Host Support

There are 2 ways to manage a private rental:

1. Obtain a rental accommodation business license, or
2. If the room is within Japan's National Strategic Special Zones, you can take advantage of Special Zone Law, Article 13 (Exceptions to Hotel Management Law) to receive special clearance from your municipality. In this case, you won't need a license. It can be difficult for regular citizens to attain a rental accommodation business license due to the many codes and standards that must be met, such as building standard laws and fire service laws.

To become an authorized business operator, you must receive certification from your nearest public health center. STAY JAPAN can assist you with the application process. For more details, please contact us.

First go to the Owners page and contact us via the contact form. Our staff will get back to you within 2 business days.

As of October 2016, Special Zone rentals are limited to:
- Ota-ku in Tokyo
- Osaka Prefecture (excluding public health centers)
- Osaka City

Japan's National Strategic Special Zones include:
- Tokyo area (Tokyo Metropolis, Kanagawa Prefecture, Narita City in Chiba Prefecture)
- Kansai area (Osaka Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Hyogo Prefecture)
- Niigata City in Niigata Prefecture
- Yabu City in Hyogo Prefecture
- Fukuoka City in Fukuoka Prefecture
- Okinawa Prefecture
- Senboku City in Akita Prefecture
- Sendai City in Miyagi Prefecture
- Aichi Prefecture

As of October 2016, you can operate a private rental in the following regions:
- Ota-ku in Tokyo
- Osaka Prefecture (excluding public health centers)
- Osaka City (starting October 2016)

STAY JAPAN offers private rentals in Japan only. We cannot accept rooms in other countries.

Ordinary households without a rental accommodation business license can still register a house on STAY JAPAN as long as it meets Article 13 of the Act on National Strategy Special Zones. Outside those zones, you must have a rental accommodation business license (as of September 2016).

As long as you have a rental accommodation business license and your property is in Japan, you can register it on STAY JAPAN. However, you must register each room individually. You cannot register an entire hotel or ryokan inn as a single room.

If you own the dormitory:
So long as you have a rental accommodation business license or the dormitory is located in a Special Zone, you can rent it with us.

If you live in the dormitory:
As long as you have clearance from a manager to sign a subletting contract, and the room meets the same criteria as above, then you can rent it with us.

Generally speaking, many landlords do not allow subletting, so we recommend that you speak with your landlord first.

Whether it's corporate-owned or privately owned, as long as the property has government clearance, you can register it on STAY JAPAN. If you have any questions, please contact us.

You must meet the following requirements:

1. Be a registered user on STAY JAPAN.
2. The property you want to register is in Japan.
3. Either have a rental accommodation business license, or the property is located in a Special Zone and you have special clearance from your municipality.
4. Have uploaded a profile image.
5. Have entered all relevant property information.

Property rates, calendar availability, etc. are not required in order for the room to be made public. As per the standard to receive a rental accommodation business license, the room will need to meet certain regulations, such as room size, fire service laws, building standard laws, etc. However, if you meet our requirement #3, then you will have already met these standards. You can also register rooms in pre existing lodging facilities, like ryokan inns and hotels.

On principle, reservations can only be made on our site, and support is typically handled via email. However, if you've made a reservation and wish to ask questions via telephone or fax, please use the message function to send us your telephone or fax number.

You will be paid the property usage fees you've accrued up until the end of the month, minus processing fees. STAY JAPAN will deposit your earnings into your bank account at the end of the following month.

At the end of the following month, we will deduct the processing fee from your earnings, then pay you the remainder.

You will receive information from travelers, who place a reservation request to you. If the traveler doesn't meet any of your desired conditions then you are free to deny the request.

However, for properties operating under a rental accommodation business license, it is illegal to discriminate against certain types of guests.

We can assist you with some parts of the process, such as handing over keys. Please contact us.

Currently we are considering offering a full service package that covers property applications, a guide to the vicinity, reservation management, property cleaning, and more.

Smartphone photos are perfectly acceptable. The photos will play an important role in helping potential travelers choose a room, so we recommend uploading clear, high-quality photos.

As long as it's an authorized hotel facility, you can register it on STAY JAPAN.

There's a lot you'll need to prepare in advance of your guests, including bedding, furniture, appliances, amenities and keys. STAY JAPAN offers a service that can handle this for you. Feel free to contact us!

With daily rates, you can charge more per day compared to long-term rental rates. Thus, so long as you maintain a certain occupancy rate, it will be more profitable than a long-term rental.

Normally we ask you to handle renovations, furniture installation, and other preparations. However, if you wish, we can introduce you to partner companies who offer consulting and renovation services. Please contact us.

You can manage approved reservations on your smartphone. As for the rest of the site, you can access it on your smartphone or tablet, but we can't guarantee that it will work correctly. For now, we recommend using a PC for other sections. Full mobile and tablet support will be coming soon!

You can set room rates by going to Menu > Room List > Edit Room > Set Rates and Requirements.

Here you can set various different rates - weekday, weekend, long term, cancellation fee, etc. For daily rates, you can set them under "Sale Date" on the left side of the same page.

To set your room rate, go to Menu > Room List > Edit Room > Set Rates and Requirements. Rates can also be changed for specific calendar periods.

You can set a different room rate for Fridays and Saturdays. (Please note that weekday rates apply for Sundays.)

Go to Menu > Room List > Edit Room > Basic Info > Room Information, then look for the "Entered something incorrectly? Contact Us" in order to request a property type change.

From the Manage Room page, click Edit Room, then click the Photos subheader on the left side of the page. From there, either drag and drop your photo to the designated area, or click the Choose Photo button and manually select the file(s). Once your photos have been uploaded, they will be saved.

Currently, there are no limits. Feel free to register all your available rooms.

On the Manage Room page, click the "Check Room Details" button above the photos to see what your room looks like to travelers.

STAY JAPAN offers an interior decor service to get your room ready for guests. Included in this service is a photo shoot of the interior and exterior. As a general rule we do not offer the photography service as a stand-alone service.

Please contact us. Our customer service can guide you every step of the way!

STAY JAPAN offers separate insurance for hosts and travelers during the stay. We'll listen to any issues you have and compensate you within the scope of that insurance. If you encounter any damage, please contact us. (Insurance provided by Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd.)

For details on traveler's insurance, click here: STAY JAPAN's Traveler Insurance

For more information, please contact us.

If you set your phone number to be public, it will be sent to travelers after they send you a reservation request. It is therefore possible that travelers will call you with questions. If you do not wish to receive any such calls please set your phone number to private.

You cannot register multiple rooms under one listing. You must register each one separately.

In addition to the email notification, if you log in to STAY JAPAN then you'll see a notification icon at the top of the page. Click the icon to see the reservation details.

In this case, you can find the canceled reservation in your My Page inbox. If you know you can't accept a reservation, try to let the traveler know as soon as possible so as not to impact their travel plans.
*In some cases, you may not have a full 72 hours to respond.

Once a reservation goes through, the system locks in those dates, preventing any other reservations for that time period.