Short Term Rental Accommodation Register - Frequently asked questions

You can rent your premises for as many nights as you wish provided you have met all legislative requirements. This includes the planning requirements of your local government area. If your premises is in the Perth Metro area you do not need to have development approval unless you are renting for more than 90 nights. Outside the Perth Metro area, it is up to your Local Government as to whether you need development approval from day 1.
 

If you have residential property that you rent out for periods of less than 3 months in a calendar year, whether you live at that property or not, and whether you need Development Approval from your local government area or not, the premises are required to be registered with the State government as a Short Term Rental Accommodation (STRA) operator.

Hosted STRA means that the host lives on the premises during the period of the accommodation provided. The host may come and go from the premises during the time of the accommodation (e.g. for work or recreation).

Unhosted STRA means that the accommodation can be carried out without the host residing on the premises. Individual residential units within a premises where there is an onsite manager or concierge are generally considered as unhosted.

Yes, traditional Bed and Breakfasts are now considered to be Short Term Rental Accommodation (STRA). If the owner/manager lives onsite it will be considered hosted STRA, if they live elsewhere and come in to provide services it will be considered unhosted STRA.

If you don’t register your STRA you will not be able to advertise or take bookings after 1 January 2025. The new legislation requires ALL advertising and booking platforms and channels to check that the STRA is registered before advertising or taking bookings. If you are found to be operating STRA without registration you, as the owner, will be liable for significant penalties.

The registration system will be available for registration from 1 July 2024 but will not become mandatory until 1 January 2025.

The initial registration fee will be around $250. The cost to renew each year is anticipated to be approximately $100. If you register in July, August or September 2024 you will not be required to pay the initial registration fee.

The public will be able to check whether a particular premises is registered as STRA. They will also be able to confirm that a registration number is valid. They will not be able to see details about the property or see contact details for the premises. There will also be a heat map available to give the public an understanding of how many STRA there are in a particular area.

If your local government area (LGA) currently requires development approval to operate a STRA (holiday house) you will need to provide your DA number on registration (unless you qualify for the 90 night exemption period in the metro area). If your LGA introduces a requirement for development approval to operate a STRA after 1 July 2024 you will need to update your registration with the DA number as soon as you obtain it. Please ensure you check with your LGA as to the development approval requirements that apply to your situation.

By using your property for STRA you are undertaking a commercial activity which means that your property, which was built for residential purposes, has changed the use for which it was built and must now be re-assessed. Not all Regional LGAs require a development approval so please check with your LGA.

The ‘exemption period’ only applies to properties in the metro area (not including Peel).

This is the period you can rent your property as a STRA before you will need to get a development approval from your local government area. You will need to have that approval before renting for more nights than the exemption number.

The STRA Register will capture the number of nights a registered premises is booked for STRA and enable monitoring of compliance with the Development Approval exemption as needed. This is facilitated through information sharing by STRA booking platforms (e.g. Airbnb, Stayz/Vrbo and booking.com) and the STRA Register.

Alternatively, where you or your property manager manage bookings, booking arrangement information will need to be entered directly into the STRA Register for each booking.

The STRA Register only collects data or requires information from booking transactions made by a guest. Periods when the property is blocked out by an owner for private use are not counted towards STRA nights.

The intent of the register is to gather information only. If the requested information is provided the STRA will be registered. The information gathered will be provided to regulatory authorities (including local government areas) to assist with appropriate regulation and monitoring of their legislation.

If the ancillary dwelling is on the same lot as the residential premises where the host lives, then it is considered hosted STRA. If is sits on another lot, even if in close proximity, it is no longer an ancillary dwelling and is therefore considered unhosted.

If the primary house is also used for STRA then any ancillary dwelling on the same title would be considered unhosted.

The STRA sector has grown significantly since Airbnb was introduced in Australia. The expansion of this sector has created unintended consequences for communities but it has been very difficult to undertake meaningful analysis due to the lack of clear information. The STRA register will provide that information.

For STRA providers the impost is very low. They are being asked to answer some questions and provide some information about their property. This will be through an online interface that will take 10-15 minutes initially and then potentially 5 minutes each year to complete. The cost involved is very low in the context of the income generated by STRA with $250 being the initial registration fee and $100 to renew each year. In recognition of the additional cost, and to encourage early registration, the initial registration fee will be waived for the first three months the register is available for registration.

Yes, an apartment or townhouse etc that is within a strata complex can be used as STRA unless a by-law of the Strata scheme prohibits STRA in the complex. If there is a by-law prohibiting STRA you will be asked for this information when registering and will then be unable to complete your registration. Strata bodies will be able to request information on any registrations in their scheme from the Commissioner of Consumer Protection.

The registration requirement under the STRA Act applies to premises used for stays of less than 3 months in total, in a 12-month period. If your guests stay for more than 3 months, they may be subject to requirements of the Residential Tenancies Act 1987 (WA) if the stay is not for a holiday. It is recommended that legal advice is sought on the requirements that apply to your own arrangement. 

Fees and charges for local government development applications are mandated by the State Government through the Planning and Development Regulations 2009. A list of fees is provided in Schedule 2 of these regulations.

An application to change the use of an existing dwelling to unhosted short-term rental accommodation would attract a base fee of $295. If the dwelling has already been used as unhosted short-term rental accommodation without prior approval (if required), the application may be classed as 'retrospective' which attracts a penalty fee of three times this amount.

If an application for unhosted short-term rental accommodation includes building works, the relevant application fee will be based on the estimated cost of the works, as indicated on the submitted development approval application form.

Local governments may also charge their own fees from time to time for other administrative matters associated with processing your development application, such as for the printing of letters to advertise a proposal.

Your local government can provide you with a fee estimate prior to submission of a development application.