If you’re thinking of buying a home to rent by the night, the rules in British Columbia changed in 2024 and 2025, and on the North Shore they’re layered: provincial law, a provincial registry, then each municipality’s own licence. Here’s what’s allowed in West Vancouver and North Vancouver, from the governments’ own pages.
What counts as a short-term rental
The Province’s Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act, in force since May 1, 2024, applies to rentals of less than 90 consecutive days, the kind booked through Airbnb, Vrbo and similar platforms.
The principal residence requirement
In communities with a population of 10,000 or more, and some smaller neighbouring communities, short-term rentals are limited to:
- the host’s principal residence, meaning the usual place where they make their home day-to-day; plus
- one secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit, such as a coach house, on the same property.
West Vancouver, the City of North Vancouver and the District of North Vancouver are all on the Province’s list. In practice, you can’t buy a second condo or house on the North Shore to rent by the night.
Resort communities are exempt unless they opt in. Whistler is on the exempt list, and its own zoning decides where nightly rentals are allowed; see Skiing, and a second home in Whistler. A community can also ask to opt out if its rental vacancy rate has been 3% or more for two years in a row.
The provincial registry
Hosts must register each short-term rental with the Province and show the provincial registration number on every listing; that has applied since May 1, 2025. Where the municipality requires a business licence, the licence number must be shown too, and a copy uploaded when you register. Registration is renewed every year. The annual fee is:
- $100 for a rental in the home where you live; and
- $450 for one where you don’t live, such as a secondary suite or coach house,
plus a $1.50 service fee. Breaking the rules can bring administrative penalties, compliance orders and removal of the listing from the platform.
West Vancouver
Short-term rentals have been allowed in West Vancouver since January 1, 2025, with a District STR business licence, and enforcement began May 1, 2025. The District’s rules include:
- One licence per parcel or principal residence.
- No more than eight guests at a time.
- The rental must be a legal dwelling unit that meets the BC Building Code, with a posted fire safety plan, interconnected smoke alarms, a fire extinguisher and, where applicable, carbon monoxide detectors.
- Emergency contact information for guests and the District.
- Guests must follow the District’s noise, good-neighbour, traffic and parking bylaws.
The licence costs $350 a year. Fines range from $500 to $3,000 per infraction, per day.
North Vancouver
Both the City and the District of North Vancouver require a business licence and limit short-term rentals to the operator’s principal residence. The City’s operator handbook defines a principal residence as a home you live in for at least 183 days in each 12-month licensing period. In the District, the owner declares that the rental is their principal residence, and the licence must be cancelled if that stops being true. Check the municipality’s current licence rules and fees before you apply.
Strata buildings
A strata corporation can still limit or ban short-term rentals through its bylaws, passed by a 3/4 vote of owners, and fine owners up to $1,000 a day for breaking them. Since November 24, 2022, BC hasn’t allowed strata bylaws that restrict long-term rentals, but short-term rental bylaws are still allowed. Read the bylaws before you buy if you plan to rent your home while you travel. (See Strata documents, decoded.)
What this means if you’re buying
- Don’t count on short-term rental income from a home you won’t live in. On the North Shore, budget on the basis of a long-term tenant.
- If you plan to rent part of your own home, confirm the suite is legal, the strata allows it, and the municipality will license it.
- If a listing advertises rental income, ask how it was earned and whether it would be allowed for you as the new owner.
Questions people ask
Can I rent out my home on Airbnb while I’m travelling?
Generally yes, if it’s your principal residence, you hold the municipal licence and provincial registration, and your strata bylaws allow it.
Can I rent my basement suite short-term?
Provincially, one secondary suite on your principal residence property may be rented short-term. Municipal rules can be narrower; West Vancouver issues one licence per parcel. Confirm with the municipality.
What about furnished rentals of a month or two?
Rentals of less than 90 consecutive days are short-term rentals under the provincial Act, so the same rules apply. Longer stays are generally regular tenancies, with their own rules.
General information, current as of publication. Short-term rental rules change, and municipal rules differ. Confirm with the Province and the municipality before you rely on rental income. This isn’t investment or legal advice.