To legally rent your Montreux apartment on Airbnb or Booking.com, you need two authorisations before your first guest arrives: a cantonal declaration with Canton Vaud (LEAE) and a municipal permit from the Commune de Montreux. Skip either and you risk fines, forced delisting, and retroactive claims for unpaid tourist taxes.

This guide walks through every step — cantonal declaration, municipal permit, the 90-night rule, tourist tax registration, and the guest register you're required to keep. For a broader overview of renting in Montreux, see our complete Montreux rental guide.

Key takeaways

  • Canton Vaud law (LEAE, in force since 1 July 2022) requires all hosts to declare their activity to the commune before their first booking.
  • The Commune de Montreux also requires a municipal authorisation for any change of residential use.
  • If your apartment was previously on a traditional lease, renting it short-term for more than 90 nights per year triggers a formal change-of-use permit from the Canton.
  • Airbnb automatically collects the tourist tax for Vaud communes. Other platforms don't — you collect it yourself.
  • You must keep a written guest register with identity document details for every stay.

In this guide

  1. Why Montreux has stricter rules
  2. Step 1 — Declare your activity to the Commune
  3. Step 2 — Obtain municipal authorisation
  4. Step 3 — Understand the 90-night rule
  5. Step 4 — Register for tourist tax collection
  6. Step 5 — Set up your guest register
  7. Full compliance checklist
  8. How long does the process take?
  9. Frequently asked questions

Why Montreux has stricter rules than most Swiss towns

The Montreux district appears on Canton Vaud's official housing-shortage list — the same list that determines which districts have tenant-protection rules on rent increases and evictions. In 2022, the Grand Conseil (Vaud's cantonal parliament) amended the Loi sur l'exercice des activités économiques (LEAE) specifically to bring short-term rental activity under formal oversight.

The stated goals were three: identify all active hosts, ensure tourist taxes are actually collected, and control whether apartments are leaving the long-term rental market. If your district is on the shortage list — and Montreux is — every rule in this guide applies to you in full.

Which districts are on the Vaud housing-shortage list? The list is published by the Direction générale du territoire et du logement (DGTL) and updated periodically. As of 2026, Montreux is included. Check vd.ch or call the DGTL on 021 316 74 11 to confirm your specific commune and situation.

Step 1 — Declare your activity to the Commune de Montreux

Under article 74c of the LEAE (in force since 1 July 2022), every person who rents out all or part of their apartment via an online platform must declare that activity to the municipality before their first guest checks in. This is a cantonal legal obligation — it's not optional and it doesn't expire.

In practice for Montreux, this declaration is bundled with the municipal authorisation request described in Step 2. You're not filing two separate forms; the commune processes both together. What matters is that you complete the process before you go live on any platform.

The commune uses these declarations to:

Step 2 — Obtain the municipal authorisation (changement d'affectation)

The Commune de Montreux requires a prior municipal authorisation for any apartment converted from residential use to a B&B or logement de vacances. This is separate from — and additional to — the cantonal declaration above.

Here's how to apply:

  1. Download the official form
    The 2026 procedure document is available directly from the commune: Démarches administratives — Logements de vacances 2026 (PDF). This is the document the urbanisme service references on their official page.
  2. Complete the form in full
    You'll need basic property information: address, cadastre number, number of rooms, maximum number of guests, and whether you're the owner or a tenant. Tenants must also provide their landlord's written consent (see the sub-letting rules below).
  3. Submit to the Service de l'urbanisme
    Return the completed form to:
    Service de l'urbanisme, Avenue de Belmont 25 bis, 1820 Montreux
    The commune reviews the application and issues an authorisation. Processing times vary; contact the service directly to confirm current turnaround.

⚠️ Tenants, read this first. If you rent your apartment (rather than own it), Vaud's Règles et usages locatifs (RULV art. 22) and the Code des Obligations (art. 262 CO) classify Airbnb-style letting as sub-letting. You must obtain your landlord's written consent before submitting any application to the commune. A landlord can refuse if the sub-let conditions are abusive or if there are serious reasons — and refusal is legally valid.

Step 3 — Understand the 90-night rule (and when you need a cantonal permit)

This is where Montreux hosts most often get caught out. Article 15 of the RLPPPL (the regulation implementing the law on housing stock preservation) draws a hard line at 90 nights per calendar year.

The rule works like this:

Which apartments are exempt from the 90-night cantonal permit?

Even if you exceed 90 nights, a cantonal changement d'affectation is not required if your apartment meets any of these conditions (art. 3 LPPPL):

If you're unsure whether your property qualifies for an exemption, call the DGTL directly: 021 316 74 11, Monday to Friday, 8:30–11:30 and 13:30–16:30. They'll tell you clearly — and the call is free.

If you own multiple apartments in the same building and are considering running them as a unified operation, the legal and operational requirements are more complex. See the guide to running an apartment building as an apart-hotel in Switzerland for the full regulatory and operational picture.

If a cantonal permit is required, the application goes to the Direction du logement via the standard change-of-use procedure. Details are at vd.ch — Demande d'autorisation.

Our experience: Most privately owned Montreux apartments used as primary or secondary residences by their owners qualify for exemption under the owner-occupation clause. The 90-night rule and cantonal permit requirement apply mainly to investors who purchased or acquired an apartment that was previously rented long-term to a third party. If you've always lived in — or owned unoccupied — the apartment yourself, you likely don't need the cantonal permit. Confirm with DGTL before acting on this.

Step 4 — Register for tourist tax collection

Montreux charges a taxe de séjour (tourist tax) on every guest night. The rate is set by the commune and applies to all commercial accommodation, short-term rentals included. You are legally responsible for collecting this tax from your guests and remitting it to the commune.

If you list on Airbnb

Airbnb has a direct agreement with the Union des communes vaudoises (UCV) to collect and remit tourist taxes on behalf of all Vaud communes that have opted in. For bookings made through the Airbnb platform, the tax is added to the guest's bill automatically and passed to the commune — you don't handle the money. This is confirmed by the Canton's own guidance at vd.ch/hebergement-airbnb.

If you list on other platforms (Booking.com, VRBO, your own site)

No automatic collection exists for other platforms. You need to:

  1. Add the tourist tax to your guest invoices manually
  2. Declare and remit the collected amount to the commune on the schedule they specify
  3. Keep records of all nights sold and taxes collected

Contact the commune's tax office or the UCV directly to register: ucv.ch — Airbnb et taxe de séjour.

Step 5 — Set up and maintain your guest register

Under article 74c, paragraphs 3 and 4 of the LEAE, every short-term rental host in Vaud must keep a written register of all guests. The same obligation applies to hotels. Communes are responsible for enforcing this on their territory (art. 89 LEAE).

For each stay, your register must record:

There's no prescribed format — a simple spreadsheet works. What matters is that the information is available if the commune requests it during a compliance check. Keep records for at least the current calendar year and the prior year as a minimum.

How we do it at Riviera Host: For every booking across our managed apartments, we collect a copy of the guest's identity document at check-in and log the details in a secure spreadsheet. Airbnb's booking data provides dates and names automatically — we just add the document number and nationality. The whole process takes under two minutes per booking.

Full compliance checklist — Montreux short-term rental (2026)

Use this as your pre-launch checklist. Don't publish your listing until every item is ticked.

Requirement Authority When
Cantonal declaration of hosting activity (LEAE art. 74c) Commune de Montreux Before first booking
Municipal authorisation for change of residential use Service de l'urbanisme, Montreux Before first booking
Landlord's written consent (tenants only) Your landlord Before commune application
Cantonal change-of-use permit (if formerly long-term rented & >90 nights/year) Direction du logement, Canton Vaud Before exceeding 90 nights
Tourist tax registration (non-Airbnb platforms) Commune / UCV Before first booking
Guest register (ongoing) Self-maintained Every stay

How long does the whole process take?

In our experience registering apartments across the Montreux district, the timeline typically looks like this:

Plan for 2–3 weeks for a straightforward case (owner-occupied apartment, no prior long-term lease). If you need the cantonal permit, budget 6–10 weeks before you can legally go live.

Once registered, you'll be positioned to capture Montreux's full income potential — including the Jazz Festival fortnight, which alone can represent 12–18% of a property's annual revenue. Our Airbnb income guide shows realistic earnings for registered, professionally managed properties.

Related reading: Hidden costs of self-managing · Airbnb pricing strategy for Montreux · Property readiness checklist · Short-term rental in Villeneuve: legal guide · Airbnb tax and VAT in Montreux · Insurance for short-term rentals

Bahram Khanlarov
Bahram Khanlarov

Founder of Riviera Host. BBA Hospitality (Glion), MSc Tourism (FHGR), MSc Data Science (HSLU). 8+ years managing short-term rentals on the Swiss Riviera.

Don't want to handle the paperwork yourself?

Riviera Host manages the full registration process for our owner-partners — including the cantonal declaration, municipal authorisation, tourist tax setup, and ongoing compliance. We work exclusively with licensed apartments.

Talk to us about your apartment

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to register my Montreux apartment before listing on Airbnb?

Yes. Since 1 July 2022, Canton Vaud law (LEAE art. 74c) requires every host to declare their rental activity to the commune before taking their first booking. The Commune de Montreux also requires prior municipal authorisation. Operating without these is a legal violation, and communes are required by law to enforce it.

What is the 90-night rule in Canton Vaud?

If your apartment was previously rented under a traditional long-term lease, you need a formal changement d'affectation from the Canton before renting it short-term for more than 90 nights per calendar year. This rule applies because the Montreux district is on Vaud's housing-shortage list. Several exemptions exist — see Step 3 above.

Does Airbnb collect the tourist tax automatically in Montreux?

Yes, for bookings made through the Airbnb platform. Airbnb has a dedicated agreement with the Union des communes vaudoises (UCV) to collect and remit tourist taxes on behalf of Vaud communes. If you list on other platforms — Booking.com, VRBO, your own website — you must collect and remit the tax yourself.

Do I need to keep a guest register?

Yes. Canton Vaud law (LEAE art. 74c al. 3–4) obliges every short-term rental host to maintain a register of all guests showing full name, nationality, identity document number, and exact dates of stay. The commune can inspect it at any time.

Is my apartment exempt from the cantonal change-of-use permit?

Possibly. Exemptions apply if the apartment is (or was last) owner-occupied, if the building has two or fewer units, if the apartment is 150 m² or larger, or if its ECA fire insurance replacement value exceeds CHF 750/m³. Call the DGTL on 021 316 74 11 to confirm your specific situation — it's the fastest way to get a definitive answer.

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