Boycott Russian Users in Solidarity with Ukraine

[Nino381]

We urge Airbnb to announce boycott against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine! Similar to many international organisations that have pulled out of Russia in solidarity with Ukraine, we ask Airbnb to oppose this unacceptable situation and block Russian users from its services!

[Yulia114]

Hi everyone,

I am host in Airbnb since 4 years. I left Russia several years ago, I have been living in Austria for two years now, but I still have a Russian passport. My husband is Austrian. I'm renting out my apartment in Budapest, but Airbnb has blocked all rent payments. But tourists with confirmed bookings keep coming. I don't get paid for these bookings and I can't cancel them. I have already written a lot of appeals to the support service to explain to me what to do with tourists who come and they answer me nothing, do not offer any solutions, just ignore my appeals. I write to tourists that I do not receive money for their reservations. They write to the support service and they assure them that I get everything. In relation to me, as a host, as a member of your so-called community, this is just a betrayal. You have abandoned not only me, but all your tourists. My Airbnb account was opened in 2017, when I was still living in Russia and I can't enter information about the fact that I don't live in Russia now without losing all my bookings. To do this, I will have to open a new account and everything I did as a super host, all reviews, all information will be reset to zero. All I ask from the support service is to help me switch to a new account linked to my current location with the reservation information saved. But all my requests are ignored. How can this be called, if not discrimination based on nationality?? And if we are already talking about nationalities now, then my nationality is Ukrainian. My parents are from Ukraine, my relatives live in Ukraine and I am helping them now in any way I can. But I was born in Russia, lived in Russia and have a Russian passport from birth. I don't believe in any airbnb message after that, because with such actions you undermine the essence of Airbnb policy. Support and participation is just for show. Many times Airbnb has already abandoned me in difficult situations. Airbnb took away the status of a super host during the pandemic, when Hungary was closed for almost 2 years for tourists and much more. Now that Airbnb has stopped paying for tourists at all, all these superhost statuses have no meaning for me. The only answer I got to my questions about payments is that I will get some bonuses instead of money. This is just a mockery! Do I have to pay for laundry, cleaning, taxes and utilities with bonuses from Airbnb? I simply have no words for such hypocrisy.

[Katia437]

Hi Yulia,

My name is Katia and I have been an Airbnb host for many years, renting my apartments in South Africa, where I reside. Guess what - my payouts for all the bookings, made in March-June this year have been stopped. I tried everything I could - changed the bank account linked to airbnb, wrote emails to the airbnb community, and in twitter. It is very difficult to get an airbnb person to speak to you but I managed to get someone to talk to me twice. 

They are very secretive about what is going on (not allowed to share the information) but  I what I understood form those two conversations is that Airbnb is not going to pay to Russian nationals neither for the past nor for the new bookings.  They said that the system was picking up the link of my airbnb account to my account in a Russian bank. But this was changes a while ago and all the bookings made in April -June were linked to my account in a South African bank. I even removed and uploaded again my South African ID, to make sure that Airbnb can see that I am actually a South African resident.

But all my efforts were made in vain - we should understand that Airbnb is one of those organisations, which has no rules but their own. 

Of course, I am not going to host any airbnb guests for free, letting airbnb to benefit on my account. I have turned off my listings.

[Helen744]

@ Helen744 I hope clarification is available here  Airbnb sometimes seems to overstep the mark  H

[Emilie]

Hi @Irina549, 

There is more information about Airbnb's operations being stopped in Russia and Belarus at the moment, and how this might impact you as a guest or a Host, in this article. I'd like to stress that as I mentioned earlier on, this is based solely on geography, not nationality of our Community Members. 

Thanks, 

Emilie

[Mohamed637]

I think everybody has right to have their own opinion, I m absolutely with Russia, in my opinion and rhe most spanish people, Uctania is the evil in Dombas.

why do I have to think the same way that you ti continue in airbnb?

[Sudsrung0]

Im not getting involved in political arguments but if person has the means to pay then why are they banned? Or was this instructions from the American government? as part of sanctions?

We have some really good Russian guest over the years, lots of Russian like Phuket for their winter holiday destination.

One Russian guest bring my husband a bottle of after shave every year.

I would rather have 10 Russians than the one English pig I had to throw out of my apartment THIS WEEK! 

If I make a damage claim will airbnb ban him? no they wont.

[Sudsrung0]

@Nino381 

The latest from Phuket, Thailand this time of the year is always a popular destination for Russian tourist, Maybe even more Russians this year according to government figures they are the No1 tourist this year.

They are obviously getting out of Russia and our last couple of guest have been Russians both have been great guest, and they are all against the war they want it to stop.

I dont think Airbnb is banning Russian passport holders and over the next couple of months we have more Russian guest,