Short-term-rental rules in Whistler
This is a dated record of short-term-rental rules in Whistler, summarized from the official government sources listed below. Source-read status is shown separately; the official link governs.
4/5 source reads recorded · latest successful read September 7, 2026 · record generated September 7, 2026
The rules, source by source
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Registration (municipal licence + provincial STRAA number)
Operating a short-term rental ("tourist accommodation") in Whistler requires a Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) business licence — enforced by RMOW since 2017, predating the provincial law — AND, separately, registration with the BC provincial short-term rental registry under the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act (STRAA), mandatory since May 1, 2025, with the provincial registration number displayed on every listing.
Official source: whistler.ca ↗ -
Listing display & platform validation
A host must include a valid municipal business licence number on their listing on any short-term rental platform (Airbnb, VRBO and the like) — a requirement that began May 1, 2024 — and rental platforms validate listings against the provincial registration number. ⚠ THE STATED CONSEQUENCE IS REMOVAL: the municipality's own guidance addresses the case of a tourist-accommodation listing being removed from a platform for not carrying the licence number by that date.
Official source: whistler.ca ↗ -
Eligibility (resort exemption from the principal-residence rule)
Whistler is one of BC's designated resort municipalities and is explicitly exempt from STRAA's provincial principal-residence requirement — RMOW's own page states the rule limiting short-term rentals to a host's principal residence plus one secondary suite does not apply to Whistler. Instead, Whistler controls where short-term rentals may operate through its own zoning (a property must be zoned 'tourist accommodation' or 'temporary accommodation'; residential zoning prohibits it outright) and title covenants — a materially different gate than the principal-residence-only model used in Vancouver, Ottawa, and Calgary.
Official source: whistler.ca ↗ -
Fees (municipal RMOW licence)
The Resort Municipality of Whistler's Tourist Accommodation business licence is priced at $250 per guest unit, with separate rates for hotels and campgrounds.
Official source: whistler.ca ↗ -
Fees (provincial STRAA registration)
British Columbia's provincial short-term rental registration (STRAA) fee is $100/year to register a short-term rental in the home where you live — your entire home while you are away, or bedroom(s) in it — and $450/year to register one you do not live in, such as a secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit on the same property, or a strata hotel unit listed on a third-party platform. This is the PROVINCIAL layer and is separate from any municipal licence.
Official source: www2.gov.bc.ca ↗ -
Fines & penalties
The Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act lets municipalities set fines up to $3,000 per day for operating a short-term rental without a valid licence. RMOW states it is amending its bylaws to be able to levy that amount, and that its fine is currently $1,000 per day. A separate RMOW tourist-accommodation business-licence page cites fines of up to $500 per infraction for contravening the Tourist Accommodation Regulation Bylaw, and notes the municipality can enforce on the basis of illegal marketing or advertising alone, without proof that a rental took place.
Official source: whistler.ca ↗ -
Accommodation taxes (PST + MRDT)
British Columbia charges 8% PST on short-term accommodation province-wide, plus up to 3% MRDT in participating areas (3% is the province-wide maximum); confirm the rate that applies to Whistler on the province's MRDT location map. The additional 2.5% Major Events MRDT applies only to the City of Vancouver and does not apply in Whistler. The tax is calculated on the full purchase price, including cleaning, booking, administration, resort and similar fees, but not GST. PST and MRDT do not apply where the same guest stays 27 continuous days or more. ⚠ The small-supplier exemption (gross accommodation revenue under $2,500 in both the previous and the next 12 months) is available ONLY to a host who does NOT list on an online marketplace platform, so it does not reach a typical platform listing. Where a listing is on a marketplace whose facilitator is registered, that facilitator collects and remits the tax on those sales, but the host must still register and collect on any sales made through other channels.
Official source: www2.gov.bc.ca ↗ -
Registration renewal (provincial STRAA — annual, 40-day window)
B.C.'s provincial short-term-rental registration is NOT one-and-done: « All registrations must be renewed annually. » The renewal window opens 40 DAYS BEFORE your registration expires — the Province's own example: a host who registered February 20 sees the renewal window open on January 10. ⚠ DO NOT RELY ON THE REMINDERS ALONE: the Province says notifications to renew are sent by email 40 days, 14 days and 1 day before expiry, so a missed or filtered email leaves very little margin. Operating past expiry means operating unregistered. This provincial duty is separate from, and additional to, any municipal business-licence renewal.
Official source: www2.gov.bc.ca ↗ -
2026 registration changes — one per unit, and when a NEW registration is required
The Province lists several changes for 2026 registrations and renewals. Only ONE registration is required per short-term-rental unit. A new registration is NOT required if you change which bedrooms are listed, or move from listing a bedroom to the entire unit, where the unit is already registered. ⚠ A NEW REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED if the host changes their legal name, legal business name, or the short-term-rental ADDRESS. Seasonal accommodations are exempt from registration (the Province publishes Seasonal Accommodation Policy Guidance). The accepted PRINCIPAL RESIDENCE DOCUMENTATION has changed — re-check what proof is accepted before renewing. Property managers who applied as a property host in 2025 should make a new application for 2026 providing the property host's information.
Official source: www2.gov.bc.ca ↗ -
Change reporting — 14 days to tell the registrar
⚠ A DEADLINE THAT FIRES MID-YEAR, not at renewal: BC Reg 268/2023 gives a registrant only 14 DAYS to report a change in prescribed information to the registrar. What counts is broader than most hosts expect — your short-term rental information, whether the property is still your PRINCIPAL RESIDENCE, and whether the offer is for an ENTIRE residence or only a portion of one. So moving out, changing which rooms you rent, or switching from a room to the whole unit each start a 14-day clock of their own. ⚠ Do not confuse this with the renewal reminder emails the Province sends at 40, 14 and 1 day before expiry — those are courtesy notices about renewal; this is a separate, self-triggered duty with no reminder at all.
Official source: bclaws.gov.bc.ca ↗ -
Registering without Canadian ID — notarized affidavit and an 8-10 day wait
⚠ A GATE BEFORE THE APPLICATION EVEN STARTS, and it catches non-resident owners. BC's registry is entered through a BC Registries account. If you hold an ID issued in Canada you set that up with your BC Services Card. If you DON'T have an ID issued in Canada, you must instead create the account with a BCeID and two-factor authentication — and that route requires a NOTARIZED IDENTITY AFFIDAVIT and takes roughly 8-10 DAYS to process. ⚠ Only after the account is approved and the confirmation email arrives can you even begin the registration form, so an overseas or newly-arrived owner should start this well before the season, not alongside the listing.
Official source: www2.gov.bc.ca ↗
Related reading
Informational only — not legal advice. This service summarizes publicly available government information and may be incomplete, out of date, or in error. Rules change frequently and can be altered by courts without notice. Always verify against the official source and consult a qualified attorney before making decisions. No attorney-client relationship is created.
We describe the rules and when they change — we never tell you whether your specific situation is compliant. That’s between you, the official source, and your own advisor.
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