Montreal Short-term Rental Regulations 2025

Last year, there was a fatal fire in an unauthorized Montreal Airbnb which sparked a province-wide “crackdown” on short-term rentals. While the media coverage of this incident implied that City officials wanted to put an end to Airbnb renting point-blank, luckily the reality is showing a willingness to compromise, opting for regulation over elimination. After several months of these permit regulations, let’s take a look at what the current situation truly is.

Past Crackdown in 2023

In September 2023, the new permit regulations were announced. The 2 big changes were:

1. that a permit was necessary to publish an Airbnb listing; illegal Airbnbs would not be visible to guests;

2. that a property had to be the applicant’s primary residence to receive a permit. 

The regulations resulted in a crackdown that took many Airbnbs off the market, reduced competition for law-abiding hosts, and increased earnings slightly. 

What are the requirements to obtain a permit?

1. Permit Requirement: Property owners who want to advertise their property on Airbnb are required to obtain a permit – called a classification certificate – issued by the Corporation de l’Industrie Touristique du Québec (CITQ) if they plan on renting a residential unit:

   1. to tourists,

   2. for periods of 31 days or less (by night, week or weekend),

   3. for a fee.

2. Primary Residence: In order to receive the permit, the property must be classified as your primary residence. This aims at stopping the commercialization of multiple properties simply for tourist accommodation.

3. Maximum Rental Period: In Montreal, there is no maximum occupancy you can reach, like in Toronto. Hosts can rent all year round and get 100% occupancy if they can.

4. Registration Display: Hosts must display their unique establishment number in their short-term rental advertisements, aka on their Airbnb profiles. 

How Do I Obtain the CITQ Short-Term Rental Permit?

1. Verify Municipal Compliance: Property owners should make sure they are complying with municipal planning regulations. The CITQ requires a notice of compliance from the municipality, confirming the authorised use. You need to fill out this form and submit it to the municipality for a signature.

2. Apply to CITQ: If the Notice of Compliance is received from the municipality, you can continue to the next steps. Most Airbnb hosts are operating a Principal Residence Establishment. Therefore, you would need to submit the registration application and required documents to the CITQ.

3. Liability Insurance: Provide proof of at least $2 million in liability insurance during the application process.

4. Pay the Fees: Complete and return additional documents sent by CITQ, accompanied by the necessary registration fees.

As of January 1st, 2024: "The fee for a registration or renewal for a Primary Residence Establishment is $51.50." (CITQ)

Impact on Airbnb Hosts

The new regulation tying registration to primary residence targeted primarily serial investors and people with large-scale Airbnb operations by ensuring they could no longer rent more than 1 Airbnb. After the implementation of this rule, there were noticeably fewer Airbnbs on the market in Montreal. Hosts who already had permits or were able to obtain them noticed reduced competition and slightly higher prices, as experienced by hosts in other Canadian cities with stricter regulation like Toronto and Ottawa. 

Is every area of Montreal eligible to get a permit?

In theory, yes! Quebec has adopted Bill 67 which promises to allow short-term renting in all primary residences “without a municipal regulation being able to prohibit its exploitation.” To learn more about this bill, please read our blog post. Despite this legal protection, several Montreal boroughs and municipalities, whose permission should be easy to obtain, have been causing issues for homeowners, refusing to grant the permission needed to obtain the CITQ certificates. As it stands, this legal discrepancy between provincial law and local municipalities is generating extensive backlash. However, the future is optimistic.

Recent good news for homeowners

It’s important to note that recently there has been a shift in the landscape, with many Montreal boroughs facing pressure from homeowners to comply with the law and grant permission for permit licenses. Boroughs like Ville-Marie and Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce have broadened their permit zones, which means that more homeowners can secure permits and rent their properties legally. It’s safe to say that Montreal is gradually stabilizing as the city and boroughs align with provincial laws. 

Since we do not update the article in real time, please make sure that the information is still applicable. StayPro advises that you do your own research as this article is not comprehensive, and does not constitute legal or tax advice.