Vancouver rental license requirements

Important Deadline: The Rental Registration Program launches January 1, 2026. Registration fees are waived if you register within the first 90 days (by March 30, 2026). Annual renewals are due by February 15 each year starting 2027.

This page is a simple, plain-language explanation of how Vancouver's residential rental licensing rules generally work. It does not replace official guidance from the City and is not legal advice, but it can help you understand what to expect before you start.

Who needs to register?

Starting January 1, 2026, all owners of long-term residential rental properties within Vancouver city limits must register their rental units annually. This includes:

• Single-family rental homes
• Duplexes and triplexes
• Apartments / multifamily buildings
• Townhomes and condos used as rentals
• Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and other second units on a lot

Important: In addition to the new rental registration, landlords must also maintain a City of Vancouver business license for long-term rentals.

Exemptions

The ordinance lists these exemptions:

• Owner-occupied single-family housing (e.g., primary residence where you're just renting a bedroom)
• Short-term rentals (stays under 30 days)
• Hotels / motels
• Emergency shelters
• Nursing homes, hospitals, licensed health-care facilities
• Income-restricted units at or below 60% AMI (must still register, but the $30 per-unit fee is waived)

Anything that is a long-term residential rental inside city limits and not on that exemption list is expected to register.

What's required to register

At a property level, the city expects owners to provide the following information each year:

• Rental property name (if any) and street address
• Year built
• Type of rental (single-family, duplex, ADU, multifamily, etc.)
• Number of units at that property
• Bedrooms and bathrooms per unit
• Whether any units are restricted to tenants ≤ 60% AMI
• Owner contact information
• Local contact / emergency or maintenance contact, if the owner is not local

Owners will also be required to:

• Display a copy of the registration at the property in a place visible to tenants
• Provide tenants with written information about the registration program and renter rights/resources
• For new leases starting January 2026, include city-provided tenant resources in lease packets

Key parts of the registration process

The Vancouver rental registration process generally involves:

Documents you'll need

Typical documentation requested during the process may include:

• Property address and basic ownership information
• Number of rental units and bedroom/bathroom counts
• Owner contact information (name, mailing address, phone, email)
• Local contact / 24-hour maintenance or emergency contact information
• Business license information (if not already on file)
• Income-restricted unit documentation (if applicable, for fee waiver)

How we fit into this process

Our role is to make this easier for owners by:

• Confirming your property is within Vancouver city limits
• Ensuring you have a valid City of Vancouver business license
• Collecting and organizing all required property and contact information
• Registering your property in the Rental Registration Portal when it opens
• Handling payment of registration fees and ensuring fee waivers are applied when eligible
• Ensuring tenant documentation requirements are met (posting registration, providing resources)
• Handling annual renewals (fees due by February 15 each year starting 2027)
• Preparing your property for future health and safety inspections (starting mid-2027)