Regulations for short-term rentals taking shape

ISTANBUL

The Culture and Tourism Ministry is about to finalize work to regulate the short-term rental market, introducing new legal obligations for those who rent out their properties.

Those who violate the new rules will face up to a 1 million Turkish Liras fine.

According to the regulations under consideration, property owners should put a sign on the doors of the houses indicating that it is a short-term rental property.

Those, who want to rent out their houses, will need the consent of all occupants at the building and should get a license from the ministry.

The ministry launched the work for houses offered on the Airbnb application in July with the aim of finalizing the new regulations by the end of this year.

Officials from the ministry said that the work on short-term rentals are expected to be completed soon and the new regulations will be forwarded to parliament for its approval in the coming weeks.

The new regulations set out three main conditions for those who want to rent out their properties, they said.

Foremost, they will need to get permission from all neighbors at the apartment. Even if one occupant at the building disagrees, the property cannot be put out for short-term rental.

They should also obtain a “tourism accommodation” license for short-term rentals from the Tourism Ministry.

For security purposes, they will have to provide information regarding those who rent the house, such as their identity and how long they will stay at the house.