Airbnb Welcome Book and House Rules: The Templates
If you are setting up an Airbnb, the house rules and the welcome book are 2 documents with 2 jobs. The house rules are part of the booking. Airbnb gives you 7 standard rules and a requests field, shows them before a guest books, and for reservations booked on or after November 20, 2026, requires every rule to sit in that section of the listing. The welcome book explains how the home works, and Airbnb’s version of it, the house manual, opens only for confirmed guests. Both templates are below.
The rules also matter when you claim for damage. Airbnb’s host damage protection reimburses up to $3 million for guest damage, on 2 deadlines counted from checkout: 14 days to request payment from the guest, and 30 days to file the claim with evidence. Upload the evidence with the first request, because Airbnb’s AirCover page asks for supporting documentation within 14 days of the damage or loss if you want Airbnb Support involved.
As an example only, this piece uses the same $400,000 property as our short-term rental (STR) tax-loophole piece, here a 3-bedroom cabin that sleeps 6.
2 Documents, 2 Jobs
Airbnb splits guest information across 3 places in the Listing editor, plus a guidebook tied to your hosting account.
House rules and requests is the house rules template. Check-in instructions, the house manual, and the guidebook together make the welcome book.
The House Rules Template
Airbnb’s October 20, 2026, house rules update lists 7 standard rules and moves checkout instructions into Requests. Here is the template, filled in for the example cabin.
The Ground Rules for guests require guests to follow house rules, and Airbnb can suspend or remove guests for repeated or severe violations. A change applies only to reservations received after it, so a rule added today does not bind a guest who booked last week.
What the November 20 Policy Rules Out
Airbnb’s reasonable house rules and requests policy applies to reservations booked on or after November 20, 2026. Every rule and request must meet 4 requirements.
- It is in the designated section at booking. Hosts may not add rules after booking, including by message, by a sign in the home, or in person.
- It matches the rest of the listing.
- It complies with Airbnb’s policies. That excludes separate contracts and requests for a government ID, except where the law requires them and in a few other cases.
- It is reasonable. Hosts generally may not ask guests to strip the bed, take trash off-site, or wash and put away dishes. They also may not restrict an advertised feature or impose fines or penalties. Airbnb allows local exceptions, such as an animal-proof trash container in bear country.
On the example cabin, a line that reads “$250 fine for smoking” is a penalty, and the policy points hosts to AirCover instead. A sign by the hot tub that says “no visitors after 9 PM,” when the listing does not, is a rule added after booking. If either stays, Airbnb can flag the listing to guests or reduce its search visibility.
How a Broken Rule Becomes a Claim
Airbnb’s house rules update says you can cancel without fees if a guest breaks a house rule during the stay, or says before check-in that they intend to. Before a booking is made, reservation screening uses signals such as account history and message topics to block or review bookings with a higher risk of a disruptive gathering.
After the stay, the claim runs through host damage protection, part of AirCover for Hosts.
- Document the damage with photos or videos, estimates, and receipts.
- Within 14 days of the guest’s checkout, request payment in the Resolution Center.
- Wait 24 hours for the guest to respond.
- If the guest declines, pays part, or does not respond, submit a host damage protection request.
The Host Damage Protection Terms add the second deadline: File the payment request form, with evidence, within 30 days of checkout.
3 of the covered cleaning costs trace back to a standard rule: Pet accidents, smoke odor removal, and additional unapproved guests. Host damage protection excludes normal wear and tear and routine checkout cleaning, such as laundry, dishes, and trash.
As an example only, 8 people stay in the 6-guest cabin and someone smokes inside. The guest checks out on day 0. Both costs are covered, and both trace to a rule the guest saw before booking.
Request payment by day 14, with the photos, the cleaner’s invoice, and the odor-removal receipt attached. If the guest declines, file the form with the same evidence by day 30. A first request sent on day 15 is outside the 14-day window in the terms.
Airbnb reported that in 2022, about 0.02% of reservations globally led to a property damage reimbursement of $1,000 or more. Whether a smaller claim is worth filing is covered in Your Guest Broke the Bed.
The Welcome Book Template
The welcome book holds information and repeats the rules word for word. Copy each section into the Airbnb field shown.
Airbnb publishes no data on which questions guests message about most. Build “How the house works” from your own message history and a walk-through of the home. The go-live checklist gives that walk-through: Use every appliance and find every switch.
The policy bars new rules on signs in the home. Treat a printed welcome book the same way, and print its house rules page from the listing so the 2 match.
For related reading, see How to Create an Airbnb Listing That Gets Booked and Keep Your Short-Term Rental Listing Fresh.
Where to Start
House rules are booking terms, and the welcome book is reference material. Keep every rule in the House rules and requests section, with no fines and no cleaner’s chores, and let the welcome book repeat it. Do this first: Compare your listing, your binder, and every sign in the home against the November 20 policy, and move or delete anything that sits outside the listing. Then add the 14-day and 30-day deadlines to your turnover checklist. Book a free strategy call and we will look at your numbers with you.
Host Camp is not a licensed tax, legal, or financial adviser. Confirm figures for your situation with a professional.
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