For owners
What the island asks of a holiday let
Registration, planning, fire, insurance and the rest, in the order they actually happen. Every requirement below links to the Isle of Man Government or Visit Isle of Man page it comes from, so you can read the rule in full rather than take our word for it.
A guide, not legal advice
Registration and the certificates behind it are the owner's legal responsibility and they stay that way whoever manages the property. We prepare the paperwork, we get the house ready for the visits and we hold the renewal dates, but the duty is yours.
Rules, fees and renewal dates change. Read each requirement at source before you act on it. Speak to the Department for Enterprise if anything about your property is unusual. If in doubt, ask them first and furnish the house second.
Two things this page does not cover. If you serve food, Environmental Health comes into it as well. And if you only want to let during TT and MGP there is a separate, lighter Homestay registration rather than the full one below.
The requirements
Seven things, in plain English
01Register with the Department for Enterprise
Under the Tourist Act 1975 all visitor accommodation on the island has to be registered, from a hotel down to a single self-catering cottage. It applies whether you take bookings yourself or list the house on the large booking sites. Registration runs for a year and has to be renewed. The Department publishes the current fee and the renewal date.
We put the application together, we get the house ready for the Visit Isle of Man property visit and we hold the renewal date so it never quietly lapses.
02Settle the planning use
A house built as a home is not automatically a holiday let in planning terms. Planning will confirm whether yours already has the right lawful use or whether a change of use application is needed. It is the first thing to settle, not the last.
We raise it in the first conversation, before you have spent anything on the house.
03Clear building control
A building regulation application may be needed. Building Control will want certificates for any gas or multi-fuel appliance, a working carbon monoxide detector and any fire safety recommendations acted on. Houses in Douglas and Onchan go through the local authority rather than the central Building Control team.
We keep a copy of every certificate for the house and we tell you when one is coming due, rather than the week after it expired.
04Fire risk assessment and equipment
Every property needs a fire risk assessment and suitable fire equipment. Some properties also need a fire certificate. The Fire and Rescue Service will tell you whether yours is one of them.
We walk the house the way an assessor would and we make sure the equipment is in place, in date and somewhere a guest would find it in the dark.
05Public liability insurance
Public liability cover of at least two million pounds, with written confirmation from your insurer for the Department.
We check the policy covers holiday letting rather than ordinary residential use. That is the one that catches people out. It usually only surfaces at claim time.
06Write an access statement
An honest written account of how a guest gets into the property and moves around it, which sits under the Equality Act 2017. Steps, parking, doorways, bathrooms, the lot. Honest matters more than flattering.
We write it, we photograph it and we revise it whenever anything about the house changes.
07Meet the standards, then the grading
A property has to meet the minimum entry standards for self-catering before it can register. After that an independent assessor visits every two years and sets the star rating.
We prepare the house for the visit and we tell you plainly what would move it up a grade and what would not be worth the money.
Order of play
Planning first, registration last
- Step 01PlanningConfirm the lawful use, or apply for a change of use.
- Step 02Building controlApplication if one is needed, appliance certificates, carbon monoxide detector.
- Step 03FireRisk assessment, equipment in place, certificate if your property needs one.
- Step 04InsurancePublic liability, confirmed by your insurer in writing.
- Step 05Access statementWritten, accurate and specific to the house.
- Step 06Finish the houseFurnished and ready, exactly as a guest would find it.
- Step 07RegisterForm and fee to the Department, then you are clear to trade.
- Step 08GradingAn independent assessor sets the star rating, then returns every two years.
Who to talk to
- Visit Isle of Man, tourism quality[email protected]
01624 695700 - Planning[email protected]
01624 685950 - Building Control[email protected]
01624 686446 - Fire and Rescue ServiceBusiness fire safety guidance
Read it at source
Do not take our word for it
- Registration and the Tourist Act 1975Visit Isle of Man
- Setting up visitor accommodationVisit Isle of Man
- Fees, renewal dates and common questionsVisit Isle of Man
- The self-catering registration process, step by stepDepartment for Enterprise, PDF
- Self-catering quality standardsDepartment for Enterprise, PDF
- Business fire safetyIsle of Man Government
- Equality Act 2017Isle of Man Government
Most owners are further along than they think.
Send us the address and we will tell you honestly what is already in place, what is missing and how long the rest is likely to take. If the answer is that you do not need us yet, we will say so.
Request an owner pack