Business license update for short-term accommodations

In 2022, the City Council passed an amendment to the Business Licensing Ordinance to regulate temporary accommodations.

For the permit year 2023, 55 short-stay applications have been received and 31 permits have been granted.

A total of 366 unlicensed properties offering temporary accommodation have been identified and notified of violations by municipal compliance services. Of these, 89 require a permit. A total of 277 buildings turn out not to be the main residence of the owner and must no longer function for a short period of time.

Short-term accommodations must be licensed and limited to an individual’s primary residence. An entire home, or individual rooms, within a person’s main home can be used as short-term accommodation.

The council passed this amendment to the bylaws after a full public consultation process, said Orest Katolyk, director of municipal compliance. The purpose of the amendment is to protect the health and safety of users of these accommodations, to prevent nuisance caused by these accommodations and to protect the enjoyment, character and stability of residential communities.

Temporary accommodation means temporary accommodation in part of a residence for a short period of time (29 days or less) in exchange for a payment. These properties are mainly advertised by real estate agents on internet platforms. Brokers must also be licensed and must post individual location license numbers for each listing on their platform.

Penalties for breaching the law are $500, which can be doubled for repeated violations.

Due to fairness and the principles of independent investigation and because the content of investigations is subject to provincial privacy laws, information about individual files cannot be disclosed.