Register an accommodation business
When do I need this registration?
Local business owners are required to register their accommodation business under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act. Registration is valid from 1 January and expires 31 December each calendar year. This requires an annual renewal in November for the following year.
If you operate any of the following types of businesses, you are required to register with Council in accordance with the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 before you start operating:
- Hotel or motel
- Hostel
- Rooming house
- Student accommodation/dormitories
- Holiday camps
- Labour hire accommodation
Exemptions for registration apply to the below businesses:
- a house under the exclusive occupation of the occupier
- a self-contained apartment or house (AirBnB, holiday house etc.)
- temporary crisis accommodation
- a residential care service
- a retirement village
- a vessel, vehicle, tent or caravan
If your business will sell food or drinks to guests or the public, you also need to complete new food premises registration.
Before you begin
It takes about 10 minutes to complete the form and you will need the following information:
- Contact details for the proprietor and the business.
- Business name, primary contact details and class of accommodation.
- Number of bedrooms, beds, beds per room, residents, toilets, showers, basins.
- Image or diagram of the floor plan that is drawn to a scale of not less than 1:100 and showing the proposed use of each room with beds, showers, basins, toilets indicated.
- Visa or Mastercard details to pay the application fee.
Applications are usually processed within 7 days after being received.
After you submit the application
- An Environmental Health Officer will assess the application.
- We may contact you for more information.
- We'll notify you of the decision on whether or not a registration can be granted.
- A final inspection is required prior to commencing trade.
What happens to my information?
We record your information on our customer database and make it available to relevant Council staff in line with our privacy policy for the purpose of supporting your business. This information is collected under the requirements of the Public Health and Wellbeing Act for the enforcement and Public Health purposes. It may be provided to the Department of Human Services for the same purposes, and for statistical purposes related to the application of the Act. The information on this application form may be reported to the Victorian Government to add to the public register of rooming house operators. It will be treated in compliance with the Department of Human Services Information Privacy Principals and the Information Privacy Act.