Subscribe to the NSW exclusion register updates to comply with requirements from 1 August 2022.
Are you responsible for letting short-term rental accommodation properties, or work with people that do? Below you can find out how to check the online short-term rental accommodation exclusion register and subscribe to updates to help you comply with your obligations.
The short-term rental accommodation (STRA) exclusion register started in December 2020 as part of the mandatory Code of Conduct for the Short-Term Rental Accommodation Industry (the code). It’s now publicly available as an online register.
The exclusion register records the details of hosts who are not allowed to offer their premises for STRA, and guests who are not allowed to book STRA.
A guest, host (or host in relation to specific premises) will be recorded on the exclusion register if they have had two strikes recorded against them in a two-year period for a breach of the code. NSW Fair Trading can also record a host or a guest on the exclusion register in certain situations if a person has been charged with or convicted of a criminal offence.
Any participant listed on the exclusion register is banned from the industry for five years.
Requirements for letting agents
From 1 August 2022, letting agents must comply with requirements under the code not to:
- advertise or facilitate the offering of STRA premises if the host is listed on the exclusion register, either for all premises they offer or in relation to specific premises
- offer STRA premises to guests who have been listed on the exclusion register.
Access the exclusion register to check for excluded hosts and guests
You can access the public exclusion register on the NSW Fair Trading website to check whether individual hosts or guests are excluded from STRA. You can search the exclusion register using information such as the person’s name and a combination of the person’s email address, phone number or residential address.
NSW Fair Trading recognises that it may be difficult to frequently check this information given the high volume of STRA arrangements that letting agents and booking platforms are involved with.
To make it easier, NSW Fair Trading will provide licensed letting agents with updates when changes are made to the exclusion register. You will need to subscribe to receive these updates by following the steps below.
What do letting agents need to do?
To meet the requirements under the code, you need to ensure you do not enter into or facilitate STRA arrangements with an excluded person. To help comply with these obligations, you should:
- Visit the subscriber portal and create a login using your licence number to subscribe to updates on changes to the exclusion register. You will then be notified when changes are made to the exclusion register.
- Once subscribed, you do not need to check the register before accepting bookings. You do not need to do anything further unless you receive a notification from NSW Fair Trading.
If you receive a notification that the exclusion register has changed:
- login to the subscriber portal
- check the information on excluded participants
- do not offer premises for STRA if the host is recorded as an excluded host on the exclusion register
- do not enter into a STRA arrangement with a guest recorded on the exclusion register.
If you are not subscribed to receive notifications, you will need to check the exclusion register before each booking to make sure you are not entering into a STRA arrangement with an excluded host or guest.
These obligations also apply to booking platforms and facilitators.
NSW Fair Trading will be monitoring host, booking platform, letting agent and facilitator compliance with these requirements under the code from 1 August 2022.
This article first appeared in NSW Fair Trading.
