Update Feb. 4, 2026: Councillor Don Brown said today many people who want to take advantage of View Royal's non-enforcement period of its short-term rental restrictions could need to rely on traditional advertising methods such as signs in windows and newspaper ads. And yet, doing so could result in thousands of dollars worth of fines under the provincial legislation.
This comes after AirBnB told CFAX 1070 it is unlikely people in View Royal will be able to obtain a provincial registration number for the non-enforcement period, due to the underlying zoning and hurdles people would need to jump through.
As was also stated by the province, no registration number means no listings on short-term rental sites such as AirBnB and VRBO.
Those seeking to offer a short-term rental outside of the big-name online listers may risk an administrative penalty. Failing register a short-term rental offer could result in up to a $5,000 penalty for the first contravention, according to the Short Term Rental Accommodations Act.
A second case of not registering a short-term rental offer could result in a maximum penalty of $7,500, and another failure to register could result in a fine of up to $10,000.
A Ministry of Housing spokesperson tells CFAX 1070 in a written statement, "The Province will continue to issue registration numbers to hosts who apply and meet the Province’s short-term rental requirements. This includes following restrictions set out in local governments’ short-term rental bylaws as written, where applicable."
CFAX 1070 asked the ministry spokesperson for a statement on the consequences of running a short-term rental in View Royal without using an online listing platform, and was referred to the administrative penalties listed in the provincial legislation.
Original Story: The Town of View Royal is moving forward with non-enforcement period of short-term rental rules during the FIFA World Cup games in Vancouver, in anticipation of a possible increase of visitors, but B.C.’s ministry of housing says provincial rules stand for prospective hosts—including the registration requirement.
Councillor Don Brown brought forward the municipal motion to council. He said the town will not send bylaw to respond to complaints about violations of the town’s rules for a two-month period from June 1 to Aug. 1, 2026.
“If complaints do come in, bylaw will set them aside, then August first, go checking to ensure they are in compliance,” Brown said.
However, Brown said the town gets very few complaints in the status quo, in which short term rentals are not allowed.
Brown suggested many people will be travelling from long distances, meaning some will want to stay and enjoy travelling around the west coast before and after the games. He hopes the town can benefit from the “spillover,” from Vancouver, and the two-month period could also simplify things.
The province told CFAX 1070 in an emailed statement: “hosts must have a valid provincial registration number that matches the listing details on the platform. Listings that do not have a valid registration number will not be able to be posted by platforms, such as Airbnb or Vrbo.”
Destination Greater Victoria's CEO Paul Nursey shared an updated statement with CFAX 1070 today (Jan. 30), saying his industry organization plans to focus on its own program for the summer without additional marketing related to the FIFA games.
"Case studies including the 2010 Winter Olympics have demonstrated that spillover into Victoria is often modest or disappointing," he said in the emailed comment.
Brown spoke about the plans in View Royal with CFAX 1070’s Josh Hylden this week on Afternoons with Josh & Jade: