Baguio city moves to require registration for all short-term rentals before listing

Baguio City is preparing to enforce a "no registration, no listing" rule for short-term rentals, requiring all operators to obtain a city-issued registration number before their properties can be advertised or booked on any platform. The measure, announced by Councilor Yuri Weygan on July 25, 2026, is designed to protect tourists from accommodation scams that have used the city's reputation as a tourism destination to defraud visitors. The proposal has not yet been confirmed as fully enacted into law, and the announcement did not specify an enforcement start date.

What the registration requirement would cover

Under the proposed measure, every short-term rental unit operating in Baguio must register with the city and display a unique registration number on all listings. That number would serve as public proof that the property meets local compliance requirements.

The city plans to maintain a centralized Short-Term Rental registry, which would function as the official database of all compliant units. The registry would be accessible through the city's VISITA platform, a tourism information website managed by the City Tourism Office that was originally launched during the pandemic as a visitor registration system and has since expanded to cover tourism services including accommodation assistance.

Platforms would be required to verify and enforce compliance

The proposed rules extend beyond individual hosts. Digital platforms and booking intermediaries operating in Baguio would be required to verify registration numbers before allowing a property to be listed. They would also be required to display registration numbers in advertisements and remove unregistered listings upon notice from the city government. Platforms would additionally be barred from allowing operators who have been flagged for violations to post new listings.

This kind of platform-level enforcement is becoming more common in STR regulation globally. Cities including Barcelona, Florence, and New York have pushed booking platforms to delist unregistered or unlicensed properties as part of their compliance frameworks, shifting enforcement responsibility partly onto the platforms themselves rather than relying solely on local inspectors.

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Scam reports drove the city's decision

City Tourism Officer Aloysius Mapalo said the initiative was a direct response to reports of tourists paying for rentals that either did not exist or bore no resemblance to their online descriptions. He noted that the scammers themselves are not typically based in Baguio but exploit the city's popularity as a tourist destination to target people searching for accommodation.

The problem Baguio is trying to solve is not unique to the Philippines. Fraudulent listings on major platforms including Airbnb and Vrbo have been reported in tourist destinations across Southeast Asia, Europe, and the Americas, prompting calls for more formal verification systems that tie listings to government-issued credentials.

What hosts operating in Baguio should watch for

The announcement did not specify registration fees, documentation requirements, or a timeline for when the registry would open for applications. Hosts currently listing properties in Baguio should monitor updates from the City Tourism Office and the VISITA platform for formal registration procedures. Once the measure is enacted, operating without a valid registration number would expose hosts to removal from platforms and potential penalties from the city government, though the announcement did not detail specific penalties.

Short-term rental operators who list on Airbnb, Vrbo, or other platforms should also prepare for those platforms to request or display registration numbers directly on their listings, consistent with the platform obligations outlined in the proposal.

As local governments from Southeast Asia to Europe tighten STR oversight, staying current with jurisdiction-specific rules is becoming a baseline requirement for operators. Lodge Compliance tracks short-term rental regulations, licensing, permitting, zoning, and tax requirements across thousands of jurisdictions, helping hosts stay informed as local rules evolve.

Not sure what this means for your property? Get your free compliance report at lodgecompliance.com 

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