Private Lodging Business Act

住宅宿泊事業法（じゅうたくしゅくはくじぎょうほう）

Lets a person take paying guests into a home for up to 180 days a year on a notification to the prefectural governor, and sets up registration for the businesses that manage those homes or book guests into them.

Text in force since
Promulgated
Articles: 79
Amendments on the way: 0

Read the text Open on e-Gov

What this law does

A private lodging business (住宅宿泊事業) is putting people up (宿泊, meaning their using a place with its bedding) in a residence for a lodging charge, run by someone other than an operator under Article 3-2(1) of the Hotel Business Act (旅館業法), a separate Act, on no more than 180 days in a year, counted as a joint Order of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (国土交通省令・厚生労働省令) sets. A residence (住宅) is a dwelling with a kitchen, bathroom, toilet, washroom and the other facilities that joint Order sets, which is also someone's home, or is being advertised to new tenants after the previous tenant's lease term expired, or is otherwise treated by that Order as lived in.(Art. 2(1), Art. 2(2), Art. 2(3)) (the provisions it rests on)

Read the full overview

Anyone who has notified the prefectural governor (都道府県知事) that they will run a private lodging business may run it, despite what Article 3(1) of the Hotel Business Act (旅館業法), a separate Act, provides. The notification is made for each residence, with its floor plan and a written pledge that none of the disqualifications in Article 4 applies. A change to the details of entrusting the management, such as the manager's name, must be notified in advance, and a change to the other notified details, apart from the residence's location, within 30 days.(Art. 3(1), Art. 3(2), Art. 3(3), Art. 3(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
A person disqualified by Article 4 must not run a private lodging business: anyone a joint Ministerial Order names as unable to run it properly because of a mental or physical disorder; a bankrupt not yet discharged; anyone ordered to close such a business in the last three years, including a company's officers in the 30 days before the order; anyone who within the last three years finished serving, or stopped being liable to serve, a sentence of imprisonment (拘禁刑) or heavier, or of a fine under this Act or the Hotel Business Act; members of organized crime groups (暴力団員) and those who left one less than five years ago; and anyone whose business such people control. A company is barred if any officer falls under one of the first five of these, and a minor without an adult's capacity to do business is barred if their legal representative (or, where that is a company, one of its officers) does.(Art. 4(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
The operator (住宅宿泊事業者) must take the hygiene measures an Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare sets, such as a limit on guests by each room's floor area and regular cleaning, and the safety measures an Order of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism sets, such as emergency lighting and signs showing the escape route. For guests who are foreign tourists it must take the measures that Order sets for their comfort and convenience, such as foreign-language guidance on using the facilities and information on transport. It must keep a guest register (宿泊者名簿) at the residence or another place a joint Ministerial Order sets, recording each guest's name, address, occupation and the other details that Order sets, hand it to the governor on request, and explain to guests the matters that Order sets for not disturbing the neighborhood, such as noise, in a foreign language to foreign tourists.(Art. 5(1), Art. 6(1), Art. 7(1), Art. 8(1), Art. 9(1), Art. 9(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
The operator must deal properly and promptly with complaints and questions from residents of the neighborhood, display a sign in the form a joint Ministerial Order sets at each residence where the public can see it, and report regularly to the governor the number of days it has put guests up and the other matters that Order sets.(Art. 10(1), Art. 13(1), Art. 14(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
The operator must entrust the management of the residence to one registered private lodging manager (住宅宿泊管理業者) if it has more guest rooms than a joint Ministerial Order allows one operator to manage, or if the operator is away while guests stay, apart from temporary absences and cases, such as living close by, that the Order sets as causing no difficulty. An operator that is itself a registered manager and does the work itself need not entrust it. An operator that has someone else conclude or arrange contracts with guests on its behalf must use a registered private lodging intermediary (住宅宿泊仲介業者) or a travel agent (旅行業者).(Art. 11(1), Art. 12(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Where it is needed to keep noise or other effects of the business from harming the living environment, a prefecture — or a city with a health center or a special ward that has taken over the work — may, by local ordinance (条例) following criteria a Cabinet Order (政令) sets, restrict the periods in which private lodging businesses may run in areas it designates, as far as is reasonably necessary.(Art. 18(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
A private lodging manager must act in good faith, and may not let others trade under its name, advertise in a grossly misleading way, or hide or misstate important facts to win or keep a contract. It must explain the contract in writing before it is signed and give a written contract after, may not pass on the whole of the work, and must report to the operator regularly. Its staff must carry identification and show it on request, and it must keep books at each office recording each contract, display a sign at each office, and notify changes to its registered details within 30 days.(Art. 29(1), Art. 30(1), Art. 31(1), Art. 32(1), Art. 33(1), Art. 34(1), Art. 35(1), Art. 40(1), Art. 37(1), Art. 37(2), Art. 38(1), Art. 39(1), Art. 26(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
A private lodging intermediary must likewise act in good faith, and may not let others trade under its name or hide or misstate important facts to guests to win or keep a contract. It must file its terms and conditions (住宅宿泊仲介業約款) with the Commissioner of the Tourism Agency (観光庁長官) and publish them, publish its fees before starting and charge no more, and explain the contract to guests in writing before it is signed. It must not arrange illegal acts or services for guests, or advertise that it does.(Art. 53(1), Art. 54(1), Art. 55(1), Art. 55(4), Art. 56(1), Art. 56(2), Art. 57(1), Art. 58(1), Art. 59(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

Article 1 states the law's own purpose

Notifying a private lodging businessThe 180-day yearly limitGuest registerEntrusting managementLimits set by local ordinanceRegistering as a private lodging managerRegistering as a private lodging intermediaryPenalties

79 162 118 3 24

Amendments

A Japanese law is changed by another law or order that rewrites it — an . No amendment to this law is waiting to come into force. Its amendment history is below. The amendments this site has read the changes of are on this law's amendments page, provision by provision, in Japanese and English.

7 amendments already in force

1 June 2025
The text on this site
Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Penal Code, etc.
刑法等の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整理等に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
17 June 2022
Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Penal Code, etc.
刑法等の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整理等に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
14 September 2019
Act on the Development of Related Acts to Rationalize Measures concerning the Restriction of Rights of Adult Wards, etc.
成年被後見人等の権利の制限に係る措置の適正化等を図るための関係法律の整備に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
14 June 2019
Act on the Development of Related Acts to Rationalize Measures concerning the Restriction of Rights of Adult Wards, etc.
成年被後見人等の権利の制限に係る措置の適正化等を図るための関係法律の整備に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
15 June 2018
e-Gov gives no title for this amendment
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
15 March 2018
e-Gov gives no title for this amendment
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
27 October 2017
e-Gov gives no title for this amendment
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

Who it applies to

It applies to

Private lodging business operators (住宅宿泊事業者): anyone who has made the notification and runs a private lodging business.(Art. 2(4), Art. 3(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Private lodging managers (住宅宿泊管理業者): businesses that, for a fee, manage notified residences for operators who have entrusted the work to them. They must be registered by the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The registration lapses unless renewed every five years, stays in force while a renewal applied for is decided, and ends on the manager's death, merger away, dissolution or closure of the business.(Art. 2(5), Art. 2(6), Art. 2(7), Art. 22(1), Art. 22(2), Art. 22(3), Art. 28(1), Art. 28(2)) (the provisions it rests on)

3 more

Private lodging intermediaries (住宅宿泊仲介業者): businesses other than travel agents under the Travel Agency Act (旅行業法), a separate Act, that for a fee conclude or arrange stays in notified residences for guests or for operators. Registered by the Commissioner of the Tourism Agency, they may run this business despite what Article 3 of the Travel Agency Act provides. The registration lapses unless renewed every five years, stays in force while a renewal applied for is decided, and ends on the intermediary's death, merger away, bankruptcy, dissolution or closure of the business.(Art. 2(8), Art. 2(9), Art. 2(10), Art. 46(1), Art. 46(2), Art. 46(3), Art. 52(1), Art. 52(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
Registration as a manager or an intermediary must be refused if the application or its attachments are false, or leave out an important fact, on an important matter, or if the applicant is an undischarged bankrupt, has had such a registration revoked in the last five years, or within the last five years finished serving, or stopped being liable to serve, a sentence of imprisonment (拘禁刑) or heavier, or of a fine under this Act. It must also be refused to members of organized crime groups and those who left one less than five years ago, businesses such people control, anyone a Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Order names as unable to do the work properly because of a mental or physical disorder or as giving reasonable grounds to fear dishonest conduct in it, anyone lacking the financial base or the organization that Order requires, and a company or a minor whose officer or legal representative falls under one of these personal grounds. For an intermediary, a foreign bankruptcy, a foreign sentence and a fine under the Travel Agency Act count as well.(Art. 25(1), Art. 49(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Guests (宿泊者), who must tell the operator, or where management is entrusted the manager, the details for the guest register when asked.(Art. 8(2), Art. 36(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

Special rules and exceptions (5)

Where the management of a residence has been entrusted, the operator's duties under Articles 5 to 10 do not apply to it; the manager carries them out instead, keeping the guest register at its own office and handing it to the Minister or the governor on request.(Art. 11(2), Art. 36(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
For a foreign intermediary — one with no address or residence, or no principal office, in Japan that runs the business abroad — the Commissioner requests improvements or a suspension instead of ordering them. The Commissioner may revoke its registration on grounds that include not complying with a request, refusing or obstructing an inspection, and not paying the inspection costs a Cabinet Order (政令) specifies, which it must bear.(Art. 61(1), Art. 61(2), Art. 63(1), Art. 63(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
A manager need not give the written explanation before a contract to a client that is itself a manager.(Art. 33(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
An intermediary that adopts the standard terms and conditions the Commissioner has published is treated as having filed them, and one that publishes its registration details electronically, as a Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Order sets, need not display a sign at its offices.(Art. 55(3), Art. 60(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
For the Building Standards Act (建築基準法), a separate Act, and the orders under it, a notified residence counts as a house (住宅), row house (長屋), apartment building (共同住宅) or dormitory (寄宿舎) wherever those rules use those words.(Art. 21(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

How it is enforced (8)

The prefectural governor receives notifications and supervises operators. Where a city with a health center or a special ward (保健所設置市等) has consulted the governor and given public notice at least 30 days ahead, it and its head do the prefecture's and the governor's work under Chapters 2 and 3 of the Act in its area instead.(Art. 3(1), Art. 15(1), Art. 16(1), Art. 17(1), Art. 68(1), Art. 68(2), Art. 68(3)) (the provisions it rests on)
Where needed to secure the proper running of the business, the governor may order an operator to change how it runs it, as far as that need goes. If the operator breaks the law or such an order in running the business, the governor may suspend all or part of it for up to one year, and where supervision cannot achieve its aim any other way, may order the business closed. The operator must be told of a suspension or closure order without delay, with the reasons.(Art. 15(1), Art. 16(1), Art. 16(2), Art. 16(3)) (the provisions it rests on)
Where needed to secure the proper running of the business, the governor may require an operator to report on its business, and may send officials into the residence and other premises to inspect and to question the people concerned. The officials must carry and show identification, and the power is not one for investigating crimes.(Art. 17(1), Art. 17(2), Art. 17(3)) (the provisions it rests on)
The Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (国土交通大臣) supervises managers through improvement orders, reports and inspections, and may revoke a registration or suspend the business for up to a year where a ground for refusing registration arises, the registration was obtained by fraud, or the law or an order was breached. The Minister may also revoke a registration if business does not start within a year of registration or stops for a year or more, and gives public notice of these actions. The governor may order improvements, require reports and inspect for managers working in the prefecture, as far as their duties under Articles 5 to 10 as Article 36 applies them go, and may ask the Minister to act where a manager breaches those duties or the governor's order.(Art. 41(1), Art. 41(2), Art. 42(1), Art. 42(2), Art. 42(4), Art. 44(1), Art. 45(1), Art. 45(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
The Commissioner of the Tourism Agency (観光庁長官) supervises intermediaries through improvement orders, reports and inspections, and may order a change to terms and conditions that may harm guests' legitimate interests or do not clearly set out fees, refunds and the intermediary's liability. The Commissioner may revoke a registration or suspend the business for up to a year where a ground for refusing registration arises, the registration was obtained by fraud, or the law or an order was breached, and may revoke a registration if business does not start within a year of registration or stops for a year or more; these actions are publicly notified.(Art. 55(2), Art. 61(1), Art. 62(1), Art. 62(2), Art. 63(2), Art. 65(1), Art. 66(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Running a management business without registration, obtaining either registration by fraud, or letting another trade under one's registration is punished by imprisonment (拘禁刑) of up to one year, a fine of up to 1,000,000 yen, or both. A false notification to run a private lodging business, or breaching the governor's suspension or closure order, is punished by imprisonment of up to six months, a fine of up to 1,000,000 yen, or both; breaching a suspension order of the Minister or the Commissioner, by up to six months, a fine of up to 500,000 yen, or both.(Art. 72(1), Art. 73(1), Art. 74(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
An operator that fails to entrust management when required, or has bookings concluded or arranged by someone who is neither a registered intermediary nor a travel agent, faces a fine of up to 500,000 yen. Other breaches — among them failing to notify changes, keep the guest register, display the sign or make the periodic report, breaching an improvement order, obstructing an inspection, misleading advertising and charging more than the published fees — carry a fine of up to 300,000 yen. For the offences in Articles 72 to 76, the company or person whose business it was is fined as well as the person who committed the breach.(Art. 75(1), Art. 76(1), Art. 78(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
A guest who gives false details for the guest register is punished by penal detention (拘留) or a petty fine (科料). When an operator, manager or intermediary dies, merges away, is dissolved or closes the business, the heir, the former representative officer, the bankruptcy trustee, the liquidator, or the one who closed the business must notify within 30 days (for an heir, of learning of the death); not doing so, or notifying falsely, brings a non-criminal fine (過料) of up to 200,000 yen.(Art. 77(1), Art. 79(1), Art. 3(6), Art. 28(1), Art. 52(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

How it connects to other laws

Cites this lawLawThis law cites it

5
Residential Basic Book Act
0
0
Hotel Business Act
2

It also names 4 laws not yet held here.

Where the translation comes from

The Ministry of Justice's translation is shown only where the Japanese it translates matches the law in force today. Everywhere else the English is a machine translation, marked on the paragraph itself.

Only the Japanese is the law, and no lawyer has reviewed the machine translation.

Sources

Everything this page rests on

e-Gov (Digital Agency)住宅宿泊事業法 — the text in force from 2025-06-01Original
e-Gov (Digital Agency)住宅宿泊事業法 — revision historyOriginal
Japanese Law Translation, Ministry of JusticePrivate Lodging Business Act — Ministry of Justice translationOriginal
Machine translation, not official
Written for this site with AIEnglish titles of amending laws, written for this site
Written for this site with AIDescriptions of each law, written for this site
Written for this site with AICorrections to the Ministry of Justice's English of paragraphs
Worked out by this site from e-Gov's text

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