Tourism Law in Europe

6 4.5. Timeshare Timeshare is not very common in Sweden. There are a few examples where individuals or companies purchase owner rights to a co-shared apartment, which gives the purchaser right to stay for one or two weeks per year. The right may, through point-systems, be transferred to the same period of stay at facilities in other parts of the world. Timeshare is regulated through a Swedish act 7 implementing the directive on timeshare 8 . 4.6. Sharing economy – Airbnb Like most other countries, sharing economy is a fast growing phenomenon in Sweden, within a wide range of different areas of services. There is not yet any legislation in Sweden that is direct applicable for sharing economy. Anyone that wishes, may sublet its apartment for a shorter stay. There are often clauses in lease agreements or the charters of tenant owned associations that prohibits or restrict the sub-letting of apartments. However, such clauses often aim at prohibiting sub-letting for residential use and not short-term leasing. There are a couple of court cases where tenants have lost rental agreements due to frequent sub-letting. Further there are also some case law where a tenant has been imposed taxes, because the court has deemed it to be professional sub- letting. 5. Restaurants Serving of food is an area which is highly regulated in Sweden. There are detailed regulations regarding the facilities in which food is cooked and served. To build a new restaurant, bar etc, you need a building permit. You also need a building permit if you plan to remodel the facilities. Further there are detailed regulations regarding ventilation, fire safety, availability for persons with reduced mobility, noice reduction with regards to neighboring apartments or facilities etc. A restaurateur does not need a permit or a license, but need to register the business with the County Administrative Board. Outdoor 7 Lag (2011:914) om konsumentskydd vid avtal om tidsdelat boende eller långfristig semesterprodukt. 8 Directive 2008/122/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 January 2009 on the protection of consumers in respect of certain aspects of timeshare, long-term holiday product, resale and exchange contracts.