Short Stay RulesAustralia's verified short-stay rules database
Can I legally short-term rent this property?
Night caps, registration, levies and penalties for every Australian state and the councils that write their own rules. Every fact is linked to its official source, with the date we last checked it.
Free to use. Sourced from legislation, government and council pages only. How we verify
Browse by state and territory
Australian Capital Territory
Restricted
1 local area covered · verified 2026-10-22
New South Wales
Restricted
9 local areas covered · verified 2026-10-22
Northern Territory
Unclear
0 local areas covered · verified 2026-10-22
Queensland
Restricted
6 local areas covered · verified 2026-10-22
South Australia
Unclear
1 local area covered · verified 2026-10-08
Tasmania
Restricted
1 local area covered · verified 2026-10-22
Victoria
Restricted
2 local areas covered · verified 2026-10-08
Western Australia
Restricted
3 local areas covered · verified 2026-10-22
Photos, in order: Lake Burley Griffin, Canberra, 2023, 01 by Kgbo, CC BY-SA 4.0 (resized); (1)Whale Beach Road house by Sardaka, CC BY 3.0 (resized); Darwin (AU), Darwin Waterfront -- 2019 -- 4429-31 by Dietmar Rabich, CC BY-SA 4.0 (resized); The dazzling colours of the Great Barrier Reef near Airlie Beach, Whitsunday Islands, Queensland by Ayanadak123, CC BY-SA 4.0 (resized); 150906-001 Wilpena Pound from Moralana Scenic Drive Pano 50pc by Faj2323, CC BY-SA 4.0 (resized); Boat shed and Cradle Mountain at Dove Lake, Tas by Thennicke, CC BY-SA 4.0 (resized); Great Ocean Road (4898415698) by LeeAnne Adams, CC BY 2.0 (resized); 00 1737 Nambung National Park - Westaustralien by W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0 (resized).
Recently changed rules
- 2026-09-24 City of Melbourne: City of Melbourne's short-term accommodation consultation page updated: consultation closed 29 September 2023, feedback 'now being reviewed', next stage 'To be confirmed' (was 'June to December 2024'). No local registration fee or night cap has been introduced; the 2024 proposal remains paused.
- 2026-09-17 Adelaide (City of Adelaide): SA Government (Consumer and Business Services) announced it will introduce a Short Stay Accommodation Register and opened public consultation, closing 30 October 2026, on the register's scope, a possible Code of Conduct and related reforms. Not yet legislated: no registration obligation applies yet.
- 2026-09-17 South Australia: SA Government (Consumer and Business Services) announced it will introduce a Short Stay Accommodation Register and opened public consultation, closing 30 October 2026, on the register's scope, a possible Code of Conduct and related reforms. Not yet legislated: no registration obligation applies yet.
- 2026-09-10 Western Australia: Source links only; no rule changed. legislation.wa.gov.au renumbered its pages and the three cited (Building Regulations 2012, Electricity Regulations 1947, and the Local Planning Schemes Regulations 2015 consolidation) were dead. Re-pointed at the instruments' home pages on the new site, and the STRA provisions re-read in the current consolidations: Building Regulations reg 58(1)(b), 60(1)(ba) and 62(1)(b) (consolidation of 23 Jul 2026) and Electricity Regulations rr 13(ba) and 14(ba) with the $15,000 / $100,000 penalty (consolidation of 14 May 2026) read exactly as recorded on 11/08/2026. The Local Planning Schemes Regulations are still at consolidation 00-s0-00 of 3 Nov 2024, the version the 90-night rule was read from.
- 2026-09-09 City of Busselton: City reissued its Unhosted STRA FAQ as version 5 and rewrote the unhosted-STRA business page: 'non-preferred areas' replaced by a published map of where Additional Use A87 does not apply (unhosted STRA prohibited there); an Unhosted STRA differential rating category applies from the financial year after approval; renewal applications must be lodged at least 90 days before expiry; fee figures moved to the Planning Fees page (unchanged at $295 plus $142.80).
- 2026-09-09 City of Hobart: Short Stay Levy Bill 2026 defeated in the Legislative Council: third reading negatived on 9 September 2026 after a 6-6 vote decided by the President's casting vote. The proposed 5% levy on platform bookings under 28 nights will not commence. Confirmed on the parliament's bill-status table (last updated 09 Sep 2026) and ABC News, both read 10/09/2026.
- 2026-09-09 Tasmania: Short Stay Levy Bill 2026 defeated in the Legislative Council: third reading negatived on 9 September 2026 after a 6-6 vote decided by the President's casting vote. The proposed 5% levy on platform bookings under 28 nights will not commence. Confirmed on the parliament's bill-status table (last updated 09 Sep 2026) and ABC News, both read 10/09/2026.
- 2026-08-26 City of Hobart: Next procedural step for draft amendment PSA-25-3 (Hobart Visitor Accommodation Specific Area Plan): the council's Current Planning Scheme amendments page, read 10/09/2026, says the Planning Authority Committee was to consider a report on the representations under section 40K of the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993 at its meeting of 26 August 2026. The page still lists the amendment under 'Draft amendments under assessment' and does not record the outcome. Nothing is in force; existing permits and current applications are unaffected.
Why this site exists
Short-stay rules in Australia are set by three levels of government and they change constantly. Victoria added a 7.5% levy. WA made registration mandatory. Byron Shire cut its cap from 180 nights to 60. The sites that claim to track all this are out of date, and getting it wrong can cost a host five figures in fines.
We do one thing: verify every rule against its official source on a schedule, publish the date we checked, and log every change. No guesswork, no stale summaries, no legal-sounding waffle.