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

In Toulouse, primary residences can only be rented as vacation accommodation for 120 days per year. Toulouse currently maintains the national limit of 120 days per year for primary residence rentals. The city has not yet activated the option provided by the Le Meur law to reduce this cap to 90 days. Toulouse city hall justified this choice by pointing to the weight of business tourism linked to Airbus, Thales, and CNES, which generates steady demand for short-term accommodation year-round. The municipal council nevertheless voted in 2025 to create a tourist accommodation observatory, tasked with monitoring market trends and proposing adjustments if necessary.

Platforms enforce automatic blocking at the 120-night threshold for Toulouse. The city hall has implemented a registration number verification system prior to listing publication, with a monthly cross-reference between municipal databases and files submitted by Airbnb and Booking. Listings without a valid number receive a 48-hour removal warning, followed by automatic deletion if non-compliance persists.

In Toulouse, the change-of-use authorization is processed by the Toulouse Métropole Planning Department, which consults the relevant neighborhood city hall. The average processing time is two to three months, significantly shorter than in metropolitan areas where compensation is required from the first property. Applications for properties located within the protected perimeter of the historic center are nevertheless subject to a thorough review by the Architect of Buildings of France. Compensation: From the 3rd property.

Toulouse applies a progressive compensation policy: the first two properties converted to tourist accommodation are exempt from compensation. The rule applies from the third property onwards, which protects small-scale owners while limiting multi-property investors. This three-property threshold is the highest among major French metropolitan areas, reflecting Toulouse's desire not to hamper moderate tourist rental investment. Compensation must be carried out in the same geographic area, at a 1:1 ratio, and the case is processed by the Toulouse Métropole Planning Department. The average processing time is two to three months, and the compensating property must meet current decency and energy performance standards.

No quotas established yet

Toulouse has not yet implemented a quota system to limit the number of tourist accommodations. The city is nevertheless monitoring market developments and could activate this option provided by the Le Meur law if housing pressure intensifies in the central neighborhoods (Capitole, Saint-Étienne, Carmes). The municipal tourist accommodation observatory, created in 2025, publishes a biannual report on listing density by neighborhood. Initial figures show that the Capitole neighborhood already has over 15% of its housing converted to tourist accommodation, a threshold that could trigger the implementation of quotas in the coming years.

Toulouse has opted for a graduated sanctions strategy, initially favoring formal notice with a 30-day compliance period. In cases of persistent non-compliance, the Housing Department refers the case to the public prosecutor, and fines issued by the Toulouse judicial court average between €15,000 and €40,000, with a legal cap of €80,000.

The maximum fine in Toulouse is €80,000 for the most serious violations (unauthorized change of use, quota violations). Inspections focus primarily on multi-property owners and undeclared secondary residences in the historic center. The Toulouse Métropole Housing Department recruited six additional agents in 2025 to strengthen inspections, with a particular focus on the Capitole, Saint-Cyprien, and Jean-Jaurès neighborhoods. Inspectors use scraping tools to identify listings without a valid registration number.