B.C.’s short-term rental laws ban people from renting properties on platforms like Airbnb unless they’re the operator’s principal residence or secondary suite.
The B.C. Supreme Court has dismissed a legal challenge of the province’s new short-term rental rules.
B.C.’s Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act, which took effect last May, bans people from renting properties on platforms like Airbnb unless they’re the operator’s principal residence or secondary suite.
Last June, a group of property owners took the province to court, arguing the new rules extinguished their vested property rights and amounted to “expropriation for which they are entitled to compensation.”
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The province responded by arguing the challenge was premature, given that none of the owners had yet faced any enforcement under the act, and that they challenged the law itself rather than any administrative decision.
The province further argued that owner have “no vested rights regarding the use of their properties, regardless of how the properties may have been used in the past.”
In a decision published Tuesday, Justice Jasmin Ahmad agreed with the province on its critical first argument — ruling the application was premature and should be dismissed.
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“There having been no exercise (actual, proposed or purported) of a statutory power, there is no foundation to obtain declaratory relief,” Ahmad ruled.
She further ruled the case was an “abuse of process,” given province’s short-term rental director of compliance and enforcement had yet make any formal decisions when the suit was filed.
However, Ahmad left the door open for a future challenge, writing her “conclusion does not preclude subsequent proceedings in respect of the matters raised in the petition in appropriate circumstances.”
Earlier this year, the B.C. government launched a short-term rental registry, with the requirement that registration numbers be displayed on any online listings beginning May 1, 2025.
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