Penang urged to relax rules on short-term rental accommodation

 

Airbnb says the state is trying to restrict the chances of tax-paying residents to earn money from tourists. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: Airbnb has criticised the regulations the Penang government plans to impose on the business of short-term rental accommodation (STRA), saying they are bad for the state’s economy.

Mich Goh, Airbnb’s public policy head for Southeast Asia, India, Hong Kong and Taiwan, noted that the guidelines confined STRA activity to Malaysians registered with the Companies Commission of Malaysia.

It looks as if the state is trying to restrict the chances of tax-paying residents to earn money from tourists, she told FMT.

She said the authorities should recognise that short-term accommodations could help drive the state’s tourism industry as well as the Malaysian economy.

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“The guidelines impose severe constraints on domestic and international travel to Penang and are detrimental to the state’s tourism industry and long-term economic growth,” she added.

Goh said rules confined to addressing certain key issues while recognising STRA as part of the tourism industry would expedite the nation’s economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic as well as the property overhang.

She also urged Penang to remove the limit on booking nights.

She said the limit would hamper efforts to promote Penang and Malaysia as a hub for “digital nomads”, a reference to people who work remotely in various locations.

“The Penang government is looking to implement a 180-night cap and a three-day-per-week guest occupancy limit,” she said.

The state government has cited complaints from residents’ groups at apartments, condominiums and residential neighbourhoods in explaining its move to draw up regulations for short-term rental homes or homestays.

This was welcomed by groups such as budget hotel operators though others have urged the state to reconsider the restrictions.

Budget hotel operators have been complaining that the unregulated STRAs have adversely affected their business. They regard these properties and their proprietors as direct competition.

Raj Kumar, chairman of the Malaysian Association of Hotels Penang chapter, said STRA properties often did not meet safety standards, lacking CCTVs, fire-sprinklers and alarms.

Conversely, he said, budget hotels were required to be “majorly equipped”.

This meant STRA properties were essentially not held to the standards required of budget hotels, he added. “They don’t have regulations, pay taxes or even take security measures.”

Malaysian Budget and Business Hotels Association president Sri Ganesh Michiel said he did not want Airbnb to be banned but only to be regulated. - FMT