Fob Copy in Canada: What It Costs and When It Stops Working

You have one fob and you need another. Someone is moving in, a dog walker needs the lobby door on weekdays, or you want a spare that is not on the same ring as your only way into the building. A fob shop says it can copy yours while you wait. The building office quotes a higher price and hands you a form. Which one is right, and will the cheap copy still work next month?

This guide is about a fob issued to you for a building you live or work in: the lobby door, the elevator, the parking garage, the amenity room. A car remote is a different job, covered in our guide to car key fob replacement costs. And a fob issued to someone else is not yours to copy. For that one, the only place to go is the office that runs the building.

The short version: ask the building first. A fob from the management office is issued from the building’s own system, so the office knows it exists. In a British Columbia rental, the fee the rules allow for an extra one is the “direct cost of additional keys or other access devices requested by the tenant” (Residential Tenancy Regulation, section 7, last amended 21 August 2024). On the published figures, a shop copy costs less. Four businesses in Vancouver and Toronto publish $20 to $70 for a standard building fob and $65 to $120 for an encrypted or high-frequency one (FobFather, FobToronto, Fob Vancouver and Monty’s Locksmith, pages read 29 September 2026). Those are published figures, not prices we verified. The catch is that a copy lives and dies with your original. Minute Key, which runs self-serve copying kiosks, says that “if the original is deactivated, copies will also stop working” (InstaFob FAQ, undated, read 29 September 2026).

Building fob, car remote or garage remote: which one you have

Start with what the fob opens, because that decides who can make another. A building fob is the small tag you hold against a reader at the lobby door, the elevator or the amenity room. It carries a code the building’s access system accepts. A car remote is paired with one vehicle, which is why dealers and automotive locksmiths handle it. If yours has simply stopped responding, see what fails when a key fob stops working.

A parking garage remote with buttons is a third product. Some fob shops copy those too, at their own prices. Fob Vancouver lists a garage remote at $82.50 (price page, modified 14 April 2026), and FobToronto lists an infrared condo remote at $100 (price page, modified 4 August 2026).

An office fob or access card is issued by the employer or the building, not by you. Minute Key’s advice for a lost one is to report it to building management, “or your company’s HR department in the case of office buildings” (Minute Key, read 29 September 2026). The same people are the ones to ask before you copy one.

Ask the building first

The management office, the landlord or the condo’s property manager issues fobs from the building’s own system, and that is the difference that matters. A fob the office issues has its own entry in that system. If it goes missing, the office knows which one to cancel. A copy made at a shop is a second fob the office has never seen.

Ask the office for three things in writing: the price, whether you get that money back when you hand the fob in, and how long it takes. What a building charges is its own decision, and we found no official survey of those fees. The one comparison figure we found comes from a company. Monty’s Locksmith in Toronto puts a property manager replacement at “frequently $100 or more for a single fob” (Monty’s Locksmith, published 11 July 2026). Treat it as one business’s observation, not a benchmark.

If the second fob is for someone moving in with you, ask the office for one in their name. It puts them on the building’s own list, which a building that wants every fob registered will ask for anyway.

If the office is slow, or says no

Ask which rule or policy it is relying on, and where that is written. If you rent, the next section sets out what a landlord may charge in British Columbia, under the Residential Tenancy Regulation, and in Ontario. If you own a condo unit, the rules are the corporation’s, and they have to meet a standard of their own, covered after that.

A fob for someone who does not live there, such as a dog walker or a cleaner, depends even more on the building. Monty’s Locksmith notes that “Sharing copies with non residents can violate building policy” (Monty’s, 11 July 2026). If the office is closed and you are locked out tonight, that is a different problem, covered further down.

What a landlord may charge a tenant for a fob in BC and Ontario

British Columbia: direct cost, and two free lines

A fob is an access device in the plain sense of the words, and British Columbia’s Residential Tenancy Regulation sets out what a landlord may charge for one. Section 7 allows two fees that matter here: the “direct cost of replacing keys or other access devices” and the “direct cost of additional keys or other access devices requested by the tenant” (B.C. Reg. 477/2003, last amended 21 August 2024, read 29 September 2026). Section 6 allows a refundable fee when a landlord hands over a key or other access device. It can be “no greater than the direct cost of replacing the key or access device.”

Two lines in the same regulation are the ones to know before you pay anything. Under section 6(2), a landlord “must not charge” that refundable fee “if the key or access device is the tenant’s sole means of access to the residential property.” And under section 5(2), a landlord “must not charge a fee for replacement keys or other access devices if the replacement is required because the landlord changed the locks or other means of access” (Residential Tenancy Regulation). So if your landlord replaces the fob system, the regulation does not let the landlord charge you for the new fob.

Ontario: the key deposit covers remote entry devices

Ontario’s guide to the standard lease, published by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, deals with remote entry devices and cards under the key deposit. It says: “If the landlord collects a deposit for key(s), remote entry devices or cards, the landlord must return the deposit when the tenant gives back their key(s) at the end of the tenancy” (A guide to the standard lease for rental housing, March 2021, read 29 September 2026).

The same guide says a landlord “can charge the tenant for additional keys that the tenant requests”, and that “the charge cannot be more than actual cost of the keys.” It names remote entry devices for the deposit but only keys for the extra-copy charge. So ask your landlord in writing what an extra fob costs, and what that figure is based on.

Renting in a strata building

If you rent in a strata building in British Columbia, the strata’s own rules bind you as well. The province’s page for tenants says “Tenants must follow the strata corporation’s (or section’s) bylaws and rules, even if the landlord hasn’t provided the tenant with a copy of the bylaws and rules” (gov.bc.ca, tenants in stratas, updated 22 April 2025). Tenancy rules are set province by province, and this guide quotes only the two provinces whose official pages we opened on 29 September 2026. Elsewhere, ask your provincial tenancy office before relying on either.

Condo and strata owners: the building’s rules decide

Owning the unit takes the landlord out of the picture, not the building. The Condominium Authority of Ontario says condo rules “must be reasonable and consistent with the Condo Act and the governing documents” and “must promote the safety and welfare of owners and their property.” It adds that “All members of condo communities must comply with the Condo Act and governing documents” (Condominium Authority of Ontario, Rules, modified 12 March 2026).

In British Columbia, the province says a strata council’s rules “govern the use, safety and condition of the common property and common assets.” A new rule “applies to owners, tenants and visitors” until the next general meeting, where it has to be ratified by a majority vote or it stops having effect (gov.bc.ca, amending bylaws and rules, updated 17 July 2024). Breaking one can cost money. The maximum fine a strata may set is $50 for a breach of a rule, and $200 for a bylaw breach other than a short-term rental one. A continuing breach can be fined again as often as once every 7 days (gov.bc.ca, enforcing bylaws and rules, updated 17 July 2024).

Neither page mentions fobs by name. What both establish, in Ontario and in British Columbia, is that the building can make rules about its common areas and that everyone living there is bound by them. Monty’s Locksmith, which copies condo fobs in Toronto, advises that “Your condo declaration or rules may require you to register every fob with management” (Monty’s Locksmith, 11 July 2026). Read yours before you pay for a copy. A copy you have not registered is one the office does not know exists.

What a fob copy costs: published prices

The table sets published prices side by side. They come from the businesses’ own websites, read on 29 September 2026, and we have not verified them. That is the rule our directory runs on. Fee ranges come from the business, carry a date, and are a guide for the phone call, not a quote, as set out in how we check listings.

How to read the table

Read across a row before you compare down a column. The cheapest copy on the list is FobFather’s $20 for one (page undated, read 29 September 2026). FobFather also says it copies only standard general access apartment fobs, so the low end is the price of the simplest fob. The price climbs with the fob’s security at every shop that lists both kinds. FobToronto goes from $45 to $65 (modified 4 August 2026). Fob Vancouver goes from $49.50 to $110 for HID iClass (modified 14 April 2026). Monty’s Locksmith goes from about $40 to $70 for a standard fob up to about $80 to $120 for an encrypted one (11 July 2026).

Those price lists sort fobs by type: regular, Mifare and HID iClass at Fob Vancouver, and standard, high frequency and HID iClass, SE and Salto at FobToronto (pages read 29 September 2026). So the shop needs to see your fob to tell you which line applies. Tax changes the comparison too. FobToronto states that all its prices include tax, while Fob Vancouver’s price page does not say.

Two locksmith businesses that advertise fob copying, Premium Locksmith Services in Toronto (page modified 13 August 2026) and Pop-A-Lock Canada (page updated 6 September 2022), state no fee range on those pages. A missing price is not a warning sign by itself. It means the number comes from the phone call, so ask for it before anyone starts.

Why a fob copy stops working

A copy is a second fob carrying your fob’s code. Minute Key’s FAQ puts the consequence plainly: “our key fob copies work exactly like the original; if the original is deactivated, copies will also stop working” (Minute Key, read 29 September 2026). Three things follow.

The office switches off the original

If you report your fob lost, or the office deactivates it for any other reason, every copy made from it stops at the same moment. The reverse matters just as much. Lose a copy, and the building has only one code to cancel, which is yours, so the original goes with it. Before you hand a copy to anyone, ask the office whether it can cancel a single fob it issued. Then weigh that against what a lost copy would cost you.

The building changes its codes or its system

FobToronto’s warranty covers a fob that fails from a manufacturer defect. The same page states: “Lifetime warranty does not cover condo management fob code changes and physical damage to the fob” (FobToronto, modified 4 August 2026). In a British Columbia rental, section 5(2) of the Residential Tenancy Regulation bars a fee for replacement access devices when the landlord changed the means of access. Whether a landlord would also replace a copy you bought yourself is a question to ask before you buy it.

The fob cannot be copied at all

Some fobs use encryption meant to stop exactly this. Monty’s Locksmith says: “If your building uses a locked encrypted system, a copy may not be possible” (Monty’s Locksmith, 11 July 2026). FobFather says it currently copies standard general access apartment fobs only (FobFather, read 29 September 2026). If a shop cannot copy yours, the building office is the only route. That is the building’s security doing its job, not a failure by the shop.

What to ask before you pay for a copy

Bring the fob that works and something that shows you live there. Monty’s Locksmith asks for both: the fob because it copies from a working original, and proof that you live in the unit (Monty’s, 11 July 2026). A fob copy is a small purchase, which is exactly why the questions get skipped. These take a minute at the counter:

• Can I test it before I leave? Monty’s Locksmith says “You test the new fob on the spot before you leave” (Monty’s, 11 July 2026). FobFather offers to replace a copy that has issues in the first 30 days (FobFather, read 29 September 2026).
• Is tax included, and is there a surcharge if my fob turns out to be encrypted or high-frequency?
• What does the warranty leave out? Ask about the building changing its codes, by name.
• Do you need ID or proof that I live there? Premium Locksmith Services says it may check “ID and proof of residence” (Premium Locksmith, modified 13 August 2026). A shop that asks is protecting your building as well as you.
• How long will it take? FobToronto’s FAQ says “5 minutes, or up to 15 minutes if your fob is a more encrypted one, on an average basis” (FobToronto FAQ, modified 21 January 2026).

If you lost your only fob

A shop cannot help with this one. Monty’s Locksmith puts it simply: “we copy from a functioning original rather than build one from scratch” (Monty’s Locksmith, 11 July 2026). With no working fob, the building office is the only source of a new one. Reporting the loss is also what gets the old one switched off. That matters if it was on a ring with your unit number.

Report it the same day, in writing, to the management office or the concierge. For an office building, Minute Key points to the company’s HR department (Minute Key). In a British Columbia rental, the fee the regulation allows for a replacement is the “direct cost of replacing keys or other access devices” (section 7). If a door key or a mailbox key was on the same ring, those have their own routes: see who replaces a lost mailbox key and what rekeying a lock costs.

Locked out tonight

If the fob was your only way in and the office is closed, start with the concierge or security desk, if your building has one. Then try the superintendent, or any after-hours number the management office has given you. If nobody answers and your own door key went with the fob, our locked out now page and the guide to being locked out of your house cover what to do next. A locksmith can help with the lock on your own door. The building’s fob system belongs to the building.

If you manage the building or the office

The same facts look different from the other side of the desk. In 2017, CBC Toronto reported that two of its producers got copies of fobs borrowed from condo owners “without providing any identification or proof they were the actual owners or residents” (CBC News, 19 June 2017). Shop policies vary. Some ask for ID and proof of residence, as quoted above. FobFather asks customers to use its copies “only for properties you own or have explicit permission to access” (FobFather, read 29 September 2026).

For a condo board or strata council, the tools sit in the governing documents: a rule on registering fobs and a clear way to report a lost one. In Ontario those rules must be reasonable and consistent with the Condo Act (Condominium Authority of Ontario). In British Columbia, a council rule has to be ratified at the next general meeting to stay in effect (gov.bc.ca). A landlord in British Columbia is held to the fee limits in sections 6 and 7 of the Residential Tenancy Regulation for every access device handed out. An office manager has the simplest version of the job: keep a list of who holds which fob, and cancel any that go missing.

Common questions

Is it legal to copy a building fob in Canada?

None of the official pages we opened for this guide deals with copying a fob directly. They deal with what a landlord may charge for access devices, as British Columbia’s Residential Tenancy Regulation does. They also deal with building rules that everyone in a condo must follow, as the Condominium Authority of Ontario explains. In practice, your lease, your condo’s declaration and rules, and the shop’s own conditions decide it. If the fob was issued to someone else, ask the office that issued it.

Can every fob be copied?

No. Monty’s Locksmith in Toronto says that if a building “uses a locked encrypted system, a copy may not be possible” (11 July 2026). FobFather in Vancouver says it currently copies standard general access apartment fobs only (read 29 September 2026). If a shop cannot copy yours, the building office is the route.

Will my copy stop working if the building deactivates my fob?

Yes. Minute Key’s FAQ says “if the original is deactivated, copies will also stop working” (read 29 September 2026). Because the copy carries the same code, a lost copy also cannot be cancelled without cancelling your original.

How much does a fob copy cost in Canada?

Four businesses in Vancouver and Toronto publish $20 to $70 for a standard building fob and $65 to $120 for an encrypted or high-frequency one (FobFather, FobToronto, Fob Vancouver and Monty’s Locksmith, read 29 September 2026). These are published prices, not verified ones. For comparison, Monty’s Locksmith puts a replacement from a property manager at “frequently $100 or more for a single fob” (11 July 2026).

Can my landlord charge me for an extra fob?

In British Columbia, the fee the Residential Tenancy Regulation allows for an extra fob you ask for is the “direct cost of additional keys or other access devices requested by the tenant.” A refundable fee is not allowed if the fob is your sole means of access. Ontario’s guide to the standard lease says a key deposit covering “remote entry devices or cards” must be returned at the end of the tenancy. It also says a charge for additional keys “cannot be more than actual cost of the keys.”

I lost my only fob. Can a shop make a new one?

No. A shop needs a working fob to copy from; Monty’s Locksmith says it copies “from a functioning original rather than build one from scratch” (11 July 2026). Report the loss to the building office, which can cancel the lost fob and issue a new one.

What to do next

Before you pay anyone, send one short email to your building office. Ask what a second fob costs from them, whether copies are allowed, and whether copies have to be registered. The answer tells you whether a shop copy is a bargain or a fob that stops working the day the office changes its codes. If you rent, keep the reply. In British Columbia and Ontario, what a landlord may charge for keys and access devices is set out in the regulation and the lease guide quoted above.

If you would rather have a locksmith copy the fob, or you need one for the lock on your own door, choose a business you can check first.