Airbnb Legal Requirements in Tokyo for 2026

Tokyo has some of the strictest short-term rental regulations in Asia, particularly for platforms like Airbnb. These rules were introduced to combat skyrocketing housing costs and strong opposition from residents and neighborhood associations. Here is an up-to-date overview of the key regulations and recent developments in Tokyo:

Licensing and Requirements

To legally list an Airbnb or any other short-term rental in Tokyo, hosts are required to hold a Minpaku License under Japan’s Private Lodging Business Act (Minpaku Law), in force since June 2018. Obtaining the license involves submitting detailed paperwork: proof of identity, a police certificate of good conduct, building floor plans, written consent from the condominium or apartment management (many HOAs explicitly ban short-term rentals), neighbor notifications, and a comprehensive safety and operations plan. Properties must comply with strict fire-safety standards and have a minimum usable area of 20 m². The official registration number issued by the local ward office must be clearly displayed on every listing. In Special Zones (e.g., parts of Ota Ward), year-round operation is possible with a different license, but new applications have been frozen in 2025 due to market saturation.

Operational Restrictions

• Day Limit: The national ceiling is 180 days per year, but individual Tokyo wards impose far tougher restrictions. For example, Shinjuku, Nerima, and Bunkyo allow rentals only on weekends and holidays; residential areas of Ota Ward have outright bans; Chuo Ward prohibits weekday rentals. Toshima Ward is moving toward a summer-and-winter-holidays-only model starting 2026.
• Accommodation Tax: Hosts must collect Tokyo’s accommodation tax (¥100–¥1,000 per person per night, depending on the nightly rate; exempt below ¥10,000) plus the national 10% consumption tax.
• Documentation & Guest Rules: Hosts are legally required to scan and report every guest’s passport to the authorities, provide house rules and emergency contacts, and guarantee a caretaker can reach the property within 10 minutes if the host is absent.

Enforcement and Penalties

Tokyo enforces the Minpaku Law aggressively. Since 2018, more than 80% of illegal Airbnb listings nationwide have been removed, leaving approximately 25,000 licensed properties across Tokyo’s 23 wards in 2025. Platforms are obligated to delist any unregistered listing immediately. Hosts caught operating without a license or violating ward-specific rules face fines of up to ¥1,000,000 (≈ $6,500 USD), license revocation, or even criminal prosecution for running an unlicensed hotel. In 2025, enforcement task forces have intensified checks on foreign-owned properties, focusing on noise, trash, and overcrowding complaints.

What’s next?

In 2025-2026, Tokyo’s short term rental law is becoming even stricter at the local level. While the national framework remains unchanged, ward-by-ward bans and restrictions continue to expand (e.g., Toshima’s proposed holiday-only rule). Resident associations are pushing for complete prohibition in purely residential zones, and some wards are discussing limits on foreign ownership. Airbnb continues to lobby for looser rules in Special Zones, but the overall trend is shifting the market toward licensed hotels or mid-term (31+ day) rentals.

Tax Obligations

Beyond the accommodation tax, all rental income is taxable. Japanese residents pay progressive national income tax (up to 45%) plus a flat 10% local inhabitant tax. Non-residents are subject to a 20.42% withholding tax on gross revenue. Platforms like Airbnb automatically collect and remit the 10% consumption tax, but hosts must still declare earnings annually and can claim business-expense deductions if formally registered.

Tokyo’s regulations are designed to protect the residential housing market and neighborhood livability, making legal short-term rental operations one of the most challenging in the world.

Last update Dec, 2025