The Thai authorities seem to be taking on people who offer short term lets on rooms, condos, or house, of less than a month. It is legal to privately rent property for periods of over a month but less than a month are only allowed in officially licensed
hotels. Of course the licensing of hotels is very onerous and so is widely ignored. The issue has perhaps been brought to a head by AirBnB as it provides a straightforward way for people to rent out their properties. hotels feel a bit challenged
by the competition and so have been complaining to the authorities. As is often the case in Thailand, these laws have been in existence for some time but the law has been loosely enforced with some condo developments around the country acting as
defacto hotels and listing in many online booking websites. This week says a court in Hua Hin ruled it was illegal for people to rent out their condos or rooms on a daily or weekly basis. While AirBnB was not specifically mentioned in the Hua Hin
court case, the home-share system has grown to the point where Thailand's legally registered hotels are calling foul. Earlier this month, authorities in Pattaya arrested seven individuals for operating what were described as illegal hotels
(lacking permits or failure to abide reporting laws). Just one of the properties was an apartment building. AirBnB in Thailand claims its service is legal but have been less than helpful when one a property owner posted on its website's community
page a request for clarification. A year passed and no response. The Immigration Department also have specific requirements of hotels to report any foreign guest's arrival. The unregistered properties fall through this reporting system making them
a target of Thailand's strict Immigration requirements.
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