In anticipation of the summer season, the Cypriot Ministry of Tourism intends to tighten control over accommodation facilities offering short-term rentals to tourists through the electronic platforms Booking and Airbnb.
The initiative is the result of pressure from local hoteliers, who claim unfair competition from owners of apartments and houses who have not yet registered with the ministry and therefore do not pay taxes.
The ministry has already begun to investigate the first complaints and stressed that if violations are found, the perpetrators will be punished. The ministry noted that since last year, the "Law on the Regulation of the Establishment and Operation of Hotels and Tourist Facilities" has been amended to allow owners to advertise and rent out properties for short-term rentals, provided they have registered their properties in the Register of Self-Catering Accommodation. Despite this, there are currently only 7,000 such properties on the register. At the same time, there are about 7,000 more units on the market that are not registered anywhere.
It should be remembered that a new law came into force in Cyprus in January 2020. This law requires persons who wish to rent out their property for short-term rental to obtain a licence.
The new law 9(I)/2020 amends the existing "Law on the Regulation of the Establishment and Operation of Hotels and Tourist Facilities of 2019 (N. 34(I)/2019)" and aims to regulate the operation and licensing of small entrepreneurs. Once obtained, the licence is valid for three years and is automatically renewed upon payment of a special fee.
Violators of the law face a fine of €2,000 and repeat offenders face a fine of €4,000.