Short Lets - controversial council consults on Airbnb restrictions

A controversial council has launched a 12 week consultation on its policies restricting Airbnb-style short lets.

Edinburgh council insists that new Airbnb and other short let landlords register for a licence before being allowed to take bookings, and display EPC and health and safety information on listings.  

Now, a year after the final changes were introduced, the council is consulting on the policies, which have been criticised by landlord and tourism groups in Scotland. 

A statement from the council says the consultation “will allow residents, stakeholders and businesses affected by the operation of the scheme to offer comments and feedback, with targeted discussions with resident groups, industry bodies and other key stakeholders also set to take place.”

A spokesperson adds: “Since we launched Edinburgh's short term lets licensing policy in October 2022, we've granted over 1,500 applications. This is helping to ensure holiday lets are safe and properly regulated in our city.

"We now want to hear how the scheme has impacted the residents and businesses of Edinburgh. The opportunity for everyone to input into how the short term lets licensing scheme is working was a commitment we gave last year and over the coming weeks, we want to hear your views.

“I’m confident this will help us to better understand how people are finding the regulation through licensing of short-term lets in Edinburgh and help inform any future decision making."