38. The Planning and Development Act 2000 is amended by the insertion of the following section:

“Short term lettings

3A. (1) The use of a house or part of a house situated in a rent pressure zone for short term letting purposes is a material change in use of the house or part thereof, as the case may be.

(2) For the purposes of this section, the Minister may make regulations requiring such persons as are specified in the regulations to provide a planning authority with such information as may be so specified and at such intervals as may be so specified in relation to short term lettings in the administrative area of the planning authority.

(3) A person who contravenes a provision of regulations under this section that is described in the regulations as a penal provision shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a class A fine.

(4) This section shall not operate to abrogate or amend the law with regard to—

(a) lettings (including short term lettings) outside a rent pressure zone, or

(b) lettings (other than short term lettings) in a rent pressure zone.

(5) In this section—

‘rent pressure zone’ means—

(a) any area standing prescribed for the time being under section 24A of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004, or

(b) an administrative area deemed to be a rent pressure zone under section 24B of that Act;

‘short term letting’ means the letting of a house or part of a house for any period not exceeding 14 days, and includes a licence that permits the licensee to enter and reside in the house or part thereof for any such period in consideration of the making by any person (whether or not the licensee) of a payment or payments to the licensor.”.