Press release by the City of Amsterdam
In a case at the Regional Court in Paris, involving AIRBNB Ireland, the investigating judge decided to refer to the EU Court of Justice to ask for a preliminary ruling on whether the services provided in France by AIRBNB Ireland, benefit from the freedom to provide services, laid down by the so called E-commerce Directive of the European Union.
The Advocate General’s opinion on this to the Court (published April 30, 2019) is affirmative to this question.
This will have, we fear, one major implication: Homes needed for residents to live and work in our cities, will become more and more considered as a market for renting out to tourists. We think that cities are best placed to understand their residents’ needs. They have always been allowed to organize local activities through urban planning or housing measures. The AG seems to imply that this will simply no longer be possible in the future when it comes to Internet giants.
The threats and risks for the social and livable configuration of our cities are evident.
Press release ‘Cities alarmed about European protection of holiday rental’
