Regulating homestay businesses in Malaysia has been a heated debate since 2018. After over a year of uncertainties and unanswered questions faced by the homestay owners, the Malaysia Productivity Corporation (MPC) and other stakeholders have come up with a draft guideline to regulate Short Term Residential Accommodation (STRA), formerly referred as homestay.
This post is meant to help you understand what is STRA, why the regulation is needed and what are the steps involved for homestay owners to be registered as a STRA.
What is STRA
STRA, short for Short-Term Residential Accommodation, is referred to residential accommodation that is rented for a short period of time.
Scope of STRA include:
- Host – owner or tenant that rents out their accommodation
- Agent – person that manages the rented accommodation on behalf of host
- STRA Platform – digital platform that provides the service of online booking (Airbnb, Booking.com, LetsGoHoliday,my etc.)
Why The Need to Regulate?
Ever since homestays became a booming business with the help of the the increasing number of digital platforms, it has been a topic of debate for many mainly due to there is no existing regulatory framework that can fit this type of business activity.
In understanding the issues of short-term accommodation, a study had been conducted in 2019 which led to to a conclusion that there is a valid reason to regulate homestay businesses. Below are some of the key issues to be addressed by having a STRA guideline.
How to Register as STRA
Submit your view on STRA guideline
This guideline is expected to be finalized in December 2019 and the regulation to be enforced come 2020.
MCP is collecting public feedback on the draft guideline until 30 November 2019. Submit your feedback and comments on the draft guideline. It will serve as reference for regulators to regulate Short-Term Residential Accommodation (Home Sharing Economy).
Submit Your Response for the STRA Guideline Survey Here
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