airbnb's new house rules from 20 November: what you can no longer ask guests to do
For reservations booked from 20 November 2026, Airbnb no longer lets hosts require guests to wash dishes, strip beds or take out the trash. All rules must be in the listing before booking.
On 20 October 2026, Airbnb published new rules for house rules and requests to guests. They apply to all reservations booked on or after 20 November 2026. If your listing, your messages or a note in the apartment asks guests to wash the dishes, strip the bed or take out the trash, that needs to change. Airbnb may flag listings with such requests to guests and show them less prominently in search.
what you can no longer ask guests to do
The rule: guests can't be given tasks that take significant time or effort, or that a cleaner would normally do. Airbnb gives these examples:
| You can't require | You can ask |
|---|---|
| washing and putting away dishes | leaving used dishes in the sink |
| stripping the bed or starting a load of laundry | gathering used towels |
| taking trash off the property | sorting waste into bins inside the property |
| not using air conditioning listed as an amenity | turning it off when leaving |
You also can't charge guests fines or penalties. You can let them know in advance about fines that a building association or local authority might impose. Everything advertised in the listing must be available to the guest and included in the booking price. Example: if a hot tub is in the listing, you can't charge for it separately on site. You can only charge extra for genuine optional add-ons, such as breakfast.
all rules in the listing, before booking
House rules now have seven standard categories: maximum number of guests, quiet hours, events, pets, smoking (including e-cigarettes), commercial photography and filming, and locking up at checkout. Anything else goes in as a request, and requests must also be reasonable.
Where the rules appear matters too. All rules and requests must be in the house rules section at the time of booking. You can't add a new rule later, whether by message, a note in the apartment or in person. In return, if a guest breaks a rule from the listing, or says before arrival that they intend to, you can cancel the reservation without fees or other consequences.
what about id documents and evisitor?
Airbnb doesn't allow hosts to ask guests for an ID document or to sign a separate contract, except where required by law and in a few other limited cases. In Croatia you must register every guest in eVisitor (the national online guest registration system) within 24 hours of arrival, based on data from their ID card, passport or other identity document. This should fall under the legal exception, but Airbnb doesn't mention Croatia specifically, so only ask for the data you need for registration.
You'll be updating your listings over the coming months anyway, both for the registration number expected from 2027 and for Airbnb's 15.5% fee. Check your house rules in the same round.
what to do
- Before 20 November, open the house rules and requests in each of your Airbnb listings. The listing editor flags requests that don't comply.
- Replace washing dishes, stripping beds and taking out the trash with the lighter requests from the table.
- Remove fines and extra charges for amenities already in the listing.
- Move any instructions you send by message or keep on paper in the apartment into the listing.
- If you have a genuine local reason for a stricter rule, Airbnb considers exceptions case by case (for example, limiting showers during a drought).
If you want to keep your guests' eVisitor data in one place, see how to enter a guest's eVisitor data in Livvi.