The Department of Tourism expects a new registration system for houses that are advertised for short-term rentals on online platforms to open up to 12,000 properties.
Failure to comply will result in an initial fine of €300, which may be increased to €5,000 in the district court, as well as fines of up to €5,000 for online platforms.
Under the new rules, the properties will be required to have a valid registration number with Fáilte Ireland.
The proposals should result in more houses becoming available for long-term housing.
The emphasis of the strategy will be on lodging that can be rented for brief periods of time, up to 21 nights.
Homeowners must register online and verify that they have all necessary planning permission.
Minister for Tourism Catherine Martin said “the establishment of the register is another step in achieving our short-term letting objectives”.
“There are currently 30,000 short-term tourism letting properties and 60-70% of them are full houses or apartments. It’s estimated 12,000 properties could return to the traditional long-term rental market through this measure.”
Paul Kelly, CEO of Fáilte Ireland, said the system is simple and user-friendly and it is “good news for housing and good news for tourism.”
He asserted that he is confident that they have the personnel in place to supervise the system.
Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien said legislation giving effect to the regulations will come before the Dáil in the first quarter of next year, adding that the system will bring “more transparency to the sector”.
“It is similar to other jurisdictions as it places the onus on the platforms, and it will complement other planning regulations.”
The government’s Housing for All strategy, which aims to make better use of existing housing, includes the new legislation.
The proposed registration process for properties used for short-term rentals was welcomed by Airbnb.
In a statement, the property hosting website said it is in favour of measures to support responsible hosting in Ireland and that it wants to make “existing home sharing enforceable and effective”.
It claimed to be aware of Ireland’s long-standing housing issues and to want to contribute to finding a solution.