A: Bill 35 is recently enacted Provincial legislation meant to strengthen enforcement tools for short-term rentals, return short-term rentals to the long-term housing market and establish provincial oversight. The Province has provided a policy guide and Provincial news release that explains this further. Under Bill 35, residences rented for less than 90 consecutive days are regulated.  Hotels, motels, vehicles (RVs), tents, temporary shelters, time-shares, and student accommodation are not included.

A: No. The principal residence requirements that the Province has implemented are only applicable if the RDKB decides to “opt in”.  This is because the province excluded (by regulation) regional districts, resort municipalities and most municipalities under 10,000 people. The RDKB is not “opting in” in 2024.  Each year the RDKB has the opportunity to “opt in” by giving a written request to the Province by March 31^st.  If this is done, the restriction would come into effect the following November 1^st.  It is noted that the regulations do not allow resort/ski areas and assessed farm land to be “opted-in”.

A: Not within the RDKB.  We do not have business licencing requirements at this time.

A: If your short-term rental is in a dwelling unit that was legally constructed, you do not need to submit any additional information to the RDKB to operate or continue to operate your short-term rental. 
You still need to meet Provincial requirements for registration (see question below).

If your short-term rental is in a dwelling unit or other building that was not legally constructed (for example, it was built without a building permit, or it was converted to a dwelling from something else like a shed or storage building without a building permit), you need to apply for a building permit for the building/structure before it can be legitimately used as a rental (or for  habitation) of any kind.  The dwelling unit must also meet the density regulations in the applicable zoning bylaw.

A: There are Provincial requirements for registering a short term rental.  There are also requirements for short-term rental platforms (like AirBNB, and VRBO) to share listing information and display a provincial registration and valid business licence number if applicable on their listings (Note: RDKB does not require a business licence).

The Province provided the following update on February 15, 2024 about their anticipated timeline for their registry:

“By late 2024 or early 2025, the Province will establish a short-term rental registry. This will help ensure that short-term rental hosts and platforms are following the rules and provide local governments and the Province the information needed to follow up when they don't”.

See link for additional information from the Province: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/short-term-rentals/short-term-rental-legislation

A: The current (and historic) interpretation of all of the RDKB’s zoning bylaws is that short-term rentals are part of a residential use.  While the RDKB’s zoning bylaws are silent on short-term rentals, staff has not made a distinction between rentals based on duration of the stay.  A residential dwelling unit can be offered for rent on a nightly, weekly or monthly basis.

A: Yes, the RDKB can make changes to its bylaws to restrict short-term rentals in a zoning bylaw, require a business licence or “opt-in” to Provincial principal residency requirements. 

RDKB’s Electoral Area Services (EAS) Committee (a Committee made up of the RDKB’s Electoral Area Directors) wishes to keep the “status quo” for 2024 and revisit this topic in 2025.

A: The best way to submit comments is to email them to the Planning Department at plandept@rdkb.com 

The Planning Department will keep your comments on file.  All comments will be summarized and presented to the Electoral Area Services (EAS) Committee in 2025.

A: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/short-term-rentals/short-term-rental-legislation