Surf Coast Shire, VIC

Can I short-term rent in Surf Coast Shire?

Permitted

Short-stay letting (Torquay, Jan Juc, Anglesea, Aireys Inlet, Lorne and the inland towns) is permitted under Victoria's state STRA framework. Surf Coast Shire has no shire-specific night cap, hosted/unhosted licensing split, STR-specific code of conduct, or STR-specific penalty schedule. The Shire's own rules only add two narrow deltas: owners are made liable for occupants' bin/waste breaches under the Community Amenity Local Law, and any short-stay property sleeping 6+ guests must separately register as "prescribed accommodation" under public health law.

Last verified 2026-07-24 against official sources. Every fact below links to where it comes from.

The rules, fact by fact

Rule	What applies	Applies to	Since	Source
Registration	Short-stay properties catering for 6 or more guests must register with Council as "prescribed accommodation" under public health law, separate from the state STRA framework. Surf Coast Shire's Environmental Health Unit registers accommodation premises that provide lodging for six or more persons, the page lists hotels, motels, hostels, holiday camps, rooming houses, student dormitories, labour hire accommodation and "most other forms of accommodation that caters for six or more persons", under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 and the Public Health and Wellbeing (Prescribed Accommodation) Regulations 2020. This applies to large short-stay/holiday rental houses regardless of hosted or unhosted status once the 6-guest threshold is met, and is distinct from and additional to registering on the state's short-stay accommodation register. Fees are tiered by guest capacity: 4-15 guests $182-$455 initial (pro-rata) / $364 annual renewal; 16-25 guests $258-$645 initial / $516 renewal; 26-50 guests $328.50-$821.25 initial / $657 renewal; 50+ guests $440.50-$1,101.25 initial / $881 renewal; ownership transfer fee $182 (4-15 guests) to $440.50 (50+ guests), tiered by the same capacity bands. Re-confirmed by opening the council's live Accommodation businesses page on 24 July 2026: the registration trigger text (six or more persons, same list of premises types) is unchanged. Exceptions: Ordinary short-stay dwellings sleeping fewer than 6 guests are not caught by this scheme (they instead only need the state STRA register). ⚠ Our confidence in this fact is medium. Confirm with the source before relying on it.	Hosted & non-hosted	n/a	Council
Code of conduct	Owners of short-term rental properties are made responsible under the Community Amenity Local Law for occupiers' waste/bin compliance; Surf Coast has no separate STR-specific local law. Clause 7.1(14) of Council's Community Amenity Local Law 2021 states that the owner of a short-term rental property must ensure occupiers are given sufficient information to comply with the local law's domestic waste disposal requirements, and that any breach of that clause at the premises is the owner's responsibility (not just the occupier's). This is the only short-stay-specific clause in the principal local law. Two amendment local laws have since been incorporated into the current published version: the Community Amenity (Amendment) Local Law 2023 (commenced 26 July 2023; amends gender-neutral facility access, smoking definitions, standpipe terminology, Residential Nature Strip Guidelines incorporation, family-violence accommodation extensions, animal-keeping rules and donation-bin provisions) and the Community Amenity (Amendment) Local Law 2024 (commenced 24 July 2024; amends clause 1.9's guideline incorporation to add the Outdoor Dining (Parklet) Guidelines, adds clause 6.4(4) on parklet permit assessment, and removes a Schedule One nature-strip penalty). Both amendments were independently re-fetched and confirmed to leave clause 7.1(14) untouched. Confirmed 24 July 2026 by opening the council's live Laws and regulations index (surfcoast.vic.gov.au/About-us/Council/Laws-and-regulations): the only local-law categories published are Community Amenity Local Law, Infringement Notices, Alcohol and tobacco, Animal laws, Recreational and marine boating, Parking and traffic, Other car laws, Footpath trading, Nude beaches, Weddings on Council land, Recreational vehicles on private land, Nuisance and pollution complaints, and Kerbside bin rules. There is no separate short-stay rental local law, no STR-specific code of conduct, and no STR-specific complaints or penalty schedule.	Hosted & non-hosted	n/a	Council

Rule

What applies

Applies to

Since

Source

Registration

Short-stay properties catering for 6 or more guests must register with Council as "prescribed accommodation" under public health law, separate from the state STRA framework.

Surf Coast Shire's Environmental Health Unit registers accommodation premises that provide lodging for six or more persons, the page lists hotels, motels, hostels, holiday camps, rooming houses, student dormitories, labour hire accommodation and "most other forms of accommodation that caters for six or more persons", under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 and the Public Health and Wellbeing (Prescribed Accommodation) Regulations 2020. This applies to large short-stay/holiday rental houses regardless of hosted or unhosted status once the 6-guest threshold is met, and is distinct from and additional to registering on the state's short-stay accommodation register. Fees are tiered by guest capacity: 4-15 guests $182-$455 initial (pro-rata) / $364 annual renewal; 16-25 guests $258-$645 initial / $516 renewal; 26-50 guests $328.50-$821.25 initial / $657 renewal; 50+ guests $440.50-$1,101.25 initial / $881 renewal; ownership transfer fee $182 (4-15 guests) to $440.50 (50+ guests), tiered by the same capacity bands. Re-confirmed by opening the council's live Accommodation businesses page on 24 July 2026: the registration trigger text (six or more persons, same list of premises types) is unchanged.

Exceptions: Ordinary short-stay dwellings sleeping fewer than 6 guests are not caught by this scheme (they instead only need the state STRA register).

⚠ Our confidence in this fact is medium. Confirm with the source before relying on it.

Hosted & non-hosted

n/a

Council

Code of conduct

Owners of short-term rental properties are made responsible under the Community Amenity Local Law for occupiers' waste/bin compliance; Surf Coast has no separate STR-specific local law.

Clause 7.1(14) of Council's Community Amenity Local Law 2021 states that the owner of a short-term rental property must ensure occupiers are given sufficient information to comply with the local law's domestic waste disposal requirements, and that any breach of that clause at the premises is the owner's responsibility (not just the occupier's). This is the only short-stay-specific clause in the principal local law. Two amendment local laws have since been incorporated into the current published version: the Community Amenity (Amendment) Local Law 2023 (commenced 26 July 2023; amends gender-neutral facility access, smoking definitions, standpipe terminology, Residential Nature Strip Guidelines incorporation, family-violence accommodation extensions, animal-keeping rules and donation-bin provisions) and the Community Amenity (Amendment) Local Law 2024 (commenced 24 July 2024; amends clause 1.9's guideline incorporation to add the Outdoor Dining (Parklet) Guidelines, adds clause 6.4(4) on parklet permit assessment, and removes a Schedule One nature-strip penalty). Both amendments were independently re-fetched and confirmed to leave clause 7.1(14) untouched. Confirmed 24 July 2026 by opening the council's live Laws and regulations index (surfcoast.vic.gov.au/About-us/Council/Laws-and-regulations): the only local-law categories published are Community Amenity Local Law, Infringement Notices, Alcohol and tobacco, Animal laws, Recreational and marine boating, Parking and traffic, Other car laws, Footpath trading, Nude beaches, Weddings on Council land, Recreational vehicles on private land, Nuisance and pollution complaints, and Kerbside bin rules. There is no separate short-stay rental local law, no STR-specific code of conduct, and no STR-specific complaints or penalty schedule.

Hosted & non-hosted

n/a

Council

Fees

Prescribed accommodation registration, 4-15 guests: initial (pro-rata): $182-$455 source
Prescribed accommodation registration, 4-15 guests: annual renewal: $364 source
Prescribed accommodation registration, 16-25 guests: initial (pro-rata): $258-$645 source
Prescribed accommodation registration, 16-25 guests: annual renewal: $516 source
Prescribed accommodation registration, 26-50 guests: initial (pro-rata): $328.50-$821.25 source
Prescribed accommodation registration, 26-50 guests: annual renewal: $657 source
Prescribed accommodation registration, 50+ guests: initial (pro-rata): $440.50-$1,101.25 source
Prescribed accommodation registration, 50+ guests: annual renewal: $881 source
Prescribed accommodation ownership transfer fee (tiered: $182 for 4-15 guests, $258 for 16-25, $328.50 for 26-50, $440.50 for 50+): $182-$440.50 source

What's changed in Surf Coast Shire

2026-07-24 source
2026-07-24 source

Host checklist for Surf Coast Shire

Short-stay properties catering for 6 or more guests must register with Council as "prescribed accommodation" under public health law, separate from the state STRA framework. official page
Confirm anything marked below high confidence directly with your council.

Common questions

Do I need to register my short-term rental in Surf Coast Shire?

Short-stay properties catering for 6 or more guests must register with Council as "prescribed accommodation" under public health law, separate from the state STRA framework. Exceptions: Ordinary short-stay dwellings sleeping fewer than 6 guests are not caught by this scheme (they instead only need the state STRA register).

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