Tourism Law in Europe

4 authority. There is no need for a permit if the business is not intended to accommodate less than nine guests at the same time and have less than five rooms for rental. The police authority may stipulate in the permit, that the hotel owner shall assign a director in charge of the business. The regulation applies regardless of the quality of the establishment and thus applies to luxury hotels as well as a simple bed and breakfast establishments. 4.2. Hostel There a lot of hostels in Sweden, ranging from hotel-like accommodations to more simple accommodations where the guests provide their own bed linen and must clean the room or apartment themselves. Hostels often have common areas where the guests may make their laundry, cook or watch TV. Many of the Swedish hostels are members of the association Svenska Turistföreningen STF 5 . Despite the often simple accommodation, hostels are subject to the same permit requirement as regular hotels. 4.3. House rental It is very common for tourists in Sweden to rent a house, cabin or cottage for a shorter period of time. Letting of vacation homes is made by companies and individuals. For individuals it is often done as a way of financing a vacation home. There are several booking services on-line where individuals offer their vacation homes for rent. This is common in all regions in Sweden, both in the summer and the winter. For example it is very common for families who buys a house in the northern parts of Sweden, close to one of the ski resorts, to let the house during the periods when they are not using it themselves. There is no need for a permit or any licensing procedure to, on a temporary basis, let your house to someone else for shorter periods. Letting of houses is not subject to VAT in Sweden. If the business is considered to be professional it might however be subject to certain tax-rules. 5 Soure : https://www.svenskaturistforeningen.se/.