An amended policy framework for short-term rental accommodation has been introduced that was supposed to take effect on 30 July 2021. However according to recent news reports, the commencement date has now been extended to 1 November 2021. This extension has not yet been announced on the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment website.
Under this policy, short-term rental accommodation will be divided into:
- hosted short-term rental accommodation, where the host resides on the premises during the provision of the accommodation; and
- non-hosted short-term rental accommodation, where the host does not reside on the premises during the provision of the accommodation.
In the case of hosted short-term rental accommodation, a dwelling may be used for short-term rental accommodation 365 days per year.
For non-hosted short-term rental accommodation, a dwelling may be used for short-term rental accommodation 180 days per year in the following areas:
- the Greater Sydney Region,
- Ballina local government area,
- Bega Valley local government area,
- Byron local government area (exempt until 31 January 2022),
- Dubbo Regional local government area,
- City of Newcastle local government area,
- Specified land in the Clarence Valley local government area,
- Specified land in the Muswellbrook local government area.
The local council areas included in the Greater Sydney region include Bayside, Blacktown, Blue Mountains, Burwood, Camden, Campbelltown, Canterbury Bankstown, City of Canada Bay, City of Parramatta, City of Ryde, City of Sydney, Cumberland, Fairfield, Georges River, Hawkesbury, Hornsby, Hunter’s Hill, Inner West, Ku-ring-gai, Lane Cove, Liverpool, Mosman, North Sydney, Northern Beaches, Penrith, Randwick, Strathfield, Sutherland, The Hills, Waverley, Willoughby, Wollondilly and Woollahra.
In calculating the number of days a dwelling is used for non-hosted short-term rental accommodation, a booking for 21 consecutive days or more is not counted.
Non-hosted short-term rental accommodation in locations other than those specified above are permitted 365 days per year.
There are useful factsheets on the new policy available on the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment website which you can access here.
The policy has been introduced through amendments to the State Environmental Planning Policy (Affordable Rental Housing) 2009 and the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2000 to introduce. The new policy is called the State Environmental Planning Policy (Affordable Rental Housing) Amendment (Short-term Rental Accommodation) 2021. You can access the policy here.
Authors: Jasmin H.Singh and Allison Benson