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Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee

Short-term lets regulations

On 22 November 2021, the Scottish Government laid the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Order 2022 ("the Licensing Order") in the Scottish Parliament.

The Policy Note to the Licensing Order explains that the Order sets up  a licensing scheme to “ensure short-term lets are safe and address issues faced by neighbours; and to facilitate local authorities in knowing and understanding what is happening in their area as well as to assist with handling complaints effectively.” 

The Committee took evidence on the Order in December 2021 and agreed after a vote to recommend to Parliament that it should be approved. The Committee published its report on the Order on 12 January 2022 and you can read it below under 'Reports'

Background

The Minister for Housing then wrote to the Committee on 30 January 2024 to inform it that “work to identify and deliver improvements to operational processes is ongoing, and I will report on these in coming months.” The letter also confirmed that “at the end of February 2024 we will bring forward an affirmative Scottish Statutory Instrument (SSI) that will amend The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Order 2022.”

The letter stated that:

“The SSI will include provision to introduce powers enabling the transfer of short-term let licences and the option for prospective hosts constructing or converting buildings for short-term let use to apply for a provisional licence that can be confirmed once the premises are complete and;

“We are also using the SSI to clarify the period and operation of temporary exemptions, to deliver the intention that these are for a single continuous period of up to six weeks in any 12-month period starting on the date of the temporary exemption (which is set out in the Policy Note that accompanied the original legislation). In addition, guest rooms in specific types of accommodation will be excluded, as will temporary emergency short-term foster arrangements where such arrangements are not the main residence of the foster child.”

However, the Minister made clear that “it is not my intention to amend the types of short-term let requiring a licence (home-sharing, home letting (includes home exchanges) and secondary letting).”

The letter from the Minister for Housing, 30 January 2024 can be found below under 'correspondence'.

The Committee then received a second letter from the Minister on 29 February “to advise that we are still engaging with stakeholders about its content and refining the provision. The affirmative statutory instrument will therefore be laid slighter later than indicated and I will update you with exact timings as soon as possible.”

The letter from the Minister for Housing 29 February 2024, can be found below under 'correspondence'.

Lastly the Committee received a third letter from the Minister on 22 April stating that:

The amending regulations would be laid on 16 May 2024
The next release of short-term let licensing statistics would be on 23 May
An update on the short-term let licensing scheme will be published before the end of June.

The letter from the Minister for Housing 22 April 2024, can we found below under 'correspondence'.

The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Amendment Order 2024

The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Amendment Order 2024 was laid in May and the Committee took evidence on it from the Minister for Housing at its meeting on 25 June. You can view the meeting papers and official report below under 'Meetings'.

The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Amendment Order 2024

The Committee agreed (by division) to recommend approval of the Order.

Read the Committees report on the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) (Amendment) Order 2024

Implementation Update

The Committee wrote to the Minister for Housing on 6 June 2024 requesting an indication of when the Scottish Government’s implementation update on the operation of the short-term lets licensing scheme was expected to be published. 

Letter to the Minister for Housing: 6 June 2024 (64KB, pdf) posted 07 June 2024

The Minister for Housing responded on 17 June 2024 to inform the Committee that the Scottish Government intended to publish its implementation update after the UK General Election had taken place.

Letter from the Minister for Housing: 17 June 2024 (130KB, pdf) posted 20 June 2024

The Short-Term Let Licensing Implementation Update Report 2024 was published on 30 August 2024.

The Short-Term Let Licensing Implementation Update Report 2024

The Committee invited stakeholders to provide written responses to questions about the update. Nineteen responses were received and can be accessed via the following link.

Responses to questions about the update (3MB, pdf) posted 14 November 2024

Call for views (closed)

The Committee asked for views on the suggested licensing scheme for short-term lets.

The call for views closed on 29 October 2021.

Read the responses on Citizen Space

Committee reports

The Committee's report was published on 12 January 2022.

Read the report

The Committee then considered a further Order delaying the requirement for existing short-term lets owners to obtain a license. The Committee agreed unanimously to recommend approval of the order.

The Committee published its report on the Order on 23 February 2023.

Subordinate Legislation on Short-term lets Report

Correspondence

The Committee has sent and received the following correspondence during the inquiry: