Airbnb and short-term rental rules in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia
Written by Casa Scotia, a Nova Scotia short-term rental manager. Not affiliated with any municipality or the Province. How we keep our interest out of it →
At a glance
It depends on the plan area and the zone. Under the County-wide by-law, a residential structure may hold one short-term rental unit, with no residence test. Four plan-area by-laws require the owner to live on or beside the property.
Can I?
The home you live in (as Annapolis County’s by-law defines it)Allowed
A home you don’t live inAllowed
A suite or second unit on the lot you live onIn some zones
The Municipality of the County of Annapolis, Nova Scotia, has six land-use by-laws, one County-wide and one for each of five secondary planning areas, and they treat short-term rentals differently, including on whether the owner must live on the property. The County's own step is the STR Compliance Letter (Municipal Certificate of Compliance).
Stays also carry the County's marketing levy, which its by-law makes the operator collect and remit: Marketing levy. The Towns of Annapolis Royal and Middleton sit inside the County's borders but are separate municipalities: Where this guide applies.
Where this guide applies
Community
What to check
Bear River
Straddles Municipality of the District of Digby
Which municipality a property is in depends on where its parcel (PID) sits, not on the community name or the mailing address. The property tax bill shows it; either office can confirm it.
The County-wide by-law governs the County outside the Bridgetown, East End, Cornwallis Park, Upper Clements and Habitation planning areas; the County's zoning maps show which area a lot is in. Part of Bear River lies in the District of Digby. A property tax bill names the municipality.
Is a short-term rental allowed here?
County-Wide Planning Area
The home you live in (as Annapolis County’s by-law defines it)AllowedIn a dwelling the zone permits (the permitted-use table also lists existing dwellings in every general zone), one short-term rental unit in the residential structure at a time
A home you don’t live inAllowedThe same as for the home you live in: the by-law sets no condition that the owner live there, and allows one short-term rental unit in a residential structure at a time
A suite or second unit on the lot you live onIn some zonesWhere the zone permits a secondary suite (the MX, R1, R2, AG, LCR2, LCR4, GW4 and GW5 zones), as the structure's one short-term rental unit
one short-term rental unit in a residential structure at any time
“SECTION 4.17 SHORT TERM RENTALS: The owner of a residential structure shall be permitted to provide a maximum of one short-term rental unit within said residential structure at any time. ... SECTION 4.14 SECONDARY SUITES: A dwelling unit in the form of a secondary suite, inside or attached to the main residential building or in the form of a separate structure, shall be permitted as an accessory use to a single or two-unit residential dwelling in the MX, R1, R2, AG, LCR2, LCR4, GW4, and GW5 Zones”
The home you live in (as Annapolis County’s by-law defines it)AllowedWhen the owner lives on the property, a residential dwelling unit there may be used as a short-term rental (the by-law says in all zones)
A home you don’t live inOnly with approvalOnly when the owner lives on the same property or on a property that abuts it (the by-law says in all zones)
A suite or second unit on the lot you live onAllowedWhere the zone permits the suite, since the owner lives on the property
“A residential dwelling unit may be used as a short-term rental in all zones if the owner of the short-term rental lives on or abuts the property containing the short-term rental unit.”
The home you live in (as Annapolis County’s by-law defines it)AllowedWhen the owner lives on the property, a residential dwelling unit there may be used as a short-term rental
A home you don’t live inOnly with approvalOnly when the owner lives on the same property or on a property that abuts it
A suite or second unit on the lot you live onAllowedWhere the zone permits the suite, since the owner lives on the property
“A residential dwelling unit may be used as a short-term rental if the owner of the short-term rental lives on or abuts the property containing the short-term rental unit.”
The home you live in (as Annapolis County’s by-law defines it)AllowedWhen the owner lives on the property, a residential dwelling unit there may be a short-term rental or bed and breakfast; in the UCR1 and UCR2 zones, one off-street parking space for each room rented
A home you don’t live inOnly with approvalOnly when the owner lives on the same property or on a property that abuts it; rental units on a campground are exempt from that test
A suite or second unit on the lot you live onAllowedWhere the zone permits the suite, since the owner lives on the property
“A residential dwelling unit may be used as a short-term rental or bed & breakfast establishment if the owner of the short-term rental lives on or abuts the property containing the rental unit. Short-term rental units located on a campground are permitted without the property owner living on the property or an abutting property.”
The home you live in (as Annapolis County’s by-law defines it)AllowedWhen the owner lives on the property, a residential dwelling unit there may be a short-term rental or bed and breakfast
A home you don’t live inOnly with approvalOnly when the owner lives on the same property or on a property that abuts it; rental units on a campground are exempt from that test
A suite or second unit on the lot you live onAllowedWhere the zone permits the suite, since the owner lives on the property
“A residential dwelling unit may be used as a short-term rental or bed & breakfast establishment if the owner of the short-term rental lives on or abuts the property containing the rental unit. Short-term rental units located on a campground are permitted without the property owner living on the property or an abutting property.”
The home you live in (as Annapolis County’s by-law defines it)Not named in the by-lawNot named as a use. The closest, a Bed and Breakfast or an Inn, is permitted in the R2 zone when the owner or manager lives on or next to the property, and a bed and breakfast of up to three units may be allowed in the R1 zone by development agreement
A home you don’t live inNot named in the by-lawNot named as a use; how a whole-home rental is classified is the development officer's decision
Closest defined use: Bed and Breakfast or Inn (a dwelling where the proprietor supplies rooms to the travelling public)
“7. BED AND BREAKFAST means a dwelling where the proprietor supplies either room or room and breakfast for monetary gain on a temporary basis, where not more than ten rooms are so used, and which is open to the travelling public. ... 35. INN means a dwelling where the proprietor supplies either room and board or meals for monetary gain on a temporary basis, where not more than twenty rooms are so used, and which is open to the travelling public. ... 9.3.3 ... (b) the owner, owners or manager of the bed and breakfast, inn or boarding house shall live on or adjacent to the property;”
County-wide, the limit counts rental units in a residential structure, not lots, and the by-law doesn't ask who lives there, so the first test is whether the zone permits the dwelling. Ask the County's planning office whether a house and its secondary suite can both be rented to travellers at once. What we haven't confirmed yet →
In the four planning areas with a short-term rental section, a home the owner doesn't live in qualifies only if the owner lives on that property or one bordering it, so a cottage whose owner lives elsewhere doesn't. Upper Clements and Habitation exempt campground units from that test.
Municipal step
Municipal step · Letter
STR Compliance Letter (Municipal Certificate of Compliance)
Issued by
Planning and Development, Municipality of the County of Annapolis
The letter is the County's written confirmation that a rental property meets its land-use by-laws, and the request form points to the Province's registration as its proof of compliance, so it comes first: Provincial registration. The form's office box also checks for development and building permits.
Steps and costs
Check the zone of the lot and confirm the use with Planning and Development (Development Officer), Municipality of the County of Annapolis, 902-532-2331, contact page.
STR Compliance Letter (Municipal Certificate of Compliance), from Planning and Development, Municipality of the County of Annapolis. Details
Register for the marketing levy and remit it on the bookings you collect it on. Details
Then register each unit with the Province and show the number on every listing. The provincial checklist →
What it costs an owner
Cost
The home you live in
Commercial short-term rental (a home you don’t live in)
STR Compliance Letter (Municipal Certificate of Compliance)
$50 letter fee (one time)
$50 letter fee (one time)
Provincial registration
$50 a year
$500 per unit a year
First year, municipal and provincial
$100
$550
On a phone, swipe the table sideways to see both columns.
A personal vacation home (a home you don’t live in, kept mainly for your own use; 150 rental days per registration year; an applicant may register only one personal vacation home) registers as a traditional tourist accommodation instead: $50, or $150 with five or more bedrooms a year (Regulations s.2(1), s.14).
The levy and HST are charged to guests, not owners; they are in Marketing levy.
On Airbnb, you add it to the guest’s bill and remit it (as of 28 Sep 2026)
On Vrbo, you add it to the guest’s bill and remit it (as of 28 Sep 2026)
On Booking.com, you add it to the guest’s bill and remit it (as of 28 Sep 2026)
On direct bookings, you add it to the guest’s bill and remit it (as of 28 Sep 2026)
Remitting it
Ask the County of Annapolis's marketing levy office how often levy reports and payments are due.
Exemptions, in the by-law’s words
“a person who pays for accommodation for which the daily purchase price is no more than twenty dollars ($20.00).”
“a student who is accommodated in a building owned or operated by a post-secondary educational institution while the student is registered at and attending a post-secondary educational institution.”
“a person who is accommodated in a room for more than thirty consecutive days: or”
“a person and the person's family accommodated while the person or a member of the person's family is receiving medical treatment at a hospital or provincial healthcare center or seeking specialist medical advice, provided the person provides to the operator a statement from a hospital or provincial healthcare center stating that: (i) the person or a member of the person's family is receiving medical treatment at the hospital or center or from a physician licensed to practice medicine in the Province of Nova Scotia. (ii) as a result, thereof the person or member of the person's family is in need of the accommodation; and (iii) the duration that the accommodation will be required.”
Charged to guests, not an owner cost
The levy and HST (14%) are added to the guest’s bill. HST is charged on the levy as well as on the room: a municipal levy is part of the price HST applies to, and no Nova Scotia marketing levy is on the federal list of levies left out of that price. The Marketing Levy Bylaw (Bylaw 2 Marketing Levy, which replaced the M8 Marketing Levy Bylaw) charges the levy on the guest’s purchase of the stay; you collect it. The levy is separate from HST, which is a federal and provincial sales tax.
Each place of business needs its own levy registration certificate from the County, displayed in a prominent place, and every bill or receipt shows the levy as a separate item.
The levy covers stays in the County, not in the Towns of Annapolis Royal or Middleton: Nearby and often confused.
Provincial registration
Register each unit with the Province before advertising it. The first application includes Annapolis County’s land-use document; a renewal doesn’t need it again unless the Province asks.
Fee here: $50 a year for the home you live in; $500 per unit a year for a commercial short-term rental (a home you don’t live in); a personal vacation home pays the traditional rate, $50 or $150.
Show the registration number on every listing, and renew by April 1 each year.
The Municipality of the County of Annapolis is in tier 2 of the Province's Schedule A. A commercial short-term rental (a home you don't live in) pays the tier 2 fee per unit each year. A personal vacation home, kept mainly for its owner's use, pays the lower traditional rate, and a primary residence the primary-residence fee.
Source · checked 28 Sep 2026 · Confirmed in source
What we haven't confirmed yet
Ask the County's Planning and Development office whether the County-wide by-law's limit of one short-term rental unit in a residential structure lets a house and its secondary suite be rented to travellers at the same time, particularly when the suite is in a separate building. (checked 28 Sep 2026 · source)
Ask the County's Planning and Development office whether a rental needs a development permit or a building permit as well as the compliance letter, and what either costs. The office-use box on the County's request form checks for both. (checked 28 Sep 2026 · source)
Ask the County's Planning and Development office whether the new Bridgetown Planning Area Land Use Bylaw has taken effect. Council has adopted it; it takes effect once the Minister approves it and the County gives public notice, and until then the older by-law applies in Bridgetown. The one amendment made at adoption doesn't touch its short-term rental section. (checked 28 Sep 2026 · source)
Ask the County's levy office whether a levy return is needed for a period with no bookings, and how a booking that includes meals is priced for the levy. (checked 28 Sep 2026 · source)
It's a 3% levy that guests pay on accommodation in the County, and the operator collects it and remits it to the County. It isn't part of HST, but where HST applies to the stay, HST is charged on the levy as well as on the room. Marketing levy →
Does Airbnb collect Annapolis County's marketing levy?
No. The County's levy page says platforms such as Airbnb aren't remitting it for hosts (checked 28 Sep 2026), so on Airbnb you add the levy to the guest's bill and remit it to the County yourself. Marketing levy →
Does Annapolis County have a short-term rental by-law?
Not a stand-alone one: where a short-term rental may operate is set by the County's land-use by-laws, one County-wide and one for each secondary planning area, and their rules differ. The marketing levy has a by-law of its own. Is a short-term rental allowed here? →
How do I register a short-term rental in Annapolis County?
Start with the County's STR Compliance Letter (Municipal Certificate of Compliance), which staff issue once they confirm the property meets the County's land-use by-laws. Then register each unit with the Province, and register with the County for the marketing levy. Steps and costs →
Who to contact
Municipality of the County of Annapolis, Main Office (Annapolis Royal), 902-532-2331, contact page
Planning and Development (Development Officer), Municipality of the County of Annapolis, 902-532-2331, contact page
Marketing Levy, Municipality of the County of Annapolis (Main Office), 902-532-2331, contact page
Offices only; this page carries no personal names or e-mail addresses.