City seeks to renew opt-out of short-term rental restrictions

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. – City Council is trying to opt out from provincial legislation focused on managing short-term rentals. 

The City of Fort St. John council is moving forward with a  request to the Ministry of Housing to opt out of provincial legislation which places restrictions on individuals offering short-term rentals. 

The Principal Residence Requirement in the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act was implemented in October, 2023, and requires “platform service providers and individuals offering short-term rentals” to register with the provincial government. 

Those registrants would also require a business licence and short-term rentals need to be “within the host’s principal residence or contained within one secondary suite or accessory dwelling”. 

Municipalities are able to apply to be “opted out” of the legislation on an annual basis if its total rental vacancy rate for townhouses and apartments is more than three per cent for two consecutive years. 

As of October 2023 in Fort St. John, the vacancy rate was 5.7 per cent, and in October 2024 the rate was 6.8 per cent, which is well above the minimum requirement. 

The city previously applied for an opt-out exception in February 2024 after a similar application was denied in November 2023 as the necessary statistics were not included in the application. The opt-out was approved for 2024, and as it must be renewed annually, the city had until March 31st, 2025 to submit the application for 2025. 

In a report to council submitted for the February 10th regular council meeting, staff explained the legislation was implemented to counter market conditions “which are not present in Fort St. John”.