control handoff: Carry the exact source, planned and actual events, accountable owner, required authority or professional evidence and every affected gate into Lease Commencement & Handover. A completed workflow task, key delivery or permit reference does not determine possession, acceptance, lawful occupancy, rent commencement or accounting treatment.
Jurisdiction and statutory context
These sources support limited context only. They do not decide how the actual lease operates.
Ontario — Renting commercial property ↗Provincial overview explaining that commercial leases are negotiated contracts and identifying selected Ontario statutory rules and remedies.Québec — Civil Code, lease provisions ↗Official Civil Code of Québec. General lease provisions begin at article 1851; civil-law analysis is distinct from common-law provinces.