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Register a prescribed accommodation business

All prescribed accommodation businesses must be registered with Council. This is a requirement of the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 (the Act).

Prescribed accommodation businesses

Accommodation businesses include:

  • motels
  • boarding houses, rooming houses or shared accommodation
  • caravan parks.

Rooming house or shared accommodation

Before operating a rooming house or shared accommodation you must apply for, and be granted, a licence through Consumer Affairs Victoria.

The rooming house operators licensing scheme was established under the Rooming House Operators Act 2016.

Find out more on the Consumer Affairs Victoria website.

Register your business

To register your prescribed accommodation premises you need to submit a plan assessment form. This form must be accompanied by the following documents:

  • A detailed floor plan showing the layout of your premises
  • The proposed use of each room
  • The dimension of each bedroom in metres
  • The maximum number of persons that will be residing in each room

An Environmental Health Officer will review your application and attachments once received by the health department.

Application for Plan Assessment of Accommodation Premises

Transfer the registration of your business

To transfer business registration, you need to complete an:

Application to Transfer the Registration of an Accommodation Premises

The transfer is not official until Council has approved the application.

Renew your registration

We will send you a renewal notice towards the end of the year.

Building and planning permits

Depending on the type of business and the changes you may be making, you may also need other planning and building permits.

Contact Building Services or Planning Services if you have any questions.

About fees

Registration fees:

  • are paid on an annual basis from 1 January – 31 December
  • can be applied on a half-yearly pro-rata basis depending on when your application and payment are received
  • are valid until 31 December regardless of when you apply during the year.

Make sure you pay the appropriate fee when you lodge your application, otherwise it may delay the processing.

Accommodation registration fees

The following accommodation registration fees and charges are applicable from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2024.

These charges are GST exempt.

Type of accommodation

Annual
registration fee

Up to 20 residents

$419

21 to 40 residents

$645

More than 40 residents

$974

Other fees and charges

The following legislative fees and charges are applicable from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025.

These fees are GST inclusive.

ServiceFee
Transfer of Public Health and Wellbeing Act registration50 per cent of annual registration (see table above)
Premises enquiry inspection – prior to transfer (4 working day turnaround)$395
Premises enquiry inspection – prior to transfer (10 working day turnaround)$290
Premises enquiry inspection – 2nd and subsequent requests$130
Establishment fee (single payment for setting up registration) – Public Health and Wellbeing Act$185
Lodgement fee for new registration application $80

Penalties for late payment

All registrations lapse on 31 December of each year. It is important to lodge your renewal of registration with the applicable fee before this date.

If not, your business will be trading unregistered after 1 January of the following year. It is an offence to trade unregistered and you may:

  • be issued with a Penalty Infringement Notice (PIN), and
  • have legal action taken against you.

PIN penalties include:

  • four penalty units for individuals and ten penalty units for companies for Public Health and Wellbeing Act breaches
  • ten penalty units for all parties breaching the Residential Tenancies (Caravan Parks and Movable Dwellings Registration and Standards) Regulations 2010.

Need help?

Email [email protected] and we will get back to you.

Or call our Health Services team on 9298 8000.

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