Riviera Maya, Q.R. — With the recent update to the Quintana Roo Tourism regulations, unregistered vacation rentals could be fined. The recent update grants power to municipalities to issue fines as high as 100,000 pesos.
Bernardo Cueto Riestra, the State Secretary of Tourism, says municipalities can issue fines since the new regulations grant municipalities the power to regulate digital platforms not registered with ReturQ.
With the new rules, the state’s 11 municipalities have the power to decide whether to limit, regulate, authorize, or prohibit the operation of vacation rentals within their jurisdiction.
“At the state level, we have already made progress in reviewing the actions of each municipality to ensure equitable regulation, but, above all, to regulate the operation of these properties,” he said.
Cueto Riestra said they are working in close collaboration companies such as Airbnb to ensure all hosts are aware of the requirements necessary to operate in the state, including compliance with ReturQ, the State Tourism Registry.
“Those who do not register properly will be subject to sanctions which can be as much as 100,000 pesos. The website hosts are also committed to not allowing the listing of properties that are not properly registered,” he noted.
He says the state of Quintana Roo is taking an important step toward modernizing its regulatory framework with the update of the Tourism Law Regulations, a change that, according to authorities, positions Quintana Roo as an industry leader.
The mandatory registration of vacation rentals will also provide the tourism industry with more effective tools including measures to improve the registration of tourism service providers, combat human trafficking and child sexual exploitation in tourist facilities and regulate digital accommodation platforms.
To date, he reported Quintana Roo has nearly 3,000 properties registered with ReturQ, the State Tourism Registry.
