The legislation titled "Rental of Residential Properties for Tourism Purposes and Amendments to Certain Laws" ("Law") was published in the Official Gazette on 2 November 2023. The new regulations, which took effect on 1 January 2024, outline the fundamental principles, approvals, permits and administrative sanctions related to the rental of residential properties for tourism purposes. Under this regulation, rentals for less than 100 days are classified as vacation rentals. If the property to be rented is an apartment, approval of other apartment owners is required for the issuance of the permit.

What are the conditions for the rental of residential properties for tourism purposes?

The new Regulation covers rentals for durations of less than 100 days at a time. It imposes several conditions on real or legal persons renting properties for tourism purposes. This can be done on their own behalf or through platforms such as Airbnb.

In order to rent residential buildings for tourism purposes, the lessor must obtain a permission certificate from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism prior to renting such properties.

The Law requires a plaque to be placed by the Ministry at the entrance of the rented residences displaying the qualifications specified by the Ministry. Furthermore, apart from the lessor, only travel agencies certified in accordance with the Law on Travel Agencies and the Union of Travel Agencies are permitted to engage in rental activities for tourism purposes.

When applying for a permit, a unanimous decision approved by all flat owners of the building where the independent section is located must be submitted. In residential complexes consisting of buildings with more than one independent section, a unanimous decision must be adopted by the flat owners of the building in which the housing is rented for tourism purposes and submitted during the application for the permit.

There are specific conditions for obtaining a licence for more than one independent section. In buildings consisting of more than three independent sections, a permit can be issued in the name of the same lessor for a maximum of twenty-five per cent of the total independent sections.

If the number of independent sections subject to a permit in the same building on behalf of the same lessor exceeds five, it is obligatory to submit a business licence within the application. In the case of the building subject to the application being part of residential complexes consisting of multiple independent units, it is additionally required to present a unanimous decision adopted by all flat owners of the buildings in the relevant residential complex.

In the event that the lessor holding the permit rents out the residence for tourism purposes or for use as a residence, lessees are also prohibited from subleasing the residence to third parties for tourism purposes on their own behalf and for their own account.

Sanctions in case of non-compliance

Administrative Fines: Administrative penalties for leases made without a permit are determined as follows:

• Those renting out houses for tourism purposes without a permit will be imposed an administrative fine of 100,000 Turkish liras for each rented house. Subsequently, those who continue to rent for tourism purposes without obtaining a permit within the 15-day period granted for obtaining the permit will be imposed an administrative fine of 500,000 Turkish liras. An administrative fine of 1,000,000 Turkish liras will be imposed on those who continue to carry out tourism leasing activities without a permit certificate despite the renewed period of time.
• An administrative fine of 100,000 Turkish liras will be imposed on those who rent out the tourism housing rented from the permit holder to third parties on their own behalf and for their own account for each contract.
• An administrative fine of 100,000 Turkish liras will be imposed for each contract on those who rent out the dwelling for tourism purposes on their own behalf and on their own for their own account.
• An administrative fine of 100,000 Turkish liras will be imposed for each contract on those who mediate the rental of houses for tourism purposes without a permit.
•  An administrative fine of 1,000,000 Turkish liras will be imposed on those who rent out the same residential more than four times within one year from the date of the first contract, although each time they conclude a lease contract for more than one hundred days.

Cancellation of authorisation certificate: In the event of a change in the lessor for reasons other than inheritance, an administrative fine of 50,000 Turkish liras shall be imposed if the notification is not made within 30 days after the change is registered. If, within the 30-day period following the imposition of this administrative fine, an application for the transfer of the permit has not been made or if the obligations have not been fulfilled despite the approval of the change in the permit holder, the permit shall be cancelled.

If it is determined that the property does not meet the qualifications for the issuance of a permit, an administrative fine of 100,000 Turkish liras shall be imposed and a period of 15 days shall be granted to correct such discrepancies. If it is determined that the discrepancies have not been corrected at the end of this period, the decision to cancel the permit certificate shall be made.

In cases where the permit is cancelled, the rights of the users of the residential properties for which the permit has been cancelled will continue until the end of the contract period.

Penalties for Intermediary Service Providers

Some penalties have also been defined for platforms such as Airbnb acting as intermediary service providers. If it is discovered that unauthorized rental activities or promotion are carried out, the Ministry will request the intermediary service provider to remove the content within 24 hours. If the intermediary service provider fails to do so, an administrative fine of 100,000 Turkish liras may be imposed for each residence. In the event that a decision is made to remove the content and/or block access to the broadcast, section, episode in which the infringement has occurred but such decision is not complied with, an administrative fine of 100,000 Turkish liras for each residence shall be imposed on the intermediary service provider. It is possible file an appeal with the courts against the decision to remove the content and/or block access.

Conclusion

The new regulations, effective from 1 January 2024, aim to promote tourism development while giving due regard to public safety and order. The goal as it is understood is to increase supervision specifically for short-term residential rentals lasting less than one hundred days.

As things now stand, the Law has introduced serious restrictions on both the Airbnb platform and the persons renting houses through this platform. As a result, a significant decline in the use of Airbnb in Türkiye is foreseeable in the near future.