Cyprus’s tourism industry has renewed calls for a complete overhaul of the law governing short-term rentals, after an Audit Office report confirmed long-standing concerns about weaknesses in the system.
The Cyprus Tourism Enterprises Association (STEK) said the current legal framework suffers from “serious shortcomings” in both substance and enforcement.
Many properties, it said, continue to operate and advertise without the required licences, while inspections remain minimal and coordination between authorities poor, evidence, the association argued, that the system “cannot fulfil its mission.”
STEK said simply registering properties was not enough, calling instead for a comprehensive supervision and enforcement mechanism to ensure all hospitality providers operate under the same rules, obligations and safety standards.
The association warned that weak regulation fuels unfair competition against licensed hotels, distorts the housing market, makes affordable accommodation harder to find for residents, disrupts local communities and poses safety risks for visitors.
STEK welcomed the Deputy Ministry of Tourism’s plans to revise the legal framework, describing the reform as a chance to correct long-standing weaknesses and adopt measures already in use elsewhere in Europe.
Among its proposals are systematic inspections to root out illegal rentals, tougher enforcement backed by deterrent administrative and financial penalties, mandatory display of registration numbers on all online listings, and closer cooperation between platforms and authorities to remove unlawful adverts.
The association is also pushing for annual caps on the number of days a property can be rented out short-term, powers for local authorities to restrict or ban such rentals in areas under housing pressure or facing community disruption, and a mandatory overnight stay tax. It further wants uniform safety, health and insurance standards applied across all accommodation providers.
“Experience across Europe shows that the smooth operation of short-term rentals requires clear rules, effective oversight and a balance between tourism development, community protection and the proper functioning of the housing market,” the association said.
