Airbnb angered by Amsterdam's obligation to report listings

Rental platform Airbnb is calling on its members to protest against Amsterdam's plan to fine Airbnb landlords who don't report their listing to the municipality. People who want to complain about this new obligation, which will be implemented on October 1st, can do so on a website Airbnb established especially for this purpose, NU.nl reports.

Amsterdam finds this obligation to report listings necessary because the municipality still does not have a good view on how often Amsterdam homes are rented out through house sharing sites like Airbnb. That means that the city can't keep proper track of people who rent out their homes for more than the allowed 60 days per year. If you fail to report your listing to the municpality, you could face a fine of up to 20,500 euros.

Airbnb calls this obligation "excessive", claiming that it infringes on the privacy of the landlords and is unnecessarily taxing. Airbnb already established automated limits that help ensure that homes are not rented out for more than 60 days - properties disappear automatically from the site if their 60 day limit was reached. The company therefore calsl on Amsterdam listers to protest against it.

Protests can be registered on the website until June 2nd. The Amsterdam city council will discuss this obligation to report rental listings on July 19th.