If you host Brisbane short-term rentals, the rules may be about to change. Brisbane City Council has proposed the Short Stay Accommodation Local Law 2025, which, if adopted as proposed, would take effect on 1 July 2026 and introduce some of the most significant compliance obligations Queensland short-stay hosts have faced.
Getting on top of this Airbnb crackdown in Brisbane now puts you in a much stronger position than scrambling closer to the date. This guide breaks down what the law covers, who it affects and what you need to do to prepare. It’s important to note that this law has not yet been passed and is susceptible to change ahead of the proposed commencement date.
Timeline of key dates
- Mid-2023: Short Stay Accommodation Taskforce established as part of the 2023-2024 Brisbane City Council Budget.
- June 2024: Taskforce delivers its recommendations to Council.
- 9 December 2025: Council announces the proposed Short Stay Accommodation Local Law 2025.
- 12 December 2025 to 16 February 2026: Public consultation period (now closed).
- 1 July 2026: Proposed commencement date (subject to the law being adopted by Council).
What is the proposed Short Stay Accommodation Local Law in Brisbane?
Brisbane City Council introduced the proposal following recommendations from its Short Stay Accommodation Taskforce in 2024. The task force was set up in response to growing concerns about noise, anti-social behaviour and the impact of short-term rentals on residential neighbourhoods.
The Short Stay Accommodation Local Law 2025 covers any home rented to guests for stays of fewer than 90 consecutive days, the standard definition of short-stay accommodation. The proposed law introduces a permit system for homes and apartments rented out for short stays. The intent is to make operators responsible for managing guests and promptly resolving issues that arise to make sure that Brisbane remains a peaceful neighbourhood for all residents.
Public consultation closed in February 2026. Brisbane City Council is currently reviewing submissions, with the law proposed to commence on 1 July 2026, subject to Council adoption.
Do Brisbane Airbnb hosts need a permit?
Yes. Under the proposed law, all hosts operating short-stay accommodation in Brisbane will need a permit from Brisbane City Council.
Here's how the permit process works:
- Permits are issued for a 12-month term and need to be renewed each year.
- You'll need the property owner's consent before applying.
- If the property is part of a body corporate, you'll need to notify the body corporate as part of the application.
- Any other approvals that apply, such as a development approval, pool safety certificate or certificate of occupancy, need to be in place before you apply for the permit.
- Your permit number must be displayed on all listings across booking platforms (Airbnb, Stayz, Booking.com and others).
One thing worth knowing: getting a permit from Brisbane City Council does not override your body corporate's rules. If your strata by-laws restrict or ban short-stay letting, those rules still apply. Registration and bylaws sit in separate frameworks, so it's worth checking both before you proceed.
The 24/7 contact requirement: the biggest change for self-managing hosts
Of all the obligations the proposed law introduces, the 24/7 contact requirement is the one most likely to affect day-to-day hosting, particularly for people who self-manage.
Every permit holder must nominate a contact person who is reachable around the clock. If a complaint comes in, that contact person has 60 minutes to acknowledge it and 24 hours to report back to Brisbane City Council on what steps were taken to address it. Brisbane City Council will notify the contact person via SMS or email.
The contact person can be the host, a property manager or any third party, but they must be genuinely available and responsive. A slow or absent response to a complaint can make a straightforward issue much more complicated. Repeated failures to respond can put your permit at risk.
For self-managing hosts, this is a meaningful operational shift. It effectively means you need to be contactable at all hours, or have someone in place who is. If you plan to continue self-managing, two practical steps can help:
- Set up a dedicated phone line with call forwarding so complaints reach you (or a backup contact) overnight.
- Prepare a simple response template so you can acknowledge issues within the 60-minute window without scrambling.
For hosts who would rather outsource this responsibility, a property manager such as Hometime's Airbnb management in Brisbane will provide an entirely hands-off experience you can count on.
Neighbour notification and the complaints process
Under the proposed law, operators must provide guests with house rules and make sure those rules are followed. The nominated 24/7 contact must step in when something goes wrong and take reasonable steps to resolve it.
Complaints can come from neighbours or guests, and Brisbane City Council handles the process. The council uses a graduated approach, starting with education and warnings before moving to fines or, in serious cases, prosecution.
What counts as a breach includes noise, nuisance, overcrowding and damage to shared areas. For hosts in units, townhouses or semi-detached properties, the exposure to neighbour complaints is higher than for a freestanding house. Denser living means issues are more likely to surface and more likely to affect multiple parties.
A record of repeated or unresolved complaints can affect your ability to renew your permit.
Penalties for non-compliance
The proposed fine structure ranges considerably depending on how the matter is dealt with:
- On-the-spot fines start at 5 penalty units ($834)
- Matters heard in court can attract fines of up to 850 penalty units ($141,865)
- Brisbane City Council can revoke a permit after three breaches
- Operating without a permit can trigger immediate enforcement action
* A penalty unit’s amount is set by the Queensland Government. From 1 July 2025, a penalty unit is equal to $166.90.
Brisbane City Council's enforcement approach is largely complaint-driven rather than proactive auditing. Complaints are more common than hosts often expect, and a single noise complaint or unresolved issue can escalate if the contact person doesn't respond within the required timeframe.
Platforms are also expected to take registration compliance seriously. Listings without a valid permit number risk being removed from search results on Airbnb and Stayz as enforcement ramps up.
What do Brisbane Airbnb hosts need to do now?
The law isn't in effect yet, but 1 July 2026 isn't far away. Here's a practical starting point:
- Check whether you need a development approval before you can apply for a permit (some properties in certain zones require this first). To do so, you can call the Council on 07 3403 8888 and ask to speak to a Planning Information Officer.
- Review your body corporate by-laws if your property is part of a strata scheme; registration doesn't change what your by-laws allow.
- Plan your 24/7 contact arrangement and decide whether you'll manage this yourself or delegate it to a property manager.
- Check your insurance covers short-term rental under the new framework; the proposed law requires operators to hold public liability insurance for the duration of each booking.
- Prepare to display your permit number on all listings once permits open.
For hosts using a property manager, many of these obligations, particularly the 24/7 contact requirement and complaint response process, are handled as part of the management service. It's worth confirming with your manager that they're across the requirements and set up to meet them.
If you're self-managing and the new obligations feel like a lot to take on, a free property appraisal from Hometime is a good place to start.
Stay ahead of Airbnb Brisbane rules with Hometime
Brisbane's Short Stay Accommodation Local Law is part of a broader national shift. Following the 2023 National Cabinet agreement on housing, state and local governments across Australia have been moving steadily toward tighter short-term rental regulations. Brisbane's proposed law is one of the more developed frameworks to emerge from that process.
That's where we come in. With Hometime, compliance, communication, performance are all handled. Our Local Hosts are based in Brisbane and on the ground when something needs sorting and, unlike basic pricing tools, our revenue specialists blend automation with human oversight, fine-tuning pricing strategies each week to account for seasonal dips and market nuances.
Know more about our short-term rental services in Brisbane by from a Brisbane homeowners’ experience with Hometime, or by scheduling a call below:
