New provincial short-term rental regulations

NEWS RELEASE - Distributed April 15, 2024 10:00 AM

Summary

The provincial government has passed the Short-Term Rental Accommodation Act to restrict short-term rentals (STRs) and provide stronger tools for municipalities to return more housing units to the long-term rental market. The following changes will take place over the next year:

May 1, 2024

Short-term rentals will only be permitted in a primary residence.
Host will be required to display a valid City of Nanaimo business licence on their hosting page. This applies to all advertising platforms (AirBnB, VRBO, Booking.com, etc.).

Summer 2024

Advertising platforms will be required to share short term rental host data with municipalities and will be required to remove listings where a valid business licence number is not displayed.
The Province will provide enforcement and compliance support to municipalities if advertising platforms fail to remove non-compliant host listings.

Late 2024/Early 2025

The Province will create a short-term rental registry. All short-term rental operators will be required to register, provide proof of primary residency and display registration number (in addition to the business licence number) in platform advertising.
Advertising platforms will be required to remove any host listing that does not display a provincial registration number and a business licence number.

For more information visit the City’s Short-Term Rental webpage, or the Province’s Short-Term Rentals webpage.

Link to Strategic Plan: N/A

Key Points

Earlier this year, the provincial government introduced new legislation that further regulates the operation of short-term rentals in B.C. effective May 1, 2024.
Throughout 2024 and into early 2025, the provincial government will implement measures to enhance regulation and enforcement, including mandatory registration for all short-term rental operators, sharing host data with municipalities, and requiring advertising platforms to remove listings without valid business license or registration numbers.

Quotes

"The new provincial regulations on short-term rentals will ensure a fair and sustainable housing market for our community, while also meeting long-term housing demands. These measures will help preserve the integrity of our neighborhoods and support affordable housing initiatives for residents."

Leonard Krog

Mayor

City of Nanaimo

Quick Facts

The City of Nanaimo defines a short-term rental as the temporary rental (less than 30 consecutive days) of a residence, a portion of the residence (such as a room), a secondary suite or a carriage house and may or may not include breakfast.