Highlands short-term rental rules (Airbnb, Vrbo)
Can I rent out my home or a room on Airbnb in Highlands?
In the District of Highlands the Zoning Bylaw does not mention short-term rentals and the District has no short-term rental bylaw or licence. It does allow a bed and breakfast inside the owner's home in some zones. The Province also requires registration and limits rentals to your principal residence plus one suite.
Key facts
| Allowed | No short-term rental bylaw found. The Zoning Bylaw permits bed and breakfast use (a home-based business) only in Rural Residential, Rural and Greenbelt zones, wholly inside the owner's home. Highlands is on the Province's list where short-term rentals are limited to the host's principal residence plus one secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit.Highlands Zoning Bylaw No. 100, 1998, s. 3.6(1)(a), (g), (h); Principal residence requirement, Province of BC, Communities where the principal residence requirement applies · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08Official wordingThe owner or operator of a home-based business shall have their principal residence on is permitted only in any Rural Residential, Rural or Greenbelt Zone, only be operated or maintained wholly within a dwelling unit on Gabriola Island Highlands Kamloops The usual place where they make their home day-to-day home Plus one secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit on the same property |
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| Business licence | No. The District does not issue home-based or commercial business licences, and home-based businesses do not need one.Business Licences, Business Licences page · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08Official wordingHome based or commercial business licences are not issued in the District of Highlands. Home-based businesses are permitted in the District of Highlands and do not require a business licence. |
| Provincial registration | Yes. Provincial registration applies to short-term rentals of fewer than 90 consecutive days, with one registration number per unit. Fee: $100 a year for the host's principal residence, $450 a year for a secondary unit.Principal residence requirement, Province of BC, Registration and business licence exemptions · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08Official wordingProvincial registration requirements apply to short-term rentals offered for fewer than 90 consecutive days Each short-term rental unit requires its own registration number. Fee: $100 annually Fee: $450 annually |
| Operating rules | For a bed and breakfast: owner lives on the property; inside the dwelling; at most 8 guests on any night; at most 8 vehicle arrivals or departures a day; no noise, odour, dust or glare detectable off the lot; 1 parking space for each rented room.Highlands Zoning Bylaw No. 100, 1998, s. 3.6(1) and 3.6(6) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08Official wordingis limited to a maximum of eight (8) persons on any single night; shall not generate more than eight (8) departures or arrivals of interferes with ordinary residential uses of land outside the boundary of the lot which contains for each room that is used for a boarder, lodger or for a bed |
| Fine | No short-term rental fine is listed. Zoning offences: uses prohibited in all zones $200; permit use contrary to zone $200; uses contrary to home-based business rules $200. Bylaw notice: $200 ($160 within 14 days, $240 after 28). Municipal ticket: $200.Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 478, Appendix 10, Zoning Bylaw; Bylaw Notice Enforcement Bylaw No. 475, 2025, Schedule A, Zoning Bylaw · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08Official wordingPermit use contrary to zone 2.5(1) $200.00 Uses contrary to home-based business regulations 3.6(1)(a-m) $200.00 Permit use contrary to zone 2.5(1) $200.00 $160.00 $240.00 Uses prohibited in all zones 3.7(1-4) $200.00 $160.00 $240.00 |
| Bylaw | Highlands Zoning Bylaw No. 100, 1998, s. 3.6 (home-based business, bed and breakfast) and s. 3.7. Province: principal residence requirement.Highlands Zoning Bylaw No. 100, 1998, Title page; Principal residence requirement, Province of BC, Page title · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08Official wordingHighlands Zoning Bylaw No. 100, 1998 (consolidated) short-term rental principal residence requirement |
How it works
The District of Highlands has no short-term rental bylaw and issues no business licences. The Zoning Bylaw does not mention short-term or vacation rentals, and it prohibits any use that it does not expressly permit. It does permit a bed and breakfast, as a home-based business, in the Rural Residential, Rural and Greenbelt zones, wholly inside the owner's home.
For a bed and breakfast the bylaw requires: the owner lives on the property; the business is inside the dwelling; at most 8 guests on any night; at most 8 vehicle arrivals or departures a day; no noise, odour, dust or glare detectable off the lot; and 1 parking space for each rented room.
The Province applies its own rules. Highlands is on the Province's list of communities where short-term rentals are limited to the host's principal residence plus one secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit. Provincial registration applies to rentals of fewer than 90 consecutive days, with one registration number per unit.
Steps
- Confirm your zone and whether a bed and breakfast is allowed (ask the Municipal Planner).
- Check the Province's page and register your unit there. The fee is $100 a year for your principal residence and $450 a year for a secondary unit.
- Follow the bed and breakfast limits above.
Good to know
- Boarders or lodgers: at most two rooms.
- The District lists no short-term rental fine. Zoning offences such as a use prohibited in all zones, a use contrary to the zone, or a use contrary to the home-based business rules carry a bylaw notice of $200 ($160 within 14 days, $240 after 28), and a municipal ticket of $200. Whether they cover a given rental depends on the facts.
- No rule was found on posting a licence number or naming a local contact.
Official forms and pages
The same question in other places
Langford · View Royal · Central Saanich · Colwood · Esquimalt · Saanich
Short-term rental rules in British Columbia, by municipality →
Sources
- Highlands Zoning Bylaw No. 100, 1998 (PDF) (read 2026-11-08)
- Principal residence requirement, Province of BC (read 2026-11-08)
- Business Licences, District of Highlands (read 2026-11-08)
- Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 478 (PDF) (read 2026-11-08)
- Bylaw Notice Enforcement Bylaw No. 475, 2025 (PDF) (read 2026-11-08)
Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 6 of 6 facts was matched to the official text. How answers are checked.