Airbnb House Rules Are Changing on 20 November: What Hosts Need to Rewrite Before the Deadline

Airbnb has published a new house rules policy that takes effect on 20 November 2026. The new tools in the Listing editor are available from 20 October. If your listing still carries custom rules written in the old free-text format, check them now: requests that do not meet the new policy are flagged, and if the problem is left unresolved, guests may see an alert on your listing.

This guide follows Airbnb's own page on setting house rules, dated 20 October 2026. Airbnb states that its information may change, so read the current text in the Airbnb Help Center before you edit anything.

What Airbnb is changing and when

Standard rules and requests are now managed in one place, the Listing editor, in a section called House rules and requests. Checkout instructions no longer sit in a separate tab. The new policy takes effect on 20 November 2026.

One thing Airbnb does not say is how existing custom rules will be converted. Open your editor and check what you have, rather than assuming it will carry over unchanged.

The 7 standard rules

Airbnb now offers seven standard rules:

• Maximum overnight guests
• Quiet hours
• Events
• Pets, including whether they are allowed and how many
• Smoking, including vaping and e-cigarettes
• Commercial photography and filming
• Lock up at checkout, with optional key-return details

Anything beyond these seven belongs in the requests section.

Requests: what counts as reasonable

Requests cover instructions during the stay and before checkout. Under the new policy they must be reasonable, and Airbnb says what is reasonable depends on the listing type, the stay and local factors. Its examples show where the line sits:

• Dishes: you can ask guests to put used dishes in the sink. You cannot ask them to wash and put them away.
• Laundry: you can ask guests to gather used towels. You cannot ask them to strip the bed or start a load.
• Trash: you can ask guests to sort trash and recycling into indoor bins. You cannot ask them to take garbage off-site.
• Utilities: you can ask guests to turn off the air conditioning when they leave. You cannot ask them not to use it.

Airbnb also notes that guests generally want to avoid unexpected chores, and that cleaning-type tasks can hurt stays and reviews. It allows exceptions based on context. Its examples are animal-proof trash containers in bear country and limits on shower time during drought restrictions. Airbnb gives no European example, so if a local rule applies to your property, check how it fits before you write it as a request.

Contracts

Airbnb allows contracts for a few reasons. Its examples are legal requirements, homeowners association rules, monthly-stay rental agreements, Airbnb Luxe listings, and optional amenities such as golf carts. You upload them under Contracts in your listing settings. Airbnb does not help enforce them and does not require guests to sign them.

What happens to rules that do not comply

Requests that do not meet the new policy are highlighted in the Listing editor with a tip on how to fix them. You receive an email, resolution tips and the option to appeal. Airbnb does not describe the appeal process. If an issue stays unresolved, guests may see an alert on the listing, such as "includes cleaning requests".

Rewrite your rules in 5 steps

1. Open the Listing editor and read every rule and instruction you have today.
2. Match each one to a standard rule or to a request that Airbnb would call reasonable.
3. Remove the chores. Washing dishes, stripping beds, starting laundry and taking garbage off-site are the clearest examples Airbnb gives.
4. Keep your rules in the House rules and requests section only. Airbnb says not to add rules elsewhere on the listing, in messages, or on signs in the home.
5. Save, then check that the editor shows no flagged requests.

Our earlier guide to writing house rules was written before this change. Some of its example wording, such as asking guests to wash dishes or take out the rubbish, no longer fits Airbnb's examples.

Where the rest of your guest information goes

Rules are what guests must or should follow. Information is what helps them run the stay: how to check in, the Wi-Fi details, how to get around, who to call in an emergency, how the appliances work. Airbnb's page is about rules and does not mention welcome guides. Keeping rules in the listing and practical information in a guide is a separation that follows from Airbnb's guidance, not a statement from Airbnb itself. For the information side, see what belongs in your welcome guide instead.

Enforcement: what changes for you

According to Airbnb, guests are required to follow house rules and are encouraged to follow requests. You can cancel without fees or other consequences if a guest breaks a house rule during the stay, or tells you before check-in that they intend to. Guests who violate Airbnb policies may be suspended or removed. Airbnb makes house rules more prominent on listings, and they appear in the Trips tab and in reservation reminders.

Frequently asked questions

Do my current rules disappear on 20 November?

Airbnb does not say how existing custom rules will be converted. Open the Listing editor and check what is flagged.

Can I still ask guests to take out the trash?

Airbnb's example says you can ask guests to sort trash and recycling into indoor bins, but not to take garbage off-site.

Can I keep my rules in the welcome guide or on a sign in the house?

Airbnb says not to write additional rules elsewhere on the listing, in messages, or on signs in the home. All rules and requests belong in the House rules and requests section.

Do changes affect bookings that are already confirmed?

According to the Airbnb Help Center, changes to house rules apply only to future reservations, not to pending or confirmed ones.

Can I ask guests to sign a contract?

Airbnb allows contracts for a few reasons, such as legal requirements, homeowners association rules, monthly-stay agreements, Airbnb Luxe listings and certain optional amenities.

Rules belong in your listing. Everything else a guest needs belongs in a guide they can open on arrival. The Basic Host Bundle (€29) gives you a digital welcome guide (EN/IT) with check-in and check-out, Wi-Fi, local transport and emergency contacts already written, a printable QR sign, and a Canva Customization Guide. Details at annaq.it/products/basic-host-bundle. Running more than one property? The Standard Host Bundle (€39) adds 100 social media templates (EN/IT), and the Premium Host Bundle (€49) adds the welcome guide and QR sign in 5 languages. Details at annaq.it/products/standard-host-bundle and annaq.it/products/premium-host-bundle.