Short-term lets licence

24 February 2025

As a Licensing Authority, East Ayrshire Council established a new Short-term Let Licensing Scheme under The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Order as amended.

The aims of the licensing scheme are to ensure all short-term let premises in Scotland are safe, to facilitate Scottish Licensing Authorities in knowing and understanding what is happening in their area and to assist with handling complaints and effectively address issues faced by neighbours.

From 1 October 2022, hosts and operators need a licence to use accommodation for short-term lets in East Ayrshire. Hosts and operators can advertise but cannot take bookings or receive guests until a Licence has been granted.

The Scottish Government has published a tool to check whether you need a licence and what type of licence you require. This can be accessed at mygov.scot: Check if you need a short-term lets licence.

Types of licences

There are four types of short-term let licences:

secondary letting – a short-term let involving the letting of property where you do not normally live
home letting – using all or part of your home for short-term lets whilst you are absent
home sharing – using all or part of your own home for short-term lets whilst you are there
home letting and home sharing – hosts principal home

Licensing policy statement

Download the short-term lets licensing policy statement (PDF 649 KB)

How to apply for a short-term licence

Before lodging an application please ensure:

you have read the licensing policy statement and application guidance
completed the fire safety checklist

Application forms

Your application form and fire safety checklist should be sent to licensing@east-ayrshire.gov.uk.

Application guidance

Licence application fees

Licence application fees are listed in the tables below:

New licence fees
Type of licence	Maximum occupancy (up to four)	Maximum occupancy (five or more)
Secondary let	£250	£400
Home sharing, home letting, or both	£125	£250

Renewal licence fees
Type of licence	Maximum occupancy (up to four)	Maximum occupancy (five or more)
Secondary let	£200	£350
Home sharing, home letting, or both	£75	£200

Provisional licence fees
Type of licence	Fee
Provisional grant of licence	£100
Confirmation of provisional licence	Remainder of balance for new grant
Transfer	£50

Other applicable fees
Type of licence	Fee
Variation	£75
Replacement/duplicate licence	£50

Right of appeal

Applicants should note that where their short-term let licence application has been refused by the Licensing Authority, they do have a right of appeal under the 1982 Act.

An appeal should be made to the Sheriff Court within 28 days from the date of the refusal.

Please note that the Licensing Authority cannot provide you with any advice in relation to an appeal.

Objecting to an application

All applicants for a short-term let licence will be required to display a statutory site notice.

This site notice will advise the public of the short-term let licence application. The site notice must be displayed at or near the premises where it can be easily read, for 21 consecutive days.

The last date for any members of the public to submit an objection or representation to the application will be detailed on the site notice, as well as where and how to submit it to the Licensing Authority.

In addition, for every application received the Licensing Authority will consult with:

Police Scotland
Scottish Fire and Rescue Service
East Ayrshire Council services:
- Planning
- Building Standards
- Environmental Health
- Cleaner Communities
- Anti-Social Behaviour Team

These consultees will also be able to submit an objection or representation to the application.

How to make a complaint

Please note we only deal with complaints where a short-term let is licensed. Unlicensed short-term let complaints should be directed to Police Scotland.

A complaint must be relevant to matters that we can take into consideration. Frivolous or vexatious complaints will not be considered.

We can consider matters relating to:

the suitability of the licence holder
threats to public safety or public order
or whether a condition of the licence has been contravened

These issues would include a host/operator:

exceeding the number of people staying at the premises
serious disturbance or antisocial behaviour
or concerns about the maintenance and safety of the premises

These types of complaints can be directed to licensing@east-ayrshire.gov.uk

Complaints from guests

In the first instance, the Licensing Authority would expect any concerns from guests to be raised with the host or operator.

Where this cannot be resolved they should contact the Licensing Authority be emailing licensing@east-ayrshire.gov.uk. The email should state the licensed short-term let address and the concerns around the operation of the licence.

Please note that we cannot consider complaints in relation to the quality of a guest’s stay or specific contractual matters between the guest and the host/operator as this is outside the scope of the licensing scheme.

Complaints from neighbours

In the first instance, the Licensing Authority would expect concerns from neighbours to be raised with the host or operator.

Public licensing register

View the Public Licensing Register of applications made and licences issued under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005, Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 and miscellaneous licensing.

Further information

Short-term lets hosts and operators are required to meet the Repairing Standard. Guidance can be access at Scottish Government: Repairing Standard - statutory guidance for private landlords.

Further information about the regulation of short-term lets can be found at Scottish Government: Short-term lets

The current Scottish Government guidance for hosts and operators can be found at Scottish Government: Short term lets - licensing scheme part 1: guidance for hosts and operators.

Further information on whether planning permission will be required can be obtained on our planning permission webpage.

Contact Information

Licensing Board Administration

London Road

Kilmarnock

East Ayrshire

KA3 7BU

Telephone: 07557 168826

Email: licensing@east-ayrshire.gov.uk