Starting a Homestay in Jharkhand

01 / Executive finding

The practical starting point

• Jharkhand's statutory foundation is the Jharkhand Tourism Development and Registration Act, 2015 (Jharkhand Act 17 of 2015). It applies across Jharkhand, requires a tourism unit to be registered before operation, and provides the statutory registration, inspection, cancellation, appeal and penalty architecture. [S0, ss.1, 13, 16–18, 29, 32, 35]
• The Tourism Department currently identifies The Jharkhand Tourist Trade Registration Rules, 2023 as the rules made under section 53 of the 2015 Act for registration of tourism/travel businesses and determination of registration fees and penalties. Cabinet approval for the Rules was recorded on 11 July 2023. The Gazette notification number, Gazette publication date and express commencement provision of the final Rules were Not stated in the current official material reviewed during this review. [S1, current Rules page; S2, Cabinet decision 11-07-2023]
• A current Tourism Department implementation document has a separate “Best Home Stay” category and requires award applicants to state whether they are registered under the Jharkhand Tourist Trade Registration Rules 2023. It describes a homestay for that award as having a maximum of six rooms with double/single occupancy. Because this is an award/implementation criterion rather than the controlling rulebook, the six-room figure is MEDIUM confidence and must not yet be published as the statutory registration ceiling. [S6, Annexure 4, p.29]
• The current official material inspected does not establish the operative 2023 definition of “homestay,” whether the owner or family must ordinarily reside in the property, whether Jharkhand domicile/permanent residence is required, or whether a non-resident owner with a caretaker can qualify. These matters are Not stated in the current official material reviewed. [S1; S3–S6]
• The 2015 Act defines a “tourism unit operator” broadly enough to include a person managing or operating a tourism unit on behalf of its proprietor. That is useful for general operating arrangements, but it does not establish that a company, LLP, professional manager or caretaker may itself be the registration holder for the homestay category under the 2023 Rules. [S0, s.3(r)]
• The Act requires registration before a tourism unit is operated and separately requires a fresh registration after relevant additions or alterations within the statutory period. A management agreement, lease, company structure or commercial arrangement does not by itself replace registration or local building approval. [S0, s.13]
• Section 13(2) of the Act provides a 90-day statutory disposal period for a registration application and contains a deemed-acceptance provision where the application is not disposed of within that period. This is statutory language, not merely a service target; nevertheless, applicants should not treat elapsed time as a substitute for obtaining the registration record/certificate and written authority confirmation before operating. [S0, s.13(2); s.16]
• The current public registration portal is operational. It was launched on 27 September 2024, includes an accommodation-unit registration route and was shown as last updated 6 July 2026. Public signup requires user ID, full name, email, mobile, password/confirmation and captcha. The substantive application, declarations, uploads, current fee/payment screen and post-login workflow were not inspected because account creation/authentication would have been required. [S3, portal homepage; S4, signup page]
• The current homestay registration fee, certificate validity and renewal fee/window are NOT VERIFIED from the 2023 official instrument. Older 2022 Rules contained a Category-C fee of ₹3,000 and three-year validity, but those figures belong to a predecessor rulebook and must not be presented as current merely because the document remains downloadable. [S7, historical Rules 2022, rr.12, 15]
• The Act independently imposes important operating duties after registration, including fair-rate/rate-display obligations, detailed bills and receipts, honouring confirmed booking rates, permitting statutory inspection, and submitting prescribed tourism statistics—including tourist inflow and employee information—by the 10th day of the following month when required under section 29(3). [S0, ss.20, 22–24, 27–29]
• Foreign-guest reporting is a separate central obligation. The current official FRRO/Form C portal states that accommodators must report foreign guests, including OCI cardholders, under the current immigration framework. Tourism registration does not replace this requirement. A current official deadline for filing was not independently verified in this review, so an older 24-hour rule should not be published without rechecking the present 2025 framework. [S19, current Form C portal]
• Food service is also separate. FoSCoS remains the current FSSAI licensing/registration platform, and a March 2026 FSSAI order gives effect from 1 April 2026 to revised turnover thresholds: Registration up to ₹1.5 crore, State Licence above ₹1.5 crore up to ₹50 crore and Central Licence above ₹50 crore, subject to the applicable food-business category and non-turnover criteria. A homestay serving food must assess its food-business position separately. [S18, FSSAI order dated 13-03-2026]
• The Jharkhand Tourism Policy 2021 contains tourism-investment incentives, but an ordinary homestay is not expressly named in the located list of eligible new units in clause 22.2. A rural homestay cannot simply be equated with a “rural tourism site.” Moreover, the later official Economic Survey describes some incentive amounts differently from the policy text. The official sources are not aligned; no subsidy should be advertised as a homestay entitlement. [S10, cls.22.2, 22.7–22.11, 23; S22, Economic Survey 2025–26]
• There is enough primary evidence to publish that Jharkhand requires tourist-trade registration and presently recognises homestays under the 2023 registration regime. There is not yet enough fully inspected primary evidence to publish the current homestay definition, registration-holder eligibility, residence rule, complete document set, definitive room/bed ceiling, fee, validity, renewal, transfer/change-of-operator rules or classification checklist. Publication should therefore wait for the complete official 2023 Rules/annexures or a written Tourism Department clarification.

02 / Document chronology

Use the current rules and implementation

2015 — Tourism Policy 2015

The former policy stated that the Government would introduce a Jharkhand Tourist Home Stay Scheme, modelled on the Government of India's B&B approach and intended to involve local families. [S9, cl.17] This is a historical policy intention, not evidence that a separate 2015-era homestay scheme remains the present registration route.

October 2015 / January 2016 statutory publication — Tourism Development and Registration Act

The Jharkhand Tourism Development and Registration Act, 2015 established the statutory registration regime, prescribed authority architecture, inspections, fair-rate provisions, appeals and offences. [S0] It remains the governing parent statute identified by the current Tourism Department page.

2021 — Tourist Trade Registration Rules

An official 2021 rulebook used categories including an older Category C: Home Stay / Paying Guest. Former Category-C standards included sanitation/basic-facility criteria. [S8] Status: historical. No 2021 technical criterion is carried forward in this guide unless independently established by a current source.

2021 — Jharkhand Tourism Policy 2021

The current Tourism Department page still lists this policy. It contains tourism investment incentives and a five-year/replace-on-revision duration clause. [S10, cls.22, 37–39] Its exact Gazette effective date was not located during this review, so its facial five-year term cannot safely be reconciled with its continued listing as current in September 2026 without written confirmation.

2022 — Tourist Trade Registration Rules 2022

The official Department still hosts a 2022 PDF. It contained, among other things:

• category-specific registration fees;
• three-year normal registration validity;
• renewal provisions;
• documentation concerning ownership/lease, building plans and affidavits;
• entity/applicant fields. [S7] Status: predecessor/historical. The current Department page instead identifies 2023 Rules. The 2022 fee of ₹3,000 for former Category C and its three-year validity must therefore not be described as current.

11 July 2023 — Cabinet approval

The State Cabinet approved the Jharkhand Tourist Trade Registration Rules, 2023 under the 2015 Act. [S2]

2023 — Current Rules

The current Tourism Department page identifies the 2023 Rules as its operative Tourist Trade Registration Rules. [S1] Not yet established from a fully inspected official copy:

• notification/order number;
• Gazette date;
• commencement provision;
• exact supersession clause;
• complete homestay definition;
• operative schedules and appendices;
• current fee table;
• current certificate validity;
• renewal provisions.

27 September 2024 — live digital registration portal

The Department states that the current Tourist Trade Registration Portal was launched on this date. [S3]

2025 — Tourism Awards implementation material

The current State Tourism Awards Guideline contains a discrete Best Home Stay annexure, ties eligibility to the 2023 registration rules and uses a maximum-six-room criterion for that award. [S6, p.29]

25 August 2025 — Garhwa district implementation notice

Garhwa district directed tourism units including homestays to register through the state Tourist Trade Registration Portal. [S11]

2026 — current portal and central dependencies

The tourism portal remained live and showed a 06 July 2026 update. FSSAI's revised food-licensing turnover thresholds became effective 01 April 2026. [S3; S18]

Chronology conclusion

The hierarchy is: 2015 Act → 2023 Rules → current portal/implementation material. The 2021/2022 registration rules are useful only to identify issues that the current official 2023 text should be checked for. They are not a safe source of current fees, eligibility or standards.

03 / Category definitions

Choose the right accommodation category

Material distinction

A property should not be called a “homestay” merely because it is a small lodging business or a house rented nightly. Current official material recognises homestay and guest-house/hotel accommodation as separate categories. [S6] The decisive current definition that differentiates those categories must be recovered from the complete 2023 Rules before a public guide gives categorical advice.

04 / Eligibility decision tree

Check whether the applicant and property qualify

Start with the exact property address and local-body category.

A. Exact property address and local-body category

A1. Identify whether the address falls within a Municipal Corporation, Municipal Council, Nagar Panchayat, Gram Panchayat, development/special area, cantonment or another statutory authority.

• If the exact jurisdiction and lawful accommodation use are established → proceed to B.
• If the local body/use classification is unclear → Confirm this in writing with the authority.
• If protected/forest/heritage/notified-tourism-area controls may apply and have not been checked → Confirm this in writing with the authority.

B. Property ownership or lease position

B1. Individual owns the property outright and title is clear → proceed to C. B2. Joint/inherited property

• If all required title/consent documentation under current Rules can be produced → proceed to C.
• Current co-owner-consent formulation is not available → Not established in the published material. B3. Long-term lease The former rulebook contemplated lease/NOC documents, but the current 2023 homestay eligibility rule was not fully inspected. → Confirm this in writing with the authority. B4. Capital-only participant has no identified property No tourism registration can be assessed until a property/category and registration holder are identified. → Not established in the published material for eligibility at this stage; property selection must precede registration analysis.

C. Applicant identity and residency

C1. Resident individual owner Current official text does not reveal the homestay-specific residence/domicile test. → proceed to D, but Confirm this in writing with the authority before relying on eligibility. C2. Non-resident owner No current official source located establishes whether residence elsewhere disqualifies homestay status. → Confirm this in writing with the authority. C3. Company, partnership firm or LLP proposes to be registration holder The Act recognises operators generally, but company/LLP eligibility as homestay registration holder was not established. → Confirm this in writing with the authority.

D. Who will live at the property?

D1. Owner/family will reside in the same home This is structurally consistent with the ordinary concept of a homestay, but the operative Jharkhand residence clause has not been located. → This appears to fit the published route, subject to the remaining checks only if the 2023 Rules confirm the residence/property criteria. D2. No owner/family resides; only staff/caretaker present → Consider another accommodation category or Confirm this in writing with the authority. D3. Property is entirely guest accommodation → Consider another accommodation category.

E. Who will operate it?

E1. Owner operates directly → proceed to F. E2. Professional management company operates for owner The Act's operator definition accommodates management on behalf of a proprietor generally, but the current homestay category may independently impose host/residence restrictions. → Confirm this in writing with the authority. E3. Caretaker manages daily operations → Confirm this in writing with the authority.

F. Room and bed plan

F1. Six or fewer guest rooms Current award implementation material uses a six-room maximum. → This appears to fit the published route, subject to the remaining checks, subject to confirmation that the same ceiling appears in the 2023 Rules and all other eligibility conditions are met. [S6, p.29] F2. More than six rooms → Consider another accommodation category unless the controlling 2023 Rules establish a different ceiling. F3. Bed/guest capacity is proposed but no definitive current bed limit has been verified → Not established in the published material.

G. Existing, proposed, under construction or running

G1. Existing lawful home, not yet taking paying guests → complete eligibility/local-use/registration review first. Potential LIKELY FITS only after 2023 criteria are confirmed. G2. Proposed new construction → building/land-use approvals must precede assumptions about eventual homestay registration. → Confirm this in writing with the authority before development commitment. G3. Existing building requiring structural alteration The Act provides consequences for alterations/additions and unapproved structural changes. → obtain local approval and determine tourism-registration amendment/fresh-registration treatment before works. G4. Running unregistered accommodation The Act prohibits operating an unregistered tourism unit. → does not appear to fit the published homestay definition of lawful registered operation until regularised/registered. [S0, ss.13, 35]

05 / Applicant and operating structures

Set the ownership and operating structure

Structure conclusion

The distinction between the following roles must be maintained:

1. property owner/title holder;
2. eligible applicant;
3. tourism registration holder;
4. resident host, if required;
5. day-to-day operator;
6. employer;
7. food-business operator;
8. contracting/invoicing party;
9. investor/capital contributor. The 2015 Act's broad operator definition does not collapse these roles into one legal person.

06 / Property and classification standards

Prepare the property for inspection

07 / Documents and declarations

Assemble the application file

A. Current documents directly verified

B. Matters present in the predecessor 2022 rulebook but not verified as current

The historical Rules contained documentation concerning:

• PAN/GST where applicable;
• identity/address proof;
• partnership/company authority documents;
• land ownership affidavit, NOC, lease/agreement;
• sanctioned/approved building map and site layout;
• affidavits regarding insolvency/conviction and compliance. [S7] These items are verification targets only. They must not be copied into a 2026 checklist as mandatory until the 2023 Rules/portal are inspected.

C. Current status of commonly expected documents

Premature/impossible wording check

Because the live post-login form was not inspected, no finding can responsibly be made that an applicant must upload a certificate that can only exist after registration, inspection or approval. Any such portal wording should be examined directly before publication.

Download the Jharkhand property and application checklist ↓

08 / Application and inspection process

Follow the application and inspection process

Inspection powers

Section 29 of the Act authorises inspection of accounts, registers, documents and books by the competent authority/authorised officer, including with or without prior notice as permitted by the statute. [S0, s.29] A current homestay inspection checklist, inspection-panel composition and scoring methodology were Not stated in the material reviewed.

09 / Fees, timelines, validity and renewal

Confirm fees, timing and certificate validity

Legacy certificates

The 2022 Rules' certificate duration and renewal terms cannot automatically determine the status of certificates issued under later 2023 Rules. Transition/savings provisions in the complete 2023 Rules must be inspected.

10 / Operating duties after registration

Run the registered homestay correctly

Tourism-registration duties established by the Act

1. Maintain valid registration before operation. [S0, s.13]
2. Do not make disqualifying/unapproved structural changes. Appropriate local approvals remain relevant to continued registration. [S0, s.18]
3. Comply with applicable fair-rate framework. [S0, ss.20–24]
4. Display applicable fair rates and permitted lodgers per room conspicuously. [S0, s.23]
5. Do not charge more than applicable fair rates. [S0, s.24]
6. Provide a detailed bill and receipt. [S0, s.27]
7. Honour a confirmed booking at the agreed rate as provided by the Act. [S0, s.28]
8. Permit lawful inspection of records/premises/material. [S0, s.29]
9. Supply tourism statistics. Section 29(3) requires information including tourist inflow and employees, and other directed information, by the 10th of the following month. [S0, s.29(3)]
10. Produce/display the registration certificate on lawful demand, including to a bona fide customer as covered by the statute. [S0, s.38]
11. Do not lend, transfer or assign a registration certificate without written permission where the Act prohibits it. [S0, s.37]

Domestic guest records

The current official material inspected did not establish:

• precise guest-register columns;
• acceptable identity documents;
• mandatory photocopy/scanning requirement;
• domestic-guest reporting frequency;
• record-retention period. Status: Not stated in the current official material reviewed.

Foreign guests

The Bureau of Immigration's current Form C portal states that accommodators must report foreigners, expressly including OCI cardholders. [S19] Current filing deadline: Not stated in the material reviewed IN THE OFFICIAL MATERIAL RETRIEVED FOR THIS guide. Do not carry forward an older 24-hour rule without verifying the current Immigration and Foreigners Act 2025 subordinate framework.

Staff / caretaker checks

A current homestay-specific requirement for:

• staff police verification;
• caretaker character certificate;
• employee qualification;
• minimum staffing;
• local-employment quota; was Not stated in the material reviewed.

Food

Where meals are commercially prepared/served, the operating party must separately assess FSSAI/FoSCoS requirements. [S18]

Tax and invoicing

Tourism registration does not establish GST liability, rate, registration threshold or identity of the taxable supplier. Those depend on the actual turnover, supply model and contracting entity.

Waste, health and safety

Exact 2023 homestay standards were not fully inspected. Applicable local sanitation/waste/building obligations remain independent.

Insurance

A mandatory homestay insurance provision was Not stated in the material reviewed. As a business-risk recommendation only, the property/operator should assess building/property, public liability, employee/workmen and business interruption coverage appropriate to the actual structure. This is not presented as a Tourism Department registration condition.

11 / Adjacent approvals and dependencies

Close the approvals outside Tourism

Local licence caution

JharSewa currently provides a New License of Lodge service and asks for documents including land proof, approved building map, fire-extinguisher evidence, waste arrangements, entry/exit and parking. [S15] That service is useful evidence that local accommodation licensing can operate independently, but it cannot be converted into a homestay document list without authority confirmation.

12 / Incentives, subsidy and funding

Evaluate incentives without assuming sanction

14.1 Jharkhand Tourism Policy 2021

The located Tourism Policy 2021 contains incentives for specified new tourism units. [S10]

Eligible units

Clause 22.2 identifies categories including, subject to conditions/minimum investment:

• hotels/resorts;
• certain standard hotels at notified tourist destinations;
• wayside amenities;
• water sports;
• cruise/houseboats;
• camping;
• adventure tourism;
• aero sports;
• sound-and-light facilities;
• rural tourism sites;
• other tourism activity if specifically notified. An ordinary homestay is not expressly listed in the located clause. Therefore: > No general homestay subsidy entitlement is established. A “rural tourism site” is not assumed to mean “a rural homestay.”

14.2 Incentive provisions located in the policy

Subject to category eligibility and the policy's other conditions, the located text provides:

14.3 Current official conflict

The Jharkhand Economic Survey 2025–26, an official later government publication, summarises tourism incentives using materially different figures, including:

• 30% capital subsidy subject to a stated ceiling;
• additional support for specified categories;
• 50% interest subsidy with a substantially different ceiling;
• 75% SGST support;
• 100% stamp-duty exemption. [S22] This does not align with the provisions located in the Tourism Policy 2021 PDF. Status: The official sources are not aligned. The Economic Survey is not itself a replacement notification, while the Tourism Policy's own duration/currentness also requires checking. An amendment, Industries Department implementation guideline or newer notified incentive instrument may explain the difference, but such an instrument was Not stated in the material reviewed.

14.4 Application status

For a homestay applicant:

• confirmed currently-open homestay incentive application: Not stated in the material reviewed;
• specific homestay eligible-expense list: Not stated in the material reviewed;
• bank appraisal route for a homestay subsidy: Not stated in the material reviewed;
• current sanction authority for a homestay-specific grant: Not stated in the material reviewed;
• automatic entitlement: NO EVIDENCE. No property acquisition or project finance model should assume receipt of these incentives.

13 / Business implications

Translate the rules into a workable project

Before selecting or acquiring a property

the project team should establish at minimum:

1. exact address and local-body jurisdiction;
2. title/lease status and encumbrance/consent position;
3. sanctioned use and building status;
4. whether the intended model depends on homestay classification rather than guest house/hotel/lodge;
5. whether an owner/family residence requirement exists under the 2023 Rules;
6. intended registration holder;
7. intended day-to-day operator;
8. proposed guest-room and bed count;
9. protected-area/heritage/forest/tourism-notified-area issues;
10. utilities, access, parking, waste and fire/building constraints. A low room count alone should not be used as the property-acquisition test.

Before construction or renovation

The project team must determine:

• whether new tourism accommodation is permitted on the site;
• sanction/permission needed for construction;
• whether renovation changes sanctioned use;
• whether fire or occupancy requirements are triggered;
• whether an intended six-room plan can actually qualify as a homestay;
• whether structural work triggers fresh tourism registration or amendment requirements. The 2015 Act makes building-law conformity and unapproved structural changes material to registration. [S0, ss.17–18]

Registration holder versus operating entity

The Act's definition of tourism-unit operator supports the proposition that the person operating/managing a tourism business may, in some circumstances, be different from the proprietor. [S0, s.3(r)] It does not prove that:

• the project team may hold every homestay registration;
• an LLP may hold it;
• a company may replace a resident-host condition;
• a caretaker may satisfy an owner/family residence rule;
• a management contract permits transfer of the certificate. Section 37 makes unauthorised lending, transfer or assignment of a registration certificate a statutory offence. [S0, s.37]

What an LLP or management agreement cannot solve by itself

Neither structure can independently cure:

• defective title;
• prohibited land/building use;
• lack of a required resident host;
• room-capacity non-compliance;
• lack of tourism registration;
• lack of local building/fire permission;
• FSSAI non-compliance;
• foreign-guest reporting obligations;
• certificate-transfer restrictions.

Property-development scope

Any development promise should be conditional on:

• sanctioned plans;
• local approvals;
• technical feasibility;
• lawful tourism use;
• confirmed accommodation category;
• confirmation that the intended applicant/host/operator structure is accepted.

Property assessment and commercial planning should record

• title holder;
• proposed registration holder;
• proposed management/operator party;
• resident host;
• local-body category;
• existing sanctioned use;
• guest rooms / non-guest rooms / beds;
• planned works;
• expected food model;
• foreign-guest policy;
• labour/staff structure;
• local licences;
• tax/invoicing entity;
• incentives treated as zero unless separately sanctioned.

Questions required before commercial terms

Before the project team proposes management, lease, investment, development or revenue-sharing terms, it should know:

1. who can legally hold this property's homestay registration;
2. whether owner/family residence is required;
3. whether a non-owner operator is accepted;
4. whether the intended room/bed configuration fits;
5. whether the structure is already lawful for tourism use;
6. whether registration can remain with owner while management is outsourced;
7. what event constitutes an impermissible transfer/change;
8. what construction approvals are required;
9. which party carries food/employment/tax/guest-reporting obligations;
10. whether any incentive relied on has actually been sanctioned. No fixed ownership percentage, capital contribution or income commitment follows from the tourism rules.

14 / Official-source conflicts

Resolve conflicting official instructions

Conflict 1 — current 2023 rulebook versus older 2022 rulebook still online

Source A: Current Tourism Department Rules page [S1] Proposition: The governing registration rules are Jharkhand Tourist Trade Registration Rules 2023. Source B: Officially hosted 2022 Rules PDF [S7] Proposition: Contains prior Category-C fee, validity, documents and process. Hierarchy/date analysis: The current Department index explicitly promotes the later 2023 Rules. The older downloadable file's continued availability does not establish that its fee/validity provisions remain operative. Practical effect: Do not publish the old ₹3,000 fee, three-year validity or predecessor document matrix as current. Status: Later rules appear to control, but the complete 2023 supersession/savings clause remains uninspected. Properties affected: All new homestay applicants; existing certificates issued under predecessor rules. Authority for written answer: Directorate of Tourism / Department of Tourism, Ranchi.

Conflict 2 — six-room homestay criterion versus unavailable controlling rule text

Source A: State Tourism Awards Guideline 2025, Annexure 4 [S6] Proposition: “Best Home Stay” criterion refers to homestay with maximum six rooms. Source B: Current controlling 2023 Rules [S1] Proposition: Rules govern registration, but complete category schedule could not be inspected. There is no directly contradictory number; rather, there is an evidence hierarchy gap. Practical effect: Six rooms is a strong current implementation signal, but it is not yet safe to label it the statutory registration ceiling. Status: OFFICIAL CONTROLLING SOURCE INCOMPLETE FOR VERIFICATION. Properties affected: Any property designed around five/six/seven rooms or mixed owner/guest rooms. Authority: Directorate of Tourism.

Conflict 3 — Tourism Policy 2021 incentive figures versus Economic Survey 2025–26

Source A: Tourism Policy 2021 [S10] Proposition: Located clauses include 50% interest subsidy with a ₹20 lakh ceiling, 75% net SGST reimbursement and 2% stamp-duty reimbursement provisions for eligible units. Source B: Jharkhand Economic Survey 2025–26 [S22] Proposition: Later official summary describes a 30% capital subsidy, a different interest-subsidy ceiling, 75% SGST and 100% stamp-duty exemption, among other terms. Date/hierarchy: A policy instrument ordinarily carries greater operative weight than a later descriptive Economic Survey, but the later figures may reflect amendments or implementation instruments not located in this review. Status: The official sources are not aligned. Practical effect: No project should calculate subsidy economics from either summary alone. Properties affected: Any tourism development being underwritten on State incentives. Authority: Department of Tourism and Department of Industries, with request for the currently operative notified incentive/implementation instrument.

Conflict 4 — Tourism Policy 2021 continued listing versus its duration clause

Source A: Current Tourism Department webpage [S1] Proposition: Still lists Jharkhand Tourism Policy 2021 in September 2026. Source B: Policy text [S10, cl.39] Proposition: Policy remains operative for five years from effective date or until a new/revised policy, whichever is earlier. The exact Gazette effective date was Not stated in the material reviewed, so the five-year endpoint cannot safely be calculated. Status: OFFICIAL CURRENTNESS NEEDS WRITTEN CONFIRMATION. Practical effect: Particularly important for incentive claims.

15 / Unresolved questions for the authority

Take the remaining questions to the authority

The following questions should be sent to the Directorate/Department of Tourism in writing:

1. Please provide the Gazette notification/order number, publication date and commencement date of the Jharkhand Tourist Trade Registration Rules, 2023 and the complete current PDF including every schedule, appendix and amendment.
2. Do the 2023 Rules expressly supersede the 2022 Tourist Trade Registration Rules? If so, what is the treatment of registrations/certificates already issued under the 2021/2022 rules?
3. What is the current formal definition of “Home Stay” under the 2023 Rules?
4. Does a homestay owner or a member of the owner's family have to ordinarily/permanently reside in the same property during guest operation?
5. Is Jharkhand domicile, permanent residency or local residency required of the homestay registration holder?
6. Does the current registration rule limit a homestay to six guest rooms? Does the six-room criterion in the 2025 Tourism Awards Guideline reproduce the registration rule?
7. Is there a separate maximum number of beds or guests?
8. Does the six-room calculation include the owner's/family's own rooms or only rooms offered commercially to guests?
9. Can a jointly owned or inherited property be registered, and what consent/NOC is required from co-owners?
10. Can a long-term lessee be the homestay registration holder? If yes, is there a minimum lease tenure and is owner NOC required?
11. Can a private limited company, partnership firm or LLP hold a homestay registration, or must this category be held by an individual resident host?
12. Can the certificate remain in an eligible owner's name while a professional management company carries out distribution, staffing, guest operations and management?
13. Does a caretaker qualify as the required on-site host, if the owner ordinarily resides elsewhere?
14. What is the current initial registration fee for a homestay under the 2023 Rules?
15. Are there separate classification, inspection, portal-processing or renewal fees?
16. What is the current certificate validity period?
17. What is the renewal application window, and does late renewal attract a separate fee/penalty?
18. Please provide the complete current homestay document checklist, including identity, title/lease, co-owner NOC, building plan, affidavits, photographs and local approvals.
19. Are any affidavits required on stamp paper? If yes, what denomination and who must execute/notarise them?
20. Is a police verification / character certificate required for the owner, family members, caretaker or staff?
21. Is a fire NOC universally required for homestays or only where local building/fire thresholds trigger it?
22. What current room, bathroom, kitchen, common-area, parking, access, signage, water, electricity, backup, sanitation and accessibility standards apply to homestays?
23. Please provide the current inspection checklist, inspection authority/panel composition and procedure for curing deficiencies.
24. What portal mechanism is used for a change in room count, owner, lessee, operator or management arrangement?
25. What is the treatment of sale, inheritance/succession, lease, change of control or change in operating company?
26. In light of section 37 of the Act, which changes constitute a prohibited certificate transfer and which may be approved administratively?
27. How does the Department operationally implement the 90-day deemed-acceptance clause in section 13(2) of the Act? Is a certificate/reference issued after the statutory period?
28. What domestic guest register, ID and record-retention requirements presently apply under the 2023 Rules?
29. What monthly tourism-statistics form/portal is used to comply with section 29(3)?
30. Is the Jharkhand Tourism Policy 2021 still effective as of 05 September 2026? Please provide its Gazette effective date and any extension/replacement/amendment.
31. Which notified instrument explains the incentive differences between the Tourism Policy 2021 and the Jharkhand Economic Survey 2025–26?
32. Is a normal six-room homestay eligible for any current State capital, interest, SGST, stamp-duty, holding-tax or electricity incentive? If yes, under which exact notified category and application guideline?
33. Which district-level Tourism Officer/DTPC office should resolve category questions for each property, and where is the current district contact directory published?