Airbnb checkout rules change for reservations booked on or after 20 November 2026. Under Airbnb’s reasonable house rules and requests policy, hosts generally may not ask guests to do work that takes significant time or effort or would usually be done by a cleaner. For a Dubai holiday apartment, plan to put bed stripping, dishwashing, laundry and off-site waste disposal into the turnover clean. You can still make reasonable requests, such as asking guests to put used dishes in the sink and lock up when they leave.
What the Airbnb checkout rules change
The date refers to when the reservation is booked, not when the guest checks out. A reservation booked on or after 20 November 2026 falls under the updated policy even if the stay takes place later. Do not assume a stay after that date is covered solely because of its checkout date; check when the booking was made.
Airbnb distinguishes between house rules and requests. Guests must follow disclosed house rules, while Airbnb says they are encouraged to comply with requests. That distinction does not make a time-consuming cleaning task suitable as a request. The policy applies to both rules and requests, so relabelling a chore will not solve the problem.
The examples are general guidance. Airbnb says it can consider the context of a listing and relevant local circumstances, and may grant exceptions. Treat the policy as Airbnb’s platform guidance rather than a statement of Dubai law or a promise about how every individual case will be decided.
Which Airbnb checkout chores should you remove?
Airbnb’s policy gives examples of work hosts generally should not ask guests to complete. Review any checkout wording that tells guests to:
- Strip beds or remove pillowcases and duvet covers.
- Wash dishes and put them away.
- Start a load of laundry or wash used linen and towels.
- Take rubbish away from the property for off-site disposal.
For a Dubai host, those tasks need a place in the cleaning plan. Your cleaner needs to know which beds were used, collect linen, handle dishes left after checkout and deal with the property’s waste arrangements. If building waste facilities are outside the apartment, make that trip part of the turnover process rather than a guest instruction.
The distinction matters even where a task sounds small in a short message. ‘Please leave the flat ready for the next guest’ gives no useful boundary and could imply that guests must clean it. Name the few actions you reasonably want guests to take, and let the cleaning team handle the rest. Airbnb’s policy concerns what you ask guests to do; the cleaning fee does not change which chores are reasonable.
Requests that can remain simple
Airbnb’s house-rules update for hosts gives examples of reasonable requests. You can ask guests to put used dishes in the sink, gather used towels and sort rubbish and recycling into designated indoor bins. Turning off the AC when leaving is another example. Locking up at checkout can be a standard house rule.
Keep the wording precise. ‘Put used dishes in the sink’ is different from ‘wash, dry and put away all dishes’. ‘Use the indoor bins’ is different from ‘carry rubbish to a disposal point outside the property’. In a Dubai apartment, you can tell guests where the indoor bins are and how to switch off the AC without assigning them the cleaner’s work.
Where should Airbnb checkout instructions appear?
Put your house rules and requests in the designated section of your listing at the time of booking. Airbnb says hosts may not add new requirements after a reservation is made through messages, signs or an in-person conversation. A message sent the night before departure should therefore reinforce the disclosed instructions, not introduce another cleaning task.
Airbnb says guests can find the checkout time, checkout house rule and host requests in their reservation details. Use the same wording wherever you repeat that information. If your printed apartment guide says ‘start the washing machine’ but your listing no longer does, the guest receives conflicting directions and the guide still asks them to do the task.
Airbnb advises hosts to review their house rules and requests in the Listing editor. Checkout instructions no longer sit in a separate tab, so check the current listing fields rather than relying on an old saved set of instructions. Then inspect scheduled messages, the apartment guide, door signs and any message templates for stray checkout chores.
A clearer Dubai apartment checkout message
A short set of instructions could ask guests to put used dishes in the sink, place used towels together, use the labelled indoor waste bins, switch off the AC, close the door and lock up. Include the checkout time shown in the reservation details. Adapt the wording to your actual property: if guests cannot access a particular bin or a lock works differently, give directions they can follow.
Do not add ‘leave the apartment as you found it’ as a catch-all. Tell guests exactly which reasonable actions you are requesting, then give your turnover team a separate cleaning checklist. That separation makes it easier to see whether a guest instruction has crept into cleaner territory.
How Dubai hosts should change the turnover clean
Once guests are no longer asked to strip beds or begin laundry, allow for those jobs after departure. A same-day arrival leaves little room for a missed linen delivery, a dishwasher full of used dishes or an extra trip to the building’s waste area. Build the sequence around the checkout and next check-in times rather than assuming every guest will leave the flat partly cleaned.
A practical turnover sequence is:
- Confirm the checkout and next check-in times, building access and which beds may have been used.
- Check the property’s condition before cleaning and note any damage separately from routine mess.
- Collect used linen and towels, then prepare fresh sets for every bed and bathroom needed.
- Deal with dishes, kitchen surfaces, indoor bins and any waste transfer the building requires.
- Clean bathrooms, floors and high-touch points; account for sand at entrances, AC dust and hard-water marks on taps.
- Restock guest amenities, check the AC setting and lock-up procedure, then check each room before arrival.
Use the holiday home turnover checklist to turn that sequence into a property-specific handover. Note the number of beds, where spare linen lives, how the building handles waste and who can access the apartment between bookings.
Airbnb’s guide to planning a hosting routine recommends a cleaning routine and extra bedding and towels. In Dubai, spare linen is especially useful if laundry cannot be washed and dried before the next guest arrives. Set aside enough time for the actual tasks at your property rather than treating the gap between bookings as cleaning time by default.
If you need a record of the apartment’s condition after a turnover, the related guide to guest-ready touches for Dubai hosts helps you check the details a new arrival will see.
Should you change your Airbnb cleaning fee?
Review your cleaning fee after you have mapped the work your turnover team will now do. Airbnb describes a cleaning fee as a way to cover general cleanup after checkout. Its guidance on additional listing fees says hosts should not impose fees or penalties because a guest did not complete a specific cleaning or checkout task.
Start with the work, not a guess about what guests might do. Count beds that need changing, the linen and towels required, kitchen cleaning, waste handling, amenity restocking and the time available before the next check-in. The size and layout of the apartment, booking frequency and building access can also affect the cleaning plan. Check that your listing’s cleaning fee still reflects that plan without treating it as permission to require guests to wash dishes or strip beds.
For a closer look at the fee setting, read the Airbnb cleaning fee guide for Dubai hosts. If you are planning the cleaning service itself, the guide to factors affecting a Dubai Airbnb cleaning quote covers what to prepare before requesting one.
What should you do before 20 November 2026?
Make the edits before reservations are booked under the updated policy. This short action list gives you a way to check both the guest-facing instructions and the work behind them:
- Open your listing in Airbnb’s Listing editor. Check house rules and requests for bed stripping, dishwashing, laundry and off-site waste tasks.
- Replace broad cleaning demands with specific, reasonable requests that match your property.
- Check scheduled messages, printed guides and signs against the listing. Remove conflicting requirements.
- Update the turnover checklist to cover the tasks you have removed from guest instructions.
- Check spare linen, waste access and the time between checkout and the next arrival.
- Revisit the cleaning fee once you know what each turnover requires.
Repeat the check whenever you change the apartment layout, add beds or alter your booking schedule. A set of instructions written for one guest capacity may no longer match the work after you add another sleeping space.
How LUMINA can help with the turnover
LUMINA provides holiday home cleaning in Dubai, quoted per turnover on request. Turnovers are created automatically from the property’s iCal calendar; the service includes a damage check before cleaning, fresh linen and towels, restocked amenities and a photo of every room after each turnover in the owner portal. Send LUMINA your listing’s checkout time, next check-in time, bed setup and updated cleaning checklist to request a quote.
Frequently asked questions
What are the new Airbnb checkout rules?
For reservations booked on or after 20 November 2026, Airbnb generally does not allow hosts to ask guests to do tasks that take significant time or effort or are usually done by a cleaner. Reasonable checkout requests can still be included in the listing. The relevant date is when the guest books, rather than when they check out.
Do Airbnb guests have to wash dishes or strip the beds?
Airbnb lists washing and putting away dishes and stripping beds as examples of tasks hosts generally should not ask guests to do under the updated policy. Asking guests to put used dishes in the sink is an example of a reasonable request. Hosts should plan for the cleaner to handle the remaining work.
Can an Airbnb host ask guests to take out the trash?
Airbnb gives sorting rubbish and recycling into designated indoor bins as an example of a reasonable request. It lists taking rubbish off-site as work hosts generally should not ask guests to do. Give guests clear directions to the indoor bins and plan any further waste transfer as part of the turnover.
Where do guests find Airbnb checkout instructions?
Guests can see the checkout time, checkout house rule and host requests in their reservation details. Hosts should check those details in the Listing editor and keep any repeated instructions in messages or the property guide consistent with them.
Can a host add checkout chores after an Airbnb guest books?
Airbnb says house rules and requests must be disclosed in the designated listing section at the time of booking. Hosts may not introduce new requirements afterwards through messages, signs or in person. A later reminder should repeat the disclosed instructions rather than add chores.