Please accept Airbnb’s new terms and conditions by may 10, 2025… or get kicked off

On April 14, 2025, Airbnb dropped a regulatory bombshell on the short-term rental industry. Far from being a simple T&C update, this announcement signals a major strategic shift: the platform wants full control over financial flows between guests and hosts — with one clear goal… maximizing its 15% commission on nearly everything that can be billed.

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May 10, 2025: Airbnb’s Ultimatum

In a recent email to hosts, Airbnb left little room for ambiguity: as of May 10, 2025, only listings that have agreed to the new terms and conditions will remain visible on the platform. A strong signal sent to its host community — especially in a global context where short-term rentals face increasing regulatory pressure and platform competition intensifies.

“You can feel they’re locking everything down. For a long time, we could add extra fees or offer services on the side, without commission. That’s over now. And it’s not a minor update — it questions an entire business model,” says Michel A., manager of 14 rentals in Marseille.

The real goal: more commissions, fewer workarounds

👉 Here is the link to the details of Airbnb policy changes 2025

Planning a trip involves comparing countless options, and few things are more frustrating than realizing, at the last step, that the price you initially saw doesn’t reflect the real cost. To meet the growing demand for transparency, Airbnb now offers the option to display the total price of the stay (excluding taxes) directly in search results.
The idea is simple: put an end to "unfair pricing" practices, where only a base nightly rate was shown—excluding additional fees like cleaning or service charges—giving users a misleading sense of affordability. Previously, travelers had to click into each listing to uncover the real total price, making comparisons time-consuming and unclear.
With this new feature, users can activate a filter that allows them to see the full price upfront, making it easier to compare listings, make informed decisions, and build trust in the platform.

Behind its rhetoric of “transparency and fairness for guests,” Airbnb is primarily focused on eliminating any workaround that allows hosts to bypass its service fees. The goal is crystal clear: maximize all financial flows through the platform to enforce the well-known 15% commission (or more, depending on the case).

To achieve this, Airbnb is now locking down three key areas:

  1. The listing itself, which must now include all mandatory fees in the nightly rate.
  2. The Resolution Center, the only channel allowed for optional services.
  3. Reservation modifications, which can only be initiated by the guest via the platform.

This shift aligns with Airbnb’s post-IPO context. Since its 2020 stock market debut, the company is under pressure to deliver consistent earnings. The profitability of a matchmaking model like Airbnb’s depends on its ability to capture the full scope of financial transactions it enables.

The new rules, decoded

Airbnb’s message is clear: everything that can be monetized must go through its system. This now includes fees that used to be at the host’s discretion: electricity, mid-stay cleaning, pet charges, parking, pool heating, and even direct security deposits — now banned except in very rare, clearly defined exceptions.

Mandatory fees: must be included in nightly rate

All mandatory charges must now be included in the nightly rate and shown at the time of booking on Airbnb. This includes:

  • Utilities (e.g., gas, electricity)
  • Extra guest fees
  • Pet fees
  • Tourist taxes
  • Management and destination fees
  • HOA fees
  • Any applicable tax

If there's no dedicated field, they must be built into the price per night.

Note: If you use a PMS or channel manager, you can still collect certain fees outside the platform — but only if they’re included in the price breakdown visible to the guest at checkout.

Optional services: resolution center only

Extras like parking, pool heating, or mid-stay cleaning must:

  • Be clearly mentioned in the listing description or house rules
  • Be paid via the Resolution Center
Important: These charges currently remain non-commissioned. But Airbnb can change that policy at any time — so stay alert.

Booking changes: only through Airbnb

Any modification — dates, length of stay, guest count — must now go through Airbnb’s platform.

  • No more side deals via SMS or email.
  • Only guests can initiate changes.
  • External payments (cash, wire, checks) are strictly forbidden.
  • Offering a discount to book off-platform? Prohibited.
  • Canceling to rebook directly? Also banned.

In short: Airbnb is sealing every loophole to make sure every transaction is trackable — and commissionable.

Word is, Airbnb already uses algorithms to scan messages for suspicious keywords like "wire transfer", "discount", or "book directly".

Guest contact info: not before, not after

You can no longer ask for a guest’s email or address before or even after booking — unless the guest requests it.

  • All communication must take place through Airbnb’s messaging system.
  • Rest assured: Airbnb verifies guest identities.

Links, apps, third-party tools: mostly banned

Airbnb prohibits anything that pulls guests out of its ecosystem. This includes:

  • Links to direct booking websites
  • Digital welcome books requiring guest sign-up
  • Third-party apps for check-in access
  • External services (e.g., breakfast ordering or spa reservations)
Exceptions: Smart home tools (Sonos, Nest, smart locks) are allowed if optional and don’t require sign-up.
Good news: there are plenty of check-in solutions using keycodes or smart locks that don’t require any special app on the guest’s end.

Review requests: Airbnb only

You are no longer allowed to ask guests to leave a review outside of Airbnb. The company wants feedback to benefit its platform — and only its platform.

Security deposits: phased out

Directly collecting a damage deposit? Not allowed. Airbnb wants you to rely on their in-house insurance — AirCover.

Some vague exceptions exist, but it’s best to contact Airbnb directly if you still want to enforce a financial guarantee.

What happens if hosts don’t comply?

Here are the risks faced by hosts:

  • Anonymous or automated reports
  • Message-scanning algorithms already activated
  • Cross-checked guest surveys (e.g., “Did you pay anything off-platform?”)
  • Full listing removal or even account suspension

And in these cases, recourse is limited. With over 7 million listings worldwide, Airbnb can afford to lose a few rule-breakers.

Unsurprisingly, these methods are sparking concern among both casual hosts and professionals, who aren’t used to such contractual imbalance.

And what about hotels?

In parallel, Airbnb seems to be rolling out the red carpet for a different audience: hotel professionals. They benefit from relaxed rules:

  • Still allowed to request security deposits
  • Can charge for certain services off-platform

Clearly, Airbnb is trying to broaden its host base by wooing the hotel sector — a still largely untapped source of growth. And in a battle against Booking.com and Expedia, Airbnb wants to look like a credible alternative.

TL;DR: Comply… or find another playing field

This update of terms and conditions in 2025 reveals Airbnb’s deeper ambition: to create a fully captive ecosystem. Payment control, communication restrictions, data lock-in — the platform is becoming what some call a “Big Brother of short-term rentals.” Or, more charitably, the central bank of vacation rentals, capturing value at every stage: booking, changes, disputes, insurance, messaging.

In other words: Airbnb is building a super-app. Everything happens in one closed ecosystem — theirs.

These policy changes will apply to all hosts starting May 10, 2025. And as always with Airbnb: not knowing the fine print is not an excuse.

Here’s how to adapt:

  • Rebuild your pricing model: bundle all costs (even tiny ones) into the nightly rate
  • Use Airbnb messaging only — and prep compliant message templates
  • Leverage the Resolution Center for all extras (while it’s still fee-free)
  • Avoid any external links or off-platform suggestions
  • Consider a dual strategy: other platforms or your own site… just keep it discreet
  • 🆘 Need help adjusting? Book your free 30-minute strategy call.

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