Private ruling: GST and supply of short-term accommodation
Date of advice: 16 April 2025
Published: 30 June 2025

Ruling: Q1: Are you making taxable supplies in accordance with section 9-5 of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act) when you supply short-term residential accommodation in the listed Apartments? | A1: No. You are not making taxable supplies in accordance with section 9-5 of the GST Act when you provide the listed Apartments for short-term accommodation. You are making input taxed supplies of residential premises in accordance with section 40-35 of the GST Act.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You are registered for GST. You lease a number of Apartments, located in different buildings or Complexes, from individuals through their agent. All the buildings of the Apartments are managed by dedicated property management companies. The owners of the individual apartments within the Complexes are responsible for paying the property management fees regularly. You do not own any of the Complexes. You do not have any involvement in the respective property management companies for each Complex nor do you have any input into the day-to-day operations of the Complexes as a whole. You have provided copies of the residential rental agreements for the Apartments. The Agreements are identical and you are listed as the renter. Each lease is for a period of 12 months and a monthly rent is payable. You were required to pay a rental bond equal to one month's rent. You sub-let all the Apartments on a short-term basis and advertise the Apartments on an online booking website. The following amenities are provided to the guests: • The Apartments are furnished and equipped. They all contain a kitchen, bedrooms, bathrooms, and a laundry. Some Apartments have fixed parking spaces available. • Each Apartment is available to a person or group of persons staying together. • Each Apartment provides coffee, tea bags, cooking oil, salt, shampoo, conditioner, laundry powder and clean linens. These amenities are provided at the beginning of each stay. • Guests are not provided with meals or food/groceries. • The Apartments have internet and cable TV provided. • Guests have access to the facilities in each Complex, including the swimming pool, barbeque area, laundry, guest lounge and an onsite restaurant. There is a front desk in each Complex where Guests can register for usage of facilities only. • The Apartments are thoroughly cleaned and all linens are replaced after each Guest checks out and before the next guest checks in. The cleaning cost is included in the booking fee and varies depending on the size of the property. • For longer stays, additional cleaning or fresh linen are available upon request. • All bookings, records of communication and payments are made through the Airbnb platform with no formal written agreements made. • Any issues or queries are raised through the online booking app before and during the stay. • All Guests agree to the house rules and Airbnb regulations upon booking. These rules cover important policies such as no smoking, no pets, no parties, and quiet hours. The house rules are clearly stated in the listing and are part of the booking terms, ensuring a comfortable stay for all guests and consideration for neighbours. • The Guests are provided keys to the Apartment by organising a time and date for personal handover by your staff member or by a locker service. The leasing of the Apartments is your only enterprise. You have not included GST in any charges.

Relevant legislative provisions: A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 section 9-5 | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 section 40-35 | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 paragraph 40-35(1)(a) | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 paragraph 40-35(2)(a) | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 section 195-1