Short-term rental compliance and enforcement
Last updated on May 26, 2025The Province has established a Compliance and Enforcement Unit (CEU) within the Short-Term Rental Branch in the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs. The CEU works to ensure that the provincial short-term rental rules are being followed.
On this page:
- Role of the Compliance and Enforcement Unit
- Tools for addressing non-compliance
- How to submit a complaint
Role of the Compliance and Enforcement Unit
The role of the Compliance and Enforcement Unit (CEU) is to enforce compliance with provincial legislation. Enforcement action may be taken if there is evidence that s host or platform is not following the requirements of the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act or regulations. This could include operating in violation of the principal residence or registration requirements, failing to respond to ministry requests for information, or providing false or misleading information during an investigation.
Local governments are responsible for enforcing their own rules related to short-term rentals.
Tools for addressing non-compliance
To ensure that short-term rental rules are being followed, the CEU uses the following tools:
- Education
- Investigations
- Compliance Orders
- Administrative Monetary Penalties
- Injunctions
Education
The CEU provides regular education and outreach to short-term rental hosts and platforms to support understanding of the provincial short-term rental rules. The Ministry is committed to working with hosts and platforms to achieve voluntary compliance with these rules.
Investigations
The CEU has the power under the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act to conduct investigations into whether someone has contravened the Act or regulations. CEU staff may make phone calls, send letters and emails, search publicly available records, and conduct other actions as part of their investigations.
The CEU can issue a requirement to provide records to any person as part of an investigation. This requirement is a legally binding order to provide documents, information, and other records related to the investigation to the CEU within a reasonable time.
Providing false or misleading information to the CEU as part of an investigation or failing to provide the required records in response to a requirement to provide records, is a violation of the Act and is subject to further enforcement action, including administrative penalties.
Compliance Orders
A compliance order is a legally binding directive ordering a person or organization to comply with a requirement of a statute or regulation.
The CEU may issue a compliance order requiring a person to come into compliance with the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act or Regulations. The order may require specific actions to be taken within a specified period of time. A compliance order may be issued following an investigation, or, in appropriate cases, without an investigation.
The CEU may file a compliance order with the B.C. Supreme Court. This could happen, for example, if a person subject to the compliance order fails to take the required actions with the specified time frame. Once filed, the compliance order becomes enforceable as if it were a court order, and further court action could be taken to compel compliance, such as proceedings for an injunction or contempt of court.
Administrative Penalties
An administrative penalty is a financial penalty that may be imposed on individuals or companies who fail to comply with the requirements of a statute or regulation, or an order given by a Ministry official. An administrative penalty is not a criminal fine.
The Director can issue an administrative penalty when a person has contravened the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act or regulations, if they fail to comply with a compliance order or requirement to provide records, or if they provide false or misleading information in an investigation. The regulations provide a fee schedule that sets out maximum rates for different contraventions, with increasing fee maximums for successive contraventions.
A person who has been issued an administrative penalty may apply to have the penalty reviewed within 30 days of receiving the notice, on the following grounds:
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Where there is new evidence that is substantial and material to the review and did not exist when the administrative penalty was ordered, or did exist but was not discovered and could not through the exercise of reasonable due diligence have been discovered.
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Where the person was unable to be heard because of circumstances that could not be anticipated and were beyond the person's control.
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Where a person who performed administrative tasks for the director made a procedural error that materially affected the decision to impose the administrative penalty or the amount of the administrative penalty.
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Where a technical irregularity or error occurred that materially affected the decision to impose an administrative penalty or the amount of the administrative penalty.
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Where the Director did not determine an issue that the director was required to determine.
Following the review, the original order may be confirmed, varied, or set aside.
Injunctions
An injunction is a court order that compels an individual or entity to do, refrain from doing, or to stop doing a specified act.
In some circumstances, the Director may apply to the Supreme Court to grant an injunction. This could be done if it was appropriate for the court to either prevent a person from contravening the rules or require a person to comply with them.
Opportunity to be heard
Before a final decision is made to issue a compliance order or an administrative penalty, a person will have an opportunity to be heard. This provides them with an opportunity to review the relevant evidence and respond.
A notice of an opportunity to be heard will specify a due date for submissions or a time, date, place, and manner of hearing. If the person subject to the opportunity to be heard does not respond by the due date or does not attend the hearing, then the CEU can impose a compliance order or administrative penalty on that person without further notice.
How to submit a complaint
If a member of the public believes a short-term rental host or platform is not following the provincial rules, this can be reported to the CEU through the Public Tip Information Form.
How to submit a complaint
If a member of the public believes a short-term rental host or platform is not following the provincial rules, this can be reported to the CEU through the Public Tip Information Form.
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Disclaimer
The information on this webpage on the Province of British Columbia’s Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act and regulations is provided for the user’s convenience as a basic starting point. It is not a substitute for getting legal advice or other professional advice. If there is a conflict between the information on this webpage and the legislation or regulations, the legislation and regulations prevail. The interpretation of legislation is also affected by court decisions. This information may be subject to change, including due to the legislative process.