Airbnb rules in London: the 90-day rule explained (2026)
If you let an entire home on Airbnb in Greater London, you are capped at 90 nights per calendar year unless you have planning permission for temporary sleeping accommodation. This is the 'Section 25 / 90-day rule' and it's enforced by Airbnb's automatic booking cut-off and, increasingly, by council data-sharing.
The rule is straightforward on paper and complicated in practice. This guide covers exactly what counts toward the 90 nights, what doesn't, how enforcement works in 2026, the penalties, and the three legitimate ways London landlords earn full-year short-let income without breaching it.
What the 90-day rule actually says
Section 25 of the Greater London Council (General Powers) Act 1973, as amended by the Deregulation Act 2015, permits short-term letting of a residential premises in Greater London for up to 90 nights per calendar year without it counting as a change of use under planning law.
Beyond 90 nights, letting the same property on short stays is a material change of use requiring planning permission from the local council. Doing it without permission is a planning breach — councils can serve enforcement notices carrying fines of up to £20,000 per offence.
The 90 nights are per property, per calendar year (resetting 1 January), and count only entire-home lets under 90 nights per stay. They do not apply outside Greater London.
What counts toward the 90 nights — and what doesn't
Counts: any entire-home let of fewer than 90 consecutive nights, whether booked via Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, direct bookings, or a corporate booking agent.
Does NOT count: stays of 90+ consecutive nights (these are treated as residential lets, not short lets); lets of a room in your primary residence while you are also in the property (home-sharing); or short lets in a property that already has planning consent for temporary sleeping accommodation.
Airbnb automatically enforces the 90-night cap on entire-home listings by removing the property from search once 90 nights are reached. Other platforms do not enforce automatically — the responsibility to stay compliant sits with the host.
How enforcement works in 2026
In 2026 the enforcement picture has sharpened. Airbnb shares booking data with a growing number of London councils under memoranda of understanding — Westminster, Camden, Kensington & Chelsea, Southwark, Tower Hamlets and Hackney are the most active.
Councils compare Airbnb data with council tax records, planning records, and complaints from neighbours or freeholders. A property with more than 90 nights of Airbnb bookings and no planning consent is a straightforward enforcement target.
The government's planned short-let registration scheme (Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023) is being rolled out through 2026, adding a mandatory register that will make cross-referencing even easier.
Three legal ways to earn full-year short-let income in London
1) Mix short and mid-term. Combine ~90 nights of short stays (bookings under 90 nights) with 6–9 months of corporate lets at 90+ nights. The longer stays don't count toward the cap and typically pay £3,500–£6,500 pcm to companies relocating staff. This is what most professionally-managed London short lets do.
2) Apply for planning permission. If your property is genuinely suited to full-year short-let use — for example a former hotel unit, a purpose-built serviced apartment, or a property in a mixed-use building — a planning application for temporary sleeping accommodation can succeed. Typical cost £1,500–£4,000, timeline 8–13 weeks.
3) Home-share the property. If it's your primary residence and you're present during the stay, the 90-night cap does not apply to letting a spare room. This is the exemption Airbnb was originally built around.
Penalties and reputational risk
Direct penalty: enforcement notice from the council, fines up to £20,000 per offence, and potentially a requirement to cease short-let use.
Leaseholder risk: most residential leases in central London prohibit short-let use. Freeholders and management companies are increasingly aggressive about pursuing breaches — remedies include forfeiture and injunctions.
Mortgage risk: standard residential and buy-to-let mortgages prohibit short-let use without consent. A breach can put the whole loan into default.
Reputational: a listing removed for regulatory reasons loses ranking, reviews and Superhost status. Recovery takes 6–12 months even after the underlying issue is resolved.
Frequently asked
Does the 90-day rule apply outside Greater London?
No. Section 25 of the 1973 Act only applies within the 32 London boroughs plus the City of London. Elsewhere in England, short-let use may still be a material change of use requiring planning consent, but there is no automatic 90-night cap.
Do stays over 90 nights count toward the cap?
No. A single booking of 90 consecutive nights or more is not classed as a short let and does not count. This is why corporate mid-term lets are the standard workaround for landlords who want full-year income.
What if I have multiple properties in London?
The 90-night cap is per property, not per host. You can operate multiple properties within the cap, but each one is enforced separately and each needs its own planning consent if you want to exceed 90.
How does AV Property manage the 90-day rule for landlords?
We run a mixed model on every London property — approximately 90 nights of high-ADR short stays, then 30–90+ night corporate lets for the balance of the year. It typically earns 30–50% more than a standard AST while staying fully within Section 25.
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