The law says short-term let accommodation must meet certain conditions to get a licence. These are to ensure the safety of the accommodation.
These are also known as ‘mandatory conditions’.
Here's a summary of what the mandatory conditions are and where you can get more information about them.
The accommodation must meet the Repairing Standard for houses and flats. This also includes the Tolerable Standard.
The accommodation must hold a valid EPC dated within the last 10 years (where it applies). This must be carried out by an energy assessor.
Not all short-term lets need an EPC. But individual homes rented out in full do need one. For example, self-catering holiday homes. You need to display the EPC rating in all adverts where this applies.
The conditions on fire safety include:
The accommodation must have a Gas Safety Certificate dated in the last 12 months. This applies to accommodation with a gas supply.
This shows a gas safe registered engineer has carried out a safety check on all gas appliances.
You must arrange for a qualified person to carry out an electrical safety check at least every 5 years. This usually means the qualified person is registered with either:
You must arrange for a qualified person to produce a Portable Appliance Testing Report on moveable appliances your guests have access to. For example a TV or an alarm clock. This usually means the qualified person is registered with either:
If the accommodation has a private water supply the law says you must meet certain conditions.
This does not apply to accommodation with a mains water supply.
Read private water supply guidance on the Drinking Water Quality Regulator website.
You must assess the accommodation's risk from exposure to Legionella. This is needed whether or not it has a private water supply.
The accommodation must have buildings insurance. This must be valid for the duration of the licence.
As a business, you must have public liability insurance. This must be valid for the duration of each short-term let agreement.
You should check the level of cover you need with the local council.
The licence holder must make sure the number of guests staying in the accommodation is not more than the number stated on the licence.
The licence holder must display this information in a place accessible to guests:
Under the fire safety law, someone who is in charge of the accommodation must carry out a fire risk assessment.
This is to spot risks and to ensure the safety of the people in the accommodation.
Reasonable fire safety measures include:
Local councils can also set extra conditions. The local council should list any extra conditions on their website.
Local councils and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service will decide the most people the accommodation can have in it.
To decide this, they may ask you to submit floor plans for the accommodation as part of your application for a licence. These do not need to be architect plans.
Your floor plans for the accommodation may need to show:
You may also have to show:
The council may also ask to visit the accommodation to do an assessment. This could be instead of, or as well as, asking for floor plans.