Hosting in Egypt (outside Cairo)

[Dalal8]

Hi everyone 👋

I’m new here and I’m exploring the idea of listing a property on Airbnb. The place is in Al Minya Governorate, Egypt, and before I move forward, I have a few questions I’m hoping fellow hosts (especially those in Egypt!) can help with.

1. Do I need to get any kind of license or permit before listing my home on Airbnb?

2. How do hosts in Egypt handle guest reporting and safety requirements?

3. If something happens to a guest during their stay, how does liability work? Am I legally responsible? Does Airbnb's insurance cover anything here in Egypt?

4. Do you know if Airbnb support helps with local legal compliance, or do I need to deal directly with government offices?

[Elisa]

Hi @Dalal8 😊,

Thank you for asking these questions here!

Have you been able to figure anything out in the meantime?

I’m tagging a few hosts from Egypt to see what advice they might have for you: @Ahmed1048, @Amro35, @Abdelkader21, @Karim538, @Kamal210, @Elena4390 and @Shady2.

Thank you in advance everyone!

Warm regards 🌻,

[Dalal8]

Thanks alot Elisa, much appreciated!

[Elisa]

Hi @Dalal8  😊, 

Thank you for letting me know!

I’m happy to read all these great suggestions.

What do you think of them? Do you still need help?

Don’t hesitate to let me know!

Warm regards 🌻,

[Elena4390 · Accepted solution]

Hi @Dalal8,

Welcome aboard the to realm of the exceptional hospitality experience!!

Hosting in Egypt can be a little bit of a challenge, especially if you're new to the Airbnb sphere, though it can be very rewarding, based on the fact that it is a relatively new raw market with not much competition and rising demand from the guests side, I will share with you some ideas based on the fact that I have been hosting proactively for the last 6 years, inside and outside Egypt.

1. for the time being we are not asked to have a special license or permit to list your unit online in Egypt. However, if the unit is located in a resort or a compound under the Ministry of Tourism, there is a license to be issued for leasing it out in general even if offline, not specifically for Airbnb or any other platform, so if it is not in a resort you can go ahead and list it.

2. 3. for both of these points and as in Egypt there is no real official or governmental process for the online listings, so here what we do to be in a very safe side in case of any issue happens from the guests side to the unit or towards their neighborhood or the community; by the check-in time we ask the guests to sign a preset 'rental agreement' - short or longterm,  it is easy to get by the way in Egypt, I think it is sold in stationaries even, and to be signed previously by your side ( your co-hosts can process the whole thing) so that, just in case, if anything goes south, the Egyptian Authorities will have to interfere, as long as you have this written agreement, and it is not your responsibilities anymore. Yes, the Airbnb insurance cover cases in Egypt, I had couple of cases and it was fully supported and resolved up to my convenience, but please always back up your claims with as much as possible  proof and evidence (photos and bills) and clear communication with the support team to enable them to help you the best way.

4. For Government Compliance, you have to process this yourself or your legal accountant, but as far as I know it is not much to do for now, if this is your second, third, or more unit owned by you and registered with public registrar (Shahr Aqary) you will just need to open a property tax file for it.

I hope that those ideas can give you some guidance for a smooth listing journey. Fun fact that Minya is the hometown of my husband, it is a beautiful place and I do believe it might be a nice place to start from with very little competition or offered units, you have a chance to be the community leader in there. 🙂

Cheers,

[Dalal8]

Thank you so much Alena for all these details, this is so helpful. @Elena4390