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Tourist Accommodations Registration Regulations

made under Section 6 of the

Tourist Accommodations Registration Act

S.N.S. 2019, c. 9

O.I.C. 2020-023 (effective April 1, 2020), N.S. Reg. 16/2020

amended to O.I.C. 2022-272 (effective November 15, 2022), N.S. Reg. 255/2022



Table of Contents


Please note: this table of contents is provided for convenience of reference and does not form part of the regulations.
Click here to go to the text of the regulations.

 

Citation

Definitions

Registration

Applying for registration

Terms and conditions

Annual registration fees

Suspending or cancelling registration

Disclosing information collected

Additional penalties



 


Citation

1        These regulations may be cited as the Tourist Accommodations Registration Regulations.


Definitions

2        In these regulations,

 

“Act” means the Tourist Accommodations Registration Act;

 

“applicant” means a person applying for registration as a host or platform operator under the Act and these regulations;

 

“Department” means the Department of Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage;

 

“Minister” means the Minister of Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage;

 

“primary residence” means a dwelling unit owned or rented and occupied by an individual either alone or jointly with others in which the individual is ordinarily resident;

 

“registrant” means a host or platform operator who is registered under the Act and these regulations;

 

“rented room” means a guest room, dormitory-style room, suite or room in a tourist home that is rented for short term-rentals;

 

“tourist home” means a home in which rooms are available for rent to the travelling public;

 

“unusual lodgings” means yurts, tiny homes, domes and other forms of non-traditional lodgings that are rented for short term-rentals.


Registration

3        (1)    The Minister may register an applicant as a host or platform operator if the person has completed the appropriate application, with all required information included, and paid the prescribed annual fee.

 

          (2)    A registration under subsection (1) is not transferable or assignable.


Applying for registration

4        (1)    A person applying for registration as a host must submit an application to the Minister that includes all of the following information, together with the annual fee prescribed in Section 6:

 

                   (a)      their full legal name;

 

                   (b)     any name under which they carry on business as a host;

 

                   (c)      the address of each location where the applicant offers short-term rentals;

 

                   (d)     which of the following types of accommodation are to be offered by the applicant:

 

                              (i)      bed and breakfast,

 

                              (ii)     cottage, cabin or mini-home,

 

                              (iii)    hostel,

 

                              (iv)    hotel,

 

                              (v)     inn,

 

                              (vi)    motel,

 

                              (vii)   resort,

 

                              (viii)  rented room,

 

                              (ix)    unusual lodgings,

 

                              (x)     vacation home,

 

                              (xi)    other;

 

                   (e)      the number of bedrooms available for rent in each location where the applicant offers short-term rentals;

 

                   (f)      confirmation that the accommodation the host seeks to register complies with applicable municipal land-use by-laws;

 

                   (g)     whether the accommodation is the applicant’s primary residence;

 

                   (h)     any additional information required by the Minister to assist in registering the applicant.

 

          (2)    A person applying for registration as a platform operator must submit an application to the Minister containing all of the following information, together with the annual fee prescribed in Section 6:

 

                   (a)      their full legal name, including any registered business name under which they operate as a platform operator in the Province;

 

                   (b)     all of the following information for a person designated by the applicant as their contact person for the purposes of the Act and its regulations:

 

                              (i)      name,

 

                              (ii)     title or position,

 

                              (iii)    telephone number,

 

                              (iv)    e-mail address;

 

                   (c)      the web address through which their reservations for short-term rentals are brokered or facilitated;

 

                   (d)     confirmation that all postings on the platform operator’s website include a valid registration number for each host, except for a platform operator listing only hotel or motel accommodations.

 

          (3)    An application and fee for registration under this Section must be submitted either

 

                   (a)      electronically through the online system established by the Department; or

 

                   (b)     at an Access Nova Scotia office.


Terms and conditions

5        (1)    A registrant must comply with all the terms and conditions for registration prescribed in these regulations.

 

          (2)    The Department must communicate any change in the terms and conditions of registration to registrants.

 

          (3)    A host must confirm their registered accommodation complies with applicable municipal land-use by-laws.

 

          (4)    A host must ensure that a posting on a platform operator’s website advertising their accommodation includes the host’s registration number, except for a platform operator listing only hotel or motel accommodations.

 

          (5)    A platform operator must ensure that all postings on the platform operator’s website include a valid registration number for each host, except for a platform operator listing only hotel or motel accommodations.

 

          (6)    A platform operator must share records required to be retained under Section 4 of the Act with the Department if requested.


Annual registration fees

6        (1)    The fees required for registration must be paid annually and are as set out in the following table:


Category

Annual Fee

Host

with 1–4 bedrooms available for short-term rental

$50.00

with 5 or more bedrooms available for short-term rental

$150.00

Platform operator

$500.00

 

          (2)    The fees prescribed in this Section are not refundable.


Suspending or cancelling registration

7        The Minister may suspend or cancel a registration in any of the following circumstances:

 

                   (a)      a registrant contravenes any terms or conditions of their registration or any provision of the Act or these regulations;

 

                   (b)     the Minister determines that it is in the public interest to suspend or cancel the registration.


Disclosing information collected

8        (1)    The Minister may disclose any information collected for the purposes of registration under Section 4, and information concerning the registration status of a host, in any of the following circumstances:

 

                   (a)      in the course of administering or enforcing the Act or the regulations;

 

                   (b)     in the course of administering an enactment of the Province or the Parliament of Canada or of another province respecting the imposition of taxation;

 

                   (c)      under an agreement that between the Government of Nova Scotia and another government that

 

                              (i)      relates to the administration or enforcement of an enactment of the Province, the Parliament of Canada or another province of Canada respecting the imposition of taxation, and

 

                              (ii)     provides for the disclosure of information, returns and records to and the exchange of similar information, returns and records with that other government;

 

                   (d)     for the purpose of compiling statistical information by the Government of Nova Scotia or the Government of Canada;

 

                   (e)      to a Crown corporation or a public body as defined in the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act;

 

                   (f)      to a member of the Executive Council for the purpose of administering an enactment of the Province;

 

                   (g)     to a municipal unit as defined in the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, a province of Canada or other government in accordance with an agreement between the municipal unit, province or other government and the Government of Nova Scotia;

 

                   (h)     to a person with whom the Minister has entered into an agreement regarding the use of the information;

 

                   (i)      under an agreement with a platform operator for the purpose of monitoring compliance with the Act and its regulations.

 

          (2)    The Minister may disclose information collected under the Act or these regulations in aggregate form.


Additional penalties

9        The fine provided for in Section 5 of the Act applies to each day the offence occurs or continues, to a maximum annual amount of $7500.



 

 


 

Legislative History
Reference Tables

Tourist Accommodations Registration Regulations

N.S. Reg. 16/2020

Tourist Accommodations Registration Act

Note:  The information in these tables does not form part of the regulations and is compiled by the Office of the Registrar of Regulations for reference only.

Source Law

The current consolidation of the Tourist Accommodations Registration Regulations made under the Tourist Accommodations Registration Act includes all of the following regulations:

N.S.
Regulation

In force
date*

How in force

Royal Gazette
Part II Issue

16/2020

Apr 1, 2020

date specified

Feb 14, 2020

255/2022

Nov 15, 2022

date specified

Dec 2, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The following regulations are not yet in force and are not included in the current consolidation:

N.S.
Regulation

In force
date*

How in force

Royal Gazette
Part II Issue

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*See subsection 3(6) of the Regulations Act for rules about in force dates of regulations.

Amendments by Provision

ad. = added
am. = amended

fc. = fee change
ra. = reassigned

rep. = repealed
rs. = repealed and substituted

Provision affected

How affected

2, defn. of “Department”..................

am. 255/2022

2, defn. of “Minister”.......................

am. 255/2022

2, defn. of “primary residence”........

ad. 255/2022

4(1)(f)...............................................

rs. 255/2022

4(1)(g)-(h).........................................

ad. 255/2022

4(2)(c)...............................................

am. 255/2022

4(2)(d)...............................................

ad. 255/2022

5(3)-(6).............................................

ad. 255/2022

8(1)...................................................

am. 255/2022

. 8(1)(i).............................................

ad. 255/2022

 

 

Note that changes to headings are not included in the above table.

Editorial Notes and Corrections

 

Note

Effective
date

1

The references to the Department and Minister of Business in s. 2 should be read as references to the Department and Minister of Inclusive Economic Growth in accordance with O.I.C. 2021-59 under the Public Service Act, R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 376.

(corrected by N.S. Reg. 255/2022)

Feb 23, 2021

2

The references to the Department and Minister of Business in s. 2 should be read as references to the Department and Minister of Economic Development in accordance with O.I.C. 2021-211 under the Public Service Act, R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 376.

(corrected by N.S. Reg. 255/2022)

Aug 31, 2021

 

 

 

Repealed and Superseded

N.S.
Regulation

Title

In force
date

Repealed
date

185/2003

Tourist Accommodations Regulations (made under the Tourist Accommodations Act)

Nov 6, 2003

Apr 1, 2020

 

 

 

 

Note:  Only regulations that are specifically repealed and replaced appear in this table.  It may not reflect the entire history of regulations on this subject matter.