New York, NY Short-Term Rentals: Primary-Residence-Only Rule (2026)
Key Facts
- Who can register
- Permanent occupant only: owner or eligible tenant
- Definition of short-term
- Fewer than 30 consecutive days
- Administering agency
- Office of Special Enforcement
- No-registration units
- Class B dwellings, NYCHA, rooming units
- Unregistered rental penalty
- Up to $5,000 or 3x revenue per violation
- False statement penalty
- Up to $1,000 plus revocation
Summary
NYC will not register a dwelling unit for short-term rental unless the applicant is a natural person who actually lives there permanently, either as the owner or as a lease-eligible tenant. Absentee owners and pure investment units cannot register at all.
No short-term rental registration shall be issued unless: 1. The applicant is a natural person who is a permanent occupant of the dwelling unit and is either: (i) the owner of such dwelling unit, or (ii) a tenant of such dwelling unit who certifies in a form and manner to be specified by the administering agency that they are not prohibited by the terms of a lease or other agreement from applying for a short-term rental registration for such dwelling unit and from subsequently acting as a host for short-term rentals within such dwelling unit;
Full Breakdown
Administrative Code § 26-3102(c)(1), part of Chapter 31's short-term rental registration scheme (Local Law 18 of 2022), makes permanent occupancy a threshold requirement before the Office of Special Enforcement (the administering agency) can issue any registration. No registration issues unless the applicant is a natural person who is a permanent occupant of the dwelling unit and is either the owner, or a tenant who certifies they are not barred by their lease from applying for the registration and from acting as host. A short-term rental itself is defined in § 26-3101 as a rental for fewer than 30 consecutive days of a dwelling unit within a private dwelling or class A multiple dwelling.
The registration gate goes further than occupancy alone: § 26-3102(c)(2) requires the applicant to describe what parts of the unit a paying guest will be allowed to use, (c)(4) requires the agency to confirm there are no uncorrected Construction Codes, Housing Maintenance Code or Fire Code violations endangering occupants, and (c)(6) bars any building on the agency's published prohibited buildings list. Subdivision (d) separately bars registration for rent-regulated units under the Rent Stabilization Law, Emergency Tenant Protection Act or similar programs, subdivision (e) bars NYCHA developments outright, and subdivision (f) bars rooming units.
Because the whole framework applies only to private dwellings and class A multiple dwellings, § 26-3102(a) expressly carves class B multiple dwellings and class B units in mixed-use buildings out of the registration system entirely.
Violations & Fines
Renting a unit short-term without a valid registration violates § 26-3102(a) and draws a civil penalty under § 26-3104(a) of up to the lesser of $5,000 or three times the revenue the rental generated, per violation. A material false statement about occupancy status on an application, such as claiming permanent-occupant status the applicant does not have, is separately penalized up to $1,000 under § 26-3104(c) and is grounds for registration revocation under § 26-3104(d)(2), on top of any misrepresentation-based revocation after notice and a hearing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an out-of-town owner register an NYC apartment for short-term rentals?
Can a tenant register their rented NYC apartment for short-term rentals?
What kinds of NYC housing can never get a short-term rental registration?
What happens if someone lies about living in the unit to get registered?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in New York
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