What NSW requires before you list your home on Airbnb or Stayz: registration, the 180-day cap, strata, fire safety and insurance.
If you’re thinking of letting your home as a short-term rental in New South Wales, there are a handful of rules to understand first. This guide covers the essentials for owners on Sydney’s Lower North Shore and across Greater Sydney.
General information only, not legal advice. Rules change, so always check current requirements with NSW Fair Trading, the NSW Planning Portal or your own adviser.
1. Hosted or non-hosted?
Every short-term rental in NSW falls into one of two categories.
• Hosted: you live at the property while guests stay, for example letting a spare room. There’s no limit on the number of nights.
• Non-hosted: you let the whole home while you’re not living there. In Greater Sydney, non-hosted rentals are capped at 180 nights per year.
Knowing which applies to you is the first step, because it decides how many nights you can host.
2. Register before you list
Every short-term rental property in NSW must be registered on the STRA Register via the NSW Planning Portal before it’s advertised. You’ll receive a registration number, which platforms like Airbnb, Stayz and Booking.com require on your listing. Registration is renewed each year.
3. How the 180-night cap works
• The cap applies to non-hosted stays in Greater Sydney, which includes North Sydney and the Lower North Shore.
• The 180 nights are counted from your registration date, not the calendar year.
• Bookings of 21 nights or more in a row don’t count towards the cap, which makes longer stays a useful part of the year.
• Other parts of NSW have their own limits. Most of Byron Shire, for example, is capped at 60 nights, while much of regional NSW has no cap.
4. Strata: check your by-laws
If your home is in a strata building:
• If it’s your principal place of residence, your owners corporation can’t use a by-law to stop you hosting.
• If it’s an investment property, the owners corporation can pass a by-law banning short-term rentals, by special resolution.
Check your scheme’s by-laws before you list, and let your strata manager or owners corporation know you’re hosting.
5. Fire safety
Short-term rentals must meet the NSW STRA Fire Safety Standard, and you declare compliance when you register. Requirements include:
• Smoke alarms, interconnected where there’s more than one
• Evacuation lighting activated by the smoke alarms
• An evacuation plan displayed for guests
• A fire extinguisher and fire blanket in the kitchen
Some building types have extra requirements, so read the Standard for your property.
6. Insurance
NSW requires hosts to hold insurance covering liability for third-party injury and death on the premises. Airbnb’s host liability cover meets the minimum, but standard home and contents policies often exclude short-term rental use. Check your own policy, and consider specialist short-term rental cover for damage and lost income.
7. The Code of Conduct
The NSW Code of Conduct for the Short-term Rental Accommodation Industry applies to hosts, guests and booking platforms. Among other things, hosts must describe the property accurately, give guests a copy of the Code and any by-laws, provide emergency contact details, and handle complaints promptly. Serious breaches can lead to being placed on an exclusion register.
Getting it right from the start
Compliance is the foundation of a well-run short-term rental. It protects your home, your guests and your neighbours. Cove’s Setup & Launch service helps owners prepare properly, from registration and fire safety set-up to guest information and listing.
Talk to us about your home → covecuration.com.au/contact