Airbnb regulations in Paris: what the Le Meur Law changes from 2025

In Paris, primary residences can only be rented as vacation accommodation for 90 days per year. Since January 2025, the limit has been reduced from 120 to 90 days per year for primary residences, in line with the option provided by the Le Meur law. Paris was one of the first cities to activate this reduction. This measure applies across all 20 arrondissements without distinction and is calculated cumulatively over the calendar year, from January 1 to December 31. The City of Paris Housing and Habitat Department estimates that this reduction from 120 to 90 days could return approximately 4,000 homes to the traditional rental market. Owners must declare each rental start and end date through the municipal online service, or risk having their registration revoked.

Since 2019, a partnership between the City of Paris and the platforms enables automatic and verified blocking of listings beyond 90 nights. The registration number is cross-referenced with city hall data to detect fraud, and platforms submit an annual comprehensive count of nights per property to municipal services. This pioneering system has been praised by the European Commission as a model for cooperation between local authorities and digital platforms.

In the capital, the change-of-use authorization is processed by the Bureau de la Protection des Locaux d'Habitation (BPLH), a service unique to France that handles over 1,500 cases per year. The average processing time is four to six months, and each application is subject to an on-site visit by a sworn inspector. Compensation: 1:1 to 3:1 depending on zone.

In Paris, any change of use from residential to furnished tourist accommodation requires compensation. The ratio varies by arrondissement: 1 sqm for 1 sqm in outer arrondissements, up to 3 sqm for 1 sqm in the most pressured areas (notably the 1st through 4th arrondissements). Compensation must be provided within the same arrondissement, making the process particularly burdensome and costly in the city center. In the Marais (3rd and 4th arrondissements), compensation costs can exceed €3,000 per square meter due to the scarcity of available real estate. Applications are processed by the Bureau de la Protection des Locaux d'Habitation (BPLH), which reviews each case individually with an average processing time of four to six months.

Zoning system by arrondissement

Paris does not apply an overall quota but uses a strict zoning system. Change-of-use authorizations are granted on a case-by-case basis, with deterrent compensation ratios in the central arrondissements. The City of Paris has a dedicated team of over 40 agents to monitor short-term rentals. These agents use advanced digital tools to cross-reference online listings with tax declarations and land registry files. In the central arrondissements (1st through 6th), the refusal rate for change-of-use applications exceeds 80%, making it virtually impossible to rent out secondary residences without considerable compensation investment.

Paris has deployed an enforcement arsenal unmatched in France, with a digital monitoring unit operating 7 days a week and more than 40 sworn investigators attached to the Housing Department. Fines, among the highest in Europe, are systematically collected by the Public Treasury with a recovery rate exceeding 90%.

Penalties in Paris are among the most severe in France. Fines can reach €50,000 for failure to register and up to €100,000 for unauthorized change of use. In 2023, the City of Paris issued over 600 penalties against non-compliant landlords, totaling more than €8 million. The Paris judicial court upheld nearly all of these fines on appeal, establishing solid case law. Proceedings are now largely automated through an algorithmic detection system for non-compliant listings, developed in partnership with a data analytics startup.