Short-term Rental (STR) Data Portal

This webpage provides information for local governments about the Ministry of Housing’s Short-term Rental (STR) Data Portal and procedures under s. 18 of the Short-term Rental Accommodations Act and ss. 15-16 of the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Regulation.

On this page:

• Overview of the STR Data Portal
• Overview of the notice and takedown process
• FAQs

Overview of the STR Data Portal

The STR Data Portal supports local government enforcement of STR bylaws with new tools and better information, including:

• Monthly platform data on STR listings including host contact information, property address, and bookings history
• A notice and takedown process to remove listings that are not compliant with a local government business licence requirement (i.e., do not have a valid local government business licence or licence has been suspended)

Access to the STR Data Portal

Access to the Portal is currently available to local governments that regulate short-term rentals (STRs) through business licencing. The Province will explore options for providing access to local governments that regulate STRs in other ways (such as through zoning or temporary use permits) in the future.

Overview of the notice and takedown process

• Beginning May 1, 2024, local governments that use business licencing to regulate short-term rentals (STR) are able to use the notice and takedown process through the STR Data Portal.
• Local governments can request that a platform cease providing platform services in respect of a listing (e.g. remove the listing and cancel bookings associated with the listing) if it does not follow a local business licence requirement (i.e., for not having a valid business licence).
• Local governments are expected to follow their own compliance processes first, and consider procedural fairness as appropriate, before pursuing the notice and takedown process.
• The steps for requesting that a platform cease providing platform services in respect of a listing are:
  • Local governments must send a notice of non-compliance with the “business licence requirement” to hosts and platforms prior to requesting the platform cease providing platform services.
  • Hosts may contact their local government for more information about a notice of non-compliance or to take steps to come into compliance with a local government business licence requirement. 
  • Within a period of 5 to 90 days after the notice of non-compliance is delivered, a local government can then issue a takedown request to the platform to cease providing platform services. 
  • Platforms will have 5 days from receiving the request to cease providing platform services.
  • Note– Under s. 30(2) of the regulation, a Notice of Non-compliance or Takedown Request is deemed received on the third day after it is sent through the STR Data Portal. See Part 5 [General] of the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Regulation for information regarding delivery and service of documents.

Who can use the notice and takedown process?

• Local governments that have an STR business licencing regime to regulate STRs will be able to initiate a notice and take down process using the STR Data Portal.

When can the notice and takedown process be used?

• The notice and takedown process can be used for listings  that are not compliant with a local government business licencing requirement.
• In the Short Term Rental Accommodations Act, a “business licence requirement” is defined as “a requirement in an applicable short term rental by-law that a person have a business licence.”  Therefore takedowns of listings can only occur if there is no valid short term rental business licence (e.g., if it is expired, suspended or revoked).This process does not address situations where a violation of a condition of the licence is alleged, but there is still a valid business licence in place.
• Local governments are expected to follow their own compliance processes first, and consider procedural fairness as appropriate, before pursuing the notice and takedown process.
• It is up to local governments to decide whether to use the notice and takedown process to promote compliance with their local business licence requirements. If a local government wishes to pursue this process, they are encouraged to include information that they believe may be relevant in the notice to the host and platform (e.g., information re: local bylaw compliance and enforcement actions taken in respect of the listing).

How does the notice and takedown process work?

Below are the steps local governments can follow to issue a takedown request, if a local government wishes to pursue this process, and key considerations:

1. Send notice of non-compliance

• Local governments must send a notice of non-compliance with a business licence requirement to both the host and platform representative.
• Delivery of the notice can only occur in specific ways:
  • The notice must be sent to the platform representative through the STR Data Portal (or certain other means in the rare circumstance where Portal is not available).
  • The notice may be sent to the host either:
    i. Through the STR Data Portal to the email address provided to the platform, or
    ii.  Through an alternative delivery method, such as mail.
• The notice of non-compliance informs the host that the local government has determined that a listing is not compliant with the business licence requirement, and the local government may issue a takedown request to the platform to cease providing platform services in respect of the listing. The notice must include the following information:
  • The name of the local government issuing the notice
  • The URL of the listing
  • The Listing ID of the short-term rental listing, if known
• The local government is encouraged to provide some information to the host about how the listing is non-compliant with a business licencing requirement, such as:
  • No valid business licence or it has expired
  • Business licence has been suspended or revoked, with reasons
  • Business licence application was denied, with reasons
• The STR Data Portal also allows local governments to blind copy multiple hosts, including property managers, or additional local government staff on the notice.

Following a notice of non-compliance

• After receiving the notice of non-compliance, the host could consider contacting their local government for more information or taking steps to come into compliance. 
• The local government could consider evaluating any additional information provided by the host and whether any further actions are appropriate, such as proceeding to issue a takedown request to the platform. It is expected that a local government would only issue a takedown request if the listing remains non-compliant with the business licence requirement.

2. Issue takedown request

• A local government can issue a takedown request to the platform representative to cease providing platform services, which might include removing the listing from the platform, not allowing transactions for payments associated with the listing, and cancelling bookings. The platform must comply with the request of the local government.
• A local government can issue a takedown request to the platform representative to cease providing platform services, which might include removing the listing from the platform, not allowing transactions for payments associated with the listing, and cancelling bookings. The platform must comply with the request of the local government.
• A local government can issue a takedown request within five days but not more than 90 days after the date of delivery of the notice of non-compliance.
• All takedown requests must be sent to the platform representative using the STR Data Portal (or certain other means if the Portal is not available). The STR Data Portal allows local governments to copy the host(s) on the takedown request for their awareness if desired.
• Local governments will receive an email confirmation that their takedown request has been submitted to the STR Data Portal for their records.
• The STR Data Portal aggregates takedown requests for each platform into a CSV file and sends them to the platform representative at 11:50pm PST each day.
• Platforms will have five days from the date of receiving the takedown request to comply with the request. As noted previously, Platforms are deemed to have received the request on the third day after it is sent (see note below).
• If a platform doesn’t cease providing platform services as required under the Short-term Rental Accommodations Act and the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Regulation, the local government can escalate the matter to the director of the Provincial STR Compliance and Enforcement Unit (CEU) through a process that is communicated to each local government.

FAQs

Data Portal Access

How can local governments access the Portal?

• Local governments with STR business licencing regimes can contact the Ministry to request access to the STR Data Portal.
• Local governments wishing to access monthly data through the Portal must sign an Information Sharing Agreement with the Province to document the terms and conditions of the exchange of personal information.
• Staff must have a Business BCeID account to log-in.

Who else can access the Portal or the data?

• Eligible local governments will have access to STR listing data from the platforms for their own jurisdiction through the portal (in accordance with an information-sharing agreement with the Ministry). Local governments may choose to share listing data with other local governments for the purposes of STR bylaw enforcement, subject to the information sharing agreement.
• The Provincial CEU will have access to listing data across the province to support compliance with provincial rules.
• The minister is authorized to share platform information for certain other purposes, such as with the Government of Canada and the Ministry of Finance for tax auditing purposes, in accordance with the STRAA.
• Neither STR hosts nor the general public will have access to the portal.
• STR platforms have access to the Portal to upload monthly reports, but cannot view listing data within the portal.

Can local governments use the notice and takedown process if they don’t have an overall STR business licensing regime, but rather only issue other types of business licences for short-term rentals, such as bed and breakfast, boarder and lodger or general business licences?

• Local governments are responsible for determining whether they are a “relevant local government” (as defined in section 18(1) STRAA) and if they are able to use the notice and takedown process. If a local government believes that they are a “relevant local government,” it may request access to the Portal for the purpose of the notice and takedown process. If local governments have a legal question, they may wish to consult their lawyer.
• Local governments that issue business licences for bed and breakfasts, short term boarders and lodgers or other eligible forms of short-term rental accommodation services are expected to be eligible to use the Notice and Takedown process if the business licence requirement pertains to short-term rentals. Short-term rental accommodation service in the STRAA is defined as the service of accommodation, in exchange for a fee, that is provided to members of the public for a period of time of less than 90 consecutive days.
• Local governments that issue business licences for short-term rental accommodations under a general business licence bylaw are not expected to be permitted to use the Notice and Takedown process.
• Local governments may only issue takedown requests for listings that do not meet an applicable STR business licence requirement (as described above). Therefore, a local government with a B&B business licence requirement (but not a broader STR regulation, such as limits by zoning) can request takedowns for listings that are considered B&B.

Does the Notice and Takedown Process address non-compliance with zoning bylaws that regulate short-term rentals?

• No. The notice and takedown process addresses when a valid STR business licence does not exist, or has been suspended/revoked.

Are local governments required to share business licence information to use the Portal?

• No. Local governments will have the option to upload their business licence data to the Portal to support advanced Portal features, once developed, such as flagging when a listing does not include a valid business licence number, but it is not required.

Data Sharing

What data will be available on the STR Data Portal?

• Platforms are required to report certain information to the province each month, as described in the STRAA and regulation, including: 
  • Property host name, email, phone, address and host ID
  • Supplier host name(s), email, phone, address and host ID
  • Address of the short-term rental accommodation unit
  • Accommodation type: entire unit or bedroom within a unit
  • Number of bedrooms available for STR
  • Local government business licence number included on the listing
  • Listing ID
  • URL of the listing
  • Number of nights booked in the month
  • Number of separate reservations in the month

How accurate is the data?

• Platforms are required to report certain information to the province, however they are not required to verify the accuracy of certain information that was provided to the platform by the host, such as name, address, property information, etc.
• In particular, it is expected that the property address information provided by the host may be inaccurate or incomplete in some cases. The portal will use an address clean-up tool (BC Address Geocoder) to help identify the correct address for a listing. The data portal team will be developing a process to handle address correction where manual review and correction is necessary.

Notice and Takedown Process

What information regarding non-compliance with a business licence requirement are local governments required to provide hosts and platforms, when pursuing the notice and takedown process?

• Local governments are responsible for determining that a listing is not in compliance with an applicable business licence requirement, i.e., that there is no valid business licence.
• If a local government wishes to pursue the notice and takedown process, they are encouraged to include, in the notice to the host and platform, information that they believe may be relevant.
• For example, local governments are encouraged to provide information re: local bylaw compliance and enforcement actions taken in respect of the listing, or information about how the listing is non-compliant with a business licence requirement, such as:
  • No valid business licence or it has expired
  • Business licence has been suspended or revoked, with reasons
  • Business licence application was denied, with reasons

Does the Notice and Takedown Process address listings that have violated a condition of the business licence or have violated an STR bylaw other than a business licensing bylaw?

• No. The notice and takedown process only addresses listings where there is no associated valid business licence (e.g., if it is expired, suspended or revoked).
• The process does not address listings that are not compliant with another type of STR bylaw (e.g. zoning) or situations where the STR has a valid business licence but a condition of the licence is violated (e.g. requirements related to number of allowed bookings or guests, or noise and parking issues), unless the non-compliance results in there being no valid business licence.

Can local governments use the Notice and Takedown Process for a listing that has a valid business licence but does not include the business licence number on the listing (as required under the STRAA)?

• No. A local government can only use the Notice and Takedown Process for listings that do not have a valid business licence.
• The Short-term Rental Accommodations Act does require hosts to include a business licence on their listing, however, enforcement of this requirement is the responsibility of the Provincial Compliance and Enforcement Unit.
• If a listing does not include a business licence number, the local government should confirm whether or not one exists by following their compliance and enforcement procedures with the host.

Can a local government send a notice of non-compliance to a host by mail instead of the portal?

• Yes. A local government can send a notice of non-compliance to a host by mail, in accordance with the regulation, as long as the notice includes the following information:
  • The name of the local government issuing the notice
  • The URL of the listing
  • The Listing ID of the listing (if known, optional)
• In addition, the local government must also send a notice of non-compliance to the platform representative through the Portal.

Can a takedown be requested if the property has multiple STR rental units listed?

• Yes, a takedown request can be issued through the STR Data Portal for each URL that a local government wishes to takedown in relation to a particular property.

When will local governments be able to send multiple takedown requests at once?

• Local governments with large volumes of takedowns may contact the Ministry of Housing for a process to immediately submit high volumes of takedown requests using a spreadsheet.
• Once platform data is available through the system by July 1, 2024, the Ministry anticipates that local governments will be able to issue multiple notices of non-compliance or takedown requests at once.

Is the Data Portal applicable to listings offered by hosts that only advertise properties on their own website (e.g., not a one of the major platforms like Airbnb)?

• Hosts are responsible for complying with any applicable legal requirements, such as determining whether they constitute a platform (depending on the circumstances), with certain obligations under the Act and regulation.  
• If a local government suspects a website offering short-term rental qualifies as a platform and they do not appear on the STR Data Portal, they may report the website to the provincial CEU.

Which platforms can a local government send a notice and takedown to?

• The notice and take down procedures under s. 18 Act and s. 15 and s. 16 of the updated regulation (effective May 1, 2024) for local governments apply to all platforms, both those offering >1000 listings and those advertising <1000 listings within British Columbia[JB1] .
• Platforms are now required to provide the Ministry of Housing the names and contact details of their platform representatives which will facilitate the delivery of notices and take down requests.

What are platforms required to do when they receive a takedown request?

• Platforms are required to cease providing platform services as described in the takedown request from a local government within five days (plus the deemed receipt period) of receiving the request (e.g. remove the listing from the platform, do not allow transactions for payments associated with the listing, and cancel all bookings associated with the listing).

What happens if a platform does not take down the listing within the required time period?

• If a platform doesn’t cease providing platform services as required under the Short-term Rental Accommodations Act and the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Regulation, the local government can escalate the matter to the director of the provincial CEU.

How will the upcoming provincial STR Registry affect the notice and takedown process?

• By early 2025, the Province expects to establish a short-term rental registry. All short-term rental hosts and platforms will be required to register.
• Detailed information on the registration process will be available closer to the launch of the registry in late Fall 2024.
• Once the registry is established, it is expected that platforms will be required to validate the registration number on short-term rental listings against the Province’s registry data.
• It is expected that this will help prevent non-compliant listings from being posted on platforms in the first place, resulting in a decreased reliance on notice and takedown procedures by local governments.