Airbnb’s New House Rules Policy: What Hosts Can and Can’t Ask Guests From November 20, 2026

Key Takeaways

• The policy covers reservations booked on or after November 20, 2026; earlier bookings keep the rules that applied when the guest booked.
• Binding house rules now come from a fixed list of seven, such as quiet hours, pets, smoking and locking up at checkout.
• Guests are encouraged, not obliged, to follow requests, and tasks a cleaner would normally do, like washing dishes, are generally not allowed.
• Host-set fines are banned, so damage goes through Airbnb’s AirCover process rather than through a penalty in your listing.
• Separate contracts and guest data collection are allowed only in narrow cases, such as stays of 28 nights or more.
• Unresolved violations can trigger a guest-facing alert like “includes cleaning requests” and lower your listing’s search visibility.
• Canadian hosts with strata or condo bylaws may qualify for the community-rule exception, but they should keep the documents ready.
• Cleaning teams absorb the tasks guests no longer do, so turnover time and cleaning budgets deserve a review this month.

On October 20, 2026, Airbnb published a new house rules policy for hosts, and it applies to every reservation booked from November 20, 2026 onward. In short, hosts keep seven enforceable rules, everything else becomes an optional request, and cleaner-level chores, fines, side contracts and most guest data collection are off the table.

The reaction among hosts was strong for three reasons. First, most “rules” become “requests” that guests may simply skip. Second, asking guests to clean is now restricted. Third, side contracts and personal data collection face hard limits. This guide covers what changed, which requests still work, what happens if you ignore the update, and how Canadian hosts can prepare.

What Changed: The New Policy in Brief

Airbnb announced the change in its Resource Center on October 20, 2026, and the redesigned house rules section appeared in the Listing editor the same day. The policy itself takes effect on November 20, 2026. The trigger is the booking date, not the stay date. So a guest who books on November 15 for a stay next July falls under the previous rules for that whole reservation.

The update has two parts:

• House rules and requests. A fixed menu of standard rules replaces free-form lists, and anything else is a request.
• Contracts and guest data. A separate Help Center article limits host-imposed contracts, personal information collection, Wi-Fi portals and required apps.

Airbnb frames the change around clarity and privacy. According to the company, house rules exist to help guests understand your expectations. That’s why they now appear more prominently on the listing, in the Trips tab and in reservation reminders. The contracts article adds that guests shouldn’t face unexpected requests that spoil their stay or compromise their privacy.

Rules vs Requests: What’s the Difference

Under the new policy, a house rule is something the guest must follow. You pick these from seven standard options in the Listing editor:

1. Maximum number of overnight guests
2. Quiet hours (see our guide to Airbnb quiet hours)
3. Events
4. Pets, including whether they’re allowed and how many
5. Smoking, including vaping and e-cigarettes
6. Commercial photography and filming (explained in this guide to photography and filming in an Airbnb)
7. Lock up at checkout, with optional key-return details

Everything outside that list becomes a “reasonable request”. Guests are encouraged to follow requests, but they aren’t required to. Requests also take over the job of the old checkout instructions, which no longer appear in a separate tab.

Timing matters as much as wording. Rules and requests must sit in the House rules and requests section before booking, and you can’t scatter extra rules across other parts of the listing. After booking, new ones can’t be added through messages, signs in the home or in person. Edits you make later apply only to future reservations.

Here is how the setup compares before and after the cutoff date.

Area	Bookings before November 20, 2026	Bookings from November 20, 2026
Binding rules	Standard options plus free-form text	Seven standard rules only
Other expectations	Written as additional rules	Optional “reasonable requests”
Checkout instructions	Separate tab	Folded into rules and requests
New rules after booking	Common host practice (messages, signs)	Not allowed

The practical takeaway: if a rule isn’t among the seven, it can’t be enforced, so phrase it as a polite request.

Which Requests Are Allowed and Which Aren’t

Airbnb judges a request by effort. A small favour is fine, while work that a cleaner would normally do is not. The table below uses Airbnb’s own examples.

Generally allowed	Generally not allowed
Put used dishes in the sink	Wash and put away dishes
Gather used towels	Strip the beds or start laundry
Sort trash and recycling into indoor bins	Take garbage off the property
Turn off the air conditioning when leaving	Avoid using the air conditioning or any listed amenity

Amenities deserve special attention. If your listing advertises a hot tub, a grill or air conditioning, you can’t restrict access to it through a request. Any fee for an advertised feature has to be part of the price at booking. Fees for optional add-ons, like a breakfast service, can still be described in your requests.

Local conditions can justify exceptions. Airbnb gives two examples: animal-proof trash containers in bear country and shorter showers during drought restrictions. If the Listing editor flags a request you believe is justified, use the appeal option Airbnb sends with the flag and explain the local reason.

Fines, Contracts, and Guest Data

Hosts can no longer set their own fines or penalties. If something gets broken, the route is a damage claim through Airbnb AirCover, not a charge written into your listing. When a strata, building security or local government might fine the household, you can warn guests about it in the local rules section of your listing.

Separate rental agreements are banned except in four cases:

• A law or community association rule requires one
• The contract covers an optional amenity, such as a golf cart rental
• The stay lasts 28 nights or more
• The listing is part of Airbnb Luxe

Allowed contracts are uploaded in your listing settings, and their full text is visible to anyone who views the listing. A contract must be on the listing when the guest books, and Airbnb may ask for proof that an exception applies. It won’t make guests sign or help you enforce it.

Personal data rules are equally strict. You can’t ask for a guest’s phone number, email, home address, ID documents, payment details, background checks or credit history. However, you can check ID in person at check-in if you disclose it in the requests section. Keeping a photo or copy isn’t allowed.

Technology falls under the same limits. Wi-Fi portals that request an email are banned outside hotels and resorts, unless a legal or community rule exception applies. Keyless entry apps are fine, as long as you offer another way in when a guest asks for one.

What Happens If You Don’t Update Your Listing

Airbnb uses an escalating approach. Here is the sequence hosts should expect:

1. Requests that break the policy are highlighted in the Listing editor.
2. You receive an email with tips for fixing them and a chance to appeal.
3. Persistent issues lead to warnings.
4. Guests may see an alert on your listing, such as “includes cleaning requests”.
5. Your listing may become less visible in search.
6. For contract and data violations, repeat offenses can lead to suspension or removal of the listing or the whole account.

Steps four and five hurt bookings directly, so the editor flags are worth clearing the day they appear.

What This Means for Hosts in Canada

The “required by law” exception is narrower than it sounds. Your City of Vancouver licence, BC registration number and Toronto registration are obligations you carry as a host. On their own, they don’t give you grounds to collect guest data or demand a contract. The exception applies only when a rule actually requires something from the guest.

Strata and condo corporations are where the exception will matter most. If a building bylaw requires owners to register short-term occupants or have them sign a building form, Airbnb treats that as a documented community association rule. Explain the requirement in your requests section, collect only what the bylaw calls for, and keep the bylaw on file in case Airbnb asks for it.

Stays of 28 nights or more can still carry a contract. In Toronto, they also fall outside the City’s short-term rental definition, while Vancouver’s threshold is 90 days. For the full local picture, see our guides to Vancouver Airbnb regulations, Airbnb rules in BC and Toronto Airbnb regulations.

How to Prepare Your Listing Before November 20: Checklist

A tidy listing takes an hour or two per property. Work through these steps in order:

1. Open Listing editor, then House rules and requests, and move each existing rule into one of the seven standard options.
2. Rewrite everything else as short, low-effort requests.
3. Delete fines and cleaning demands from the listing and your saved message templates.
4. Review contracts, data forms, the Wi-Fi login page and any required entry apps.
5. Remove signs in the home that contradict the new policy.
6. Reread the live listing, since checkout guidance no longer has its own tab, and confirm your safety details still read correctly.

Finally, don’t save over a flagged request. Airbnb sends flagged text that you leave unchanged for further review.

How to Adapt Cleaning and Pricing

Every chore guests stop doing lands on your cleaning team. Dirty dishes, beds that still need stripping and full bins all add minutes to a turnover. Across a busy month, those minutes add up to longer shifts and higher cleaning invoices.

That doesn’t mean every host needs a higher cleaning fee. Instead, time a few turnovers under the new conditions and compare the cost with what you charge. Then adjust your cleaning fee or nightly rate only if the numbers call for it. Short stays usually feel the difference most, because each booking brings a full reset.

A management company takes this work off your plate. At MasterHost, our team handles turnovers, laundry and listing updates, so a policy change like this one becomes an adjustment to our process rather than to your weekend.

Common Mistakes Hosts Make After the Change

Even careful hosts can slip on these points:

• Leaving old rules in the listing description or saved messages
• Phrasing cleaning duties as “requests” in the hope guests comply
• Adding rules after booking through messages, signs or the check-in chat
• Collecting guest emails or phone numbers to encourage direct bookings
• Ignoring highlighted requests in the Listing editor until a guest-facing alert appears

Each of these can trigger the enforcement steps described above, so a quick audit now saves trouble later.

Conclusion

Airbnb’s new house rules policy shifts responsibility for tidiness and cleaning from guests to hosts. The rules that remain must fit the seven standard options and appear on the listing before anyone books. Hosts who update their listings before November 20 avoid search penalties and awkward conversations at checkout. If keeping up with these changes feels like a second job, professional Airbnb management can take it over.

References

• Airbnb Resource Center: Important changes to house rules (October 20, 2026)
• Airbnb Help Centre: Reasonable house rules and requests
• Airbnb Help Centre: Limiting host-imposed contracts and other requirements
• Airbnb Help Centre: Add House Rules and requests to your listing
• Airbnb Help Centre: Add a contract to your home listing