Starting a Homestay in Odisha

01 / Executive finding

The practical starting point

• Odisha currently operates under the Odisha Homestay Establishment Scheme, 2025 — Operational Guidelines, Tourism Department Notification No. 13703─TCT-COOD-Misc-0017/2025/TSM, notified 24 November 2025 and published as Extraordinary Gazette No. 5549 on 29 November 2025. The scheme states that it runs until 31 March 2030, unless earlier discontinued or replaced, and supersedes the 2021 homestay scheme and earlier related orders/guidelines. [S1, cl. 3.2, p. 5]
• A homestay is defined around a natural-person/family host: it is an accommodation unit owned and operated by an individual or family at the same premises or in immediate proximity to their residence, with the owner and/or family physically residing there and personally hosting guests. A caretaker-only or absentee-owner model is therefore not established by the published definition. [S1, cl. 3.1.1(a), p. 3]
• Category 1 is the financial-incentive route for new homestays in notified rural Gram Panchayats outside ULB jurisdiction. The incentive base is limited to four lettable rooms/eight beds, although additional rooms may be built at the owner's own cost subject to applicable norms. [S1, cl. 3.1.1.1(i)–(iii), p. 3]
• The originally notified Category-1 residence rule required the applicant to be a resident of the notified GP. However, Odisha's official eGazette records another instrument titled “Odisha Homestay Establishment Scheme, 2025” dated 05 August 2026, and a secondary regulatory alert reports that Notification No. 10641—TCT-COOD-Misc-0017/2025/TSM, dated 31 July 2026, changed eligibility to residence in the concerned Block, with preference for notified-GP residents. The official August instrument itself was not downloadable from the public eGazette table during this review. Accordingly, the current Category-1 residence rule is not publishable as settled. [S3, eGazette entry; S18, discovery-only]
• The live official Go Homestay portal still states that financial-incentive applicants “must belong to” a notified Gram Panchayat, which appears inconsistent with the later amendment reported above. This is an The official sources are not aligned / PRIMARY TEXT NOT RETRIEVED issue affecting applicants resident elsewhere in the same Block. [S4, live eligibility card]
• Category 2 covers non-financial registration. The November scheme says all other homestays across Odisha, including proposed, under-construction and existing units, may apply; the April 2026 Gazette expressly removed the former six-room/twelve-bed Category-2 limit. The live portal consequently displays “No limit”. Classification, however, remains separately framed for one to six rooms/twelve beds. [S1, cl. 3.1.1.2; S2, items 3 and 11; S1, cl. 3.7.3(b)]
• A material geographic ambiguity remains for Category 2: the controlling scheme says “across the State of Odisha”, but the live portal displays “Eligible Area — All GP”, and the April revised Category-2 application form asks for Block/GP/Village rather than ULB fields. An urban/municipal Category-2 applicant should obtain written confirmation before committing capital. [S1, cl. 3.1.1.2(i), p. 4; S2, Annex III, p. 8; S4]
• Category-1 applications carry a ₹2,000 non-refundable online fee; Category-2 applications carry a ₹1,000 non-refundable online fee. The verified renewal fee is ₹500. Following the 28 April 2026 amendment, both categories use self-renewal through the portal and renewal is processed automatically unless a specific complaint/allegation causes DHC verification; Category-2 registration is valid for five years from the agreement date, while Category-1 registration is five years from CoD. [S1, cls. 3.7.1.3 and 3.7.1.7; S2, items 8–10]
• The financial incentive is up to 50% of fixed capital investment excluding land, capped at ₹2.5 lakh per lettable room, four rooms and ₹10 lakh per homestay. It is not automatic: selection, physical completion verification and SHC approval apply, and later tranches depend on verified booking-night thresholds. [S1, cls. 5.2.1.1–5.2.1.2, pp. 22–23; S2, items 12–13]
• Registered units have unusually specific mandatory operating standards, including visitor records, power backup, hygienic kitchen and complimentary breakfast, purified water, safety arrangements, first aid, cashless payment, staff/host training, minimum 100 sq ft single/120 sq ft double room sizes, attached EWC bathrooms with at least 30 sq ft, running water and water heater, and AC/heating/cooling capable of maintaining 20–25°C. All new homestay construction must have RCC/concrete roofs. [S1, cl. 3.5.1, pp. 6–9]
• The scheme's published bed dimensions appear as “72'x78'” and “36'x78'”. The unit notation appears anomalous, but no corrigendum clarifying whether inches were intended was located. It must not be silently corrected in a public compliance guide. [S1, cl. 3.5.1(l), p. 8]
• The Department of Tourism implements the scheme through the Homestay Cell, District Homestay Committee and State Homestay Committee. The DHC is chaired by the ADM with the TDO as member-convenor; the SHC is chaired by the Director, Tourism. Appeals against DHC/Director/SHC decisions go through the Homestay Portal to the Secretary, Department of Tourism, whose decision the scheme declares final and binding. [S1, cls. 3.7.4 and 4.1–4.2, pp. 18–20]
• Sufficient evidence exists to explain the November 2025 framework and April 2026 amendment, but not to publish a definitive “current eligibility” guide on 05 September 2026 because the later August Gazette text could not be retrieved and the live portal appears not to reflect the reported change. [S2; S3; S4; S18]

02 / Document chronology

Use the current rules and implementation

31 May / 02 June 2021 — Odisha Homestay Establishment Scheme 2021. Notification 4783 established an earlier regime, including a six-room/twelve-bed scope and designated-destination incentive structure. It is now historical. [S19] 24 / 29 November 2025 — Odisha Homestay Establishment Scheme, 2025. Notification 13703/Gazette 5549 replaced the earlier framework. It introduced Category 1 financial-incentive and Category 2 non-financial routes, the Go Homestay portal workflow, mandatory standards, classification, annual reporting, incentives and committees. It expressly states a validity period through 31 March 2030 unless discontinued or replaced. [S1, cl. 3.2] 28 April 2026 — Gazette amendment, Notification 6864. The amendment:

• substituted the notified-GP list;
• omitted Category-1 cl. 3.1.1.1(ix), thereby removing the scheme-level six-metre setback;
• omitted Category-2 cl. 3.1.1.2(ii), thereby removing its six-room/twelve-bed non-financial cap;
• omitted Category-2 cl. 3.1.1.2(v), thereby removing that category's express serving-government-employee exclusion;
• revised allocation/randomisation;
• introduced ₹500 self-renewal with complaint-triggered verification;
• extended Category-2 registration to five years;
• placed classification field verification with a DoT-empanelled third party under SHC supervision;
• changed financial completion verification to the TDO's Physical Completion Certificate plus geotagged photographs;
• replaced Annexures II and III and added Category-1 Annexure XII. [S2, items 1–14] 02 May 2026 — Cycle-1 target letter. The Tourism Department issued cluster-wise targets. This is implementation material, not a permanent definition of eligibility and not evidence that the application window remains open on 05 September 2026. [S6] 31 July / 05 August 2026 — later amendment apparently issued/published. Official eGazette metadata confirms an Odisha Homestay Scheme Gazette entry dated 05 August 2026. The downloadable primary text was not retrievable. S18 reports Notification 10641 dated 31 July, changing Category-1 residence from the notified GP to the concerned Block, giving preference to notified-GP residents, and correcting a Rayagada GP entry from Kulusing to Puttasing. Until the primary text is obtained, those propositions remain unverified discovery leads rather than publishable requirements. [S3; S18]

03 / Category definitions

Choose the right accommodation category

Odisha Tourism Policy 2022 expressly says private house owners are encouraged to provide homestays and that the Tourism Department implements a separate homestay scheme. Homestay is not included in the policy's current enumerated definition of “Tourism Unit”; therefore general Tourism Unit corporate eligibility or capital incentives cannot automatically be imported into the Homestay Scheme. [S7, paras.11(m), 12]

04 / Eligibility decision tree

Check whether the applicant and property qualify

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

• Is the property in a GP appearing in the latest notified Category-1 list and outside ULB jurisdiction?
• Yes: Category 1 may be relevant. Continue.
• No, but elsewhere in Odisha: Category 2 may be relevant, although urban/ULB portal acceptance is unresolved. → Confirm this in writing with the authority for ULB properties.
• Exact local-body status unknown → Not established in the published material until the address is mapped. 2. Establish ownership/lease.
• Clear individual title, with no ongoing dispute → continue.
• Joint ownership with written NOC from all co-sharers → continue.
• Category-1 lease of at least ten years, properly documented → textually eligible at application level, but reconcile with general “owned and operated” definition. → Confirm this in writing with the authority.
• Category-2 valid lease → textually contemplated, subject to the same definitional issue. → Confirm this in writing with the authority.
• Informal occupation/licence without qualifying ownership/lease evidence → does not appear to fit the published homestay definition on present evidence. 3. Establish applicant identity and residency.
• Natural person, ≥18, with required identity/bank documentation → continue.
• Category-2 applicant resident in Odisha → fits published November rule.
• Category-1 applicant resident in notified GP → satisfies both the original rule and current public portal card, subject to all other requirements.
• Category-1 applicant outside notified GP but inside the relevant Block → potential eligibility under the reported July amendment, but primary amendment unavailable. → Confirm this in writing with the authority.
• Company, LLP, partnership, trust or society proposes to be registration holder → Not established in the published material. 4. Determine who will live at the property.
• Owner and/or family physically lives there and personally hosts guests → continue.
• Owner lives elsewhere but qualifying family genuinely resides and personally hosts → may meet literal definition, subject to applicant/title position. → This appears to fit the published route, subject to the remaining checks if all other conditions are met.
• Nobody from owner/family resides there; only caretaker or hired manager → does not appear to fit the published homestay definition.
• Residence arrangement unclear or seasonal → Confirm this in writing with the authority. 5. Determine who operates it.
• Resident owner/family operates and personally hosts → continue.
• Owner/family remains resident host while professional staff or outsourced personnel assist → potentially compatible; revised form expressly records outsourced staff. → This appears to fit the published route, subject to the remaining checks, subject to the operator contract not displacing the host.
• Management company intends to become sole operator while owner/family is absent → does not appear to fit the published homestay definition on present evidence.
• Management company assists while owner/family remains legal applicant/host → exact contractual boundary is Not established in the published material; → Confirm this in writing with the authority. 6. Check room and bed plan.
• Category 1: financial claim is for ≤4 rooms/8 beds → continue.
• Category 1 with more rooms → extra rooms may be privately funded; local-building and classification implications remain.
• Category 2: no scheme-level maximum remains after April 2026; local-building rules still apply.
• Gold/Silver classification sought with >6 rooms/12 beds → Consider another accommodation category or require unclassified Category-2 treatment; classification annex is capped at six rooms/twelve beds. 7. Establish project status.
• New construction in Category-1 area → may pursue financial incentive if latest residence/location criteria are satisfied. → This appears to fit the published route, subject to the remaining checks.
• Proposed/under-construction/existing unit elsewhere → Category-2 text expressly contemplates these statuses. → This appears to fit the published route, subject to the remaining checks, subject to residence/geography issues.
• Existing running homestay → Category-2 rule expressly permits application. → This appears to fit the published route, subject to the remaining checks.
• Purpose-built commercially operated lodging with no resident family host → Consider another accommodation category. Use these branches as a starting test and confirm the result for the exact property.

05 / Applicant and operating structures

Set the ownership and operating structure

A management agreement, lease, LLP or company does not by itself cure the requirement that the homestay be a resident-host accommodation. No provision authorising a juridical entity to substitute for the eligible natural-person registration holder was located.

06 / Property and classification standards

Prepare the property for inspection

The room/bathroom/utility standards above are explicit scheme standards. Parking, Wi-Fi and disabled-friendly features sit in the scheme's desirable list rather than the core mandatory list.

07 / Documents and declarations

Assemble the application file

The base scheme explicitly requires Annex II/III, Annex IV and allows DoT to require additional documents. The April amendment's revised Annex III adds the eight listed Category-2 documents.

Download the Odisha property and application checklist ↓

08 / Application and inspection process

Follow the application and inspection process

Category 1 — financial incentive

The portal is designed to accept applications, uploads and payments; manage inspection reports, approvals/rejections and lottery results; issue PRCs/approvals; receive extensions/renewals and grievances; and support visitor reporting. [S1, cl.3.6]

Category 2 — non-financial

The scheme provides for online submission throughout the scheme framework rather than fixed Category-1 cycles; the DHC checks completeness/eligibility, may seek further information and arrange field verification, and forwards eligible cases to DoT for registration. [S1, cls.3.7.2.1–3.7.2.4] The April 2026 amendment does not create a general guaranteed approval period. After approval, the homestay enters a formal agreement with the district TDO; registration is now five years from that agreement. [S2, item 9]

Refusal and appeal

Incomplete or ineligible Category-1 applications may be rejected after reasonable opportunity to clarify, with reasons communicated through the portal. Any applicant aggrieved by a DHC, Director Tourism or SHC decision may appeal through the Homestay Portal to the Secretary, Department of Tourism. [S1, cls.3.7.1.4(c), 3.7.4]

09 / Fees, timelines, validity and renewal

Confirm fees, timing and certificate validity

Legacy certificates issued under the earlier 2021 scheme should not simply be assumed to have the new periods; the treatment of every historical certificate requires its own instrument/certificate review. A specific automatic conversion rule was Not stated in the material reviewed.

10 / Operating duties after registration

Run the registered homestay correctly

A registered Odisha homestay must maintain a visitor register containing guest identity/contact information and retain a copy of government-issued photo identification; the scheme expressly requires a passport for foreign nationals. [S1, cl.3.5.1(a)] For financial-incentive units, the scheme expressly requires use of the DoT Visitor Management Portal for online check-in/check-out and real-time visitor information, including upload of government-issued IDs. The scheme also supplies a visitor-management system to eligible homestays more generally, but the exact compulsory real-time rule for every unclassified Category-2 unit is not drafted with the same clarity and should be confirmed. [S1, cl.3.5.1(b); cl.5.2.2] Every beneficiary must submit the annual self-declaration through Go Homestay on or before 30 April, with booking records and operational data. Annex X asks for operational rooms/beds, guest nights, revenue, occupancy, staffing and compliance and requires booking extracts, photographs and fire/local-body renewal copies if applicable. [S1, cl.3.4(g)–(i), Annex X] Operational property standards in Section 8 remain ongoing conditions. The scheme permits a departmental penalty of up to ₹10,000 for breach of applicable government directives/SOPs; continuing non-compliance may lead to revocation and, for incentivised units, recovery. Before a penalty or cancellation, the Director Tourism must issue a show-cause notice allowing 30 days to respond and a reasonable opportunity to present the case. [S1, cl.3.4] For foreign guests, a separate central obligation applies. Rule 17 of the Immigration and Foreigners Rules, 2025 expressly includes home stay within “accommodation”; the keeper must electronically maintain the prescribed foreigner records for at least one year, transmit Form III not later than 24 hours after arrival, and transmit departure details not later than 24 hours after departure through the designated system. [S12, Rule 17, pp.27–28] Other post-registration findings:

• Rate display: Not stated in the current official material reviewed.
• Mandatory guest invoice format: Not stated in the material reviewed.
• Specific homestay complaint-register format: Not stated in the material reviewed.
• Monthly tourism statistics: Not stated in the material reviewed; annual 30-April declaration is verified.
• Domestic guest police reporting separate from the tourism portal: Not stated in the material reviewed as a universal state requirement.
• Staff/caretaker police verification: Not stated in the material reviewed.
• Incident-reporting deadline: Not stated in the material reviewed.
• Mandatory insurance: Not stated in the material reviewed.
• Local employment quota: Not stated in the material reviewed; Annex X records local staff and the scheme regulates staff training/wages, but no quota was found.

11 / Adjacent approvals and dependencies

Close the approvals outside Tourism

The revised Cat-2 form's unqualified document list—Trade Licence, Building Plan Approval, Fire Safety Certificate, Electricity Safety Certificate, water/electricity bills and SWM receipt—should not be read to mean that the underlying laws impose every certificate on every property. For example, Annex IX itself qualifies updated Fire/FSSAI/local clearances with “if applicable,” and Category-1 PRC recognises that some built-up areas may be exempt from building-plan approval. [S1 Annex IX; S2 Annex XII] FSSAI's current turnover criteria, effective 01 April 2026, are registration up to ₹1.5 crore, State Licence above ₹1.5 crore and up to ₹50 crore, and Central Licence above ₹50 crore; the order expressly supersedes earlier turnover criteria. The appropriate business category and any non-turnover licensing trigger must still be tested in FoSCoS. [S10] Under CGST Act s.22, the general registration provision refers to aggregate turnover exceeding ₹20 lakh for suppliers in non-special-category States, but compulsory-registration provisions and the actual nature/channel of supply must also be examined; the tourism certificate itself is not a GST determination. [S14, s.22]

12 / Incentives, subsidy and funding

Evaluate incentives without assuming sanction

A. Odisha Homestay Establishment Scheme, 2025 — Category-1 capital assistance

Eligible applicant/location: eligible Category-1 beneficiary establishing a new homestay in a notified rural GP outside ULB jurisdiction, subject to the unresolved August 2026 residency amendment. Existing units are not the financial-incentive target under the located scheme text. [S1, cl.3.1.1.1; cl.5.2] Eligible expenditure: civil structure, landscaping, plumbing/masonry, interiors/furnishing, electrical installation, electronic appliances including internet equipment, furniture/fixtures, kitchen equipment, water purifier, septic tank, generator/AC, security/safety installations, one-time cooking-gas/electricity/water connections and other site-specific components approved through the DHC/SHC route. [S1, cl.5.2.1] Assistance: up to 50% of fixed capital investment excluding land, with ceilings of ₹2.5 lakh per lettable room, four rooms and ₹10 lakh total. “Up to” and the ceilings are important: ₹10 lakh is not an automatic entitlement. [S1, cl.5.2.1.1(a)] Verification/sanction route: the April amendment requires the TDO to verify completion at CoD and upload a Physical Completion Certificate and geotagged photographs. SHC grants final approval for eligible disbursement. [S2, items 12–13] Disbursement:

• 50% of approved incentive at achievement of CoD;
• 15% after Year 1, conditional on minimum 15 nights bookings per room logged in the visitor-management portal;
• 15% after Year 2, minimum 30 nights per room;
• 20% after Year 3, minimum 45 nights per room. [S1, cl.5.2.1.2] Bank route: the revised form records whether funding is own funds, bank loan or both, and asks for bank/loan-scheme details. Subsidy itself is routed to the owner's Aadhaar-linked bank account under the scheme. A bank loan is not stated to be compulsory. [S1/S2] Operation condition/recovery: incentivised units commit to operate for five consecutive years from CoD. Closure before five years creates staged recovery—100%, 80%, 50%, 25% or 10% of subsidy disbursed depending on closure year—with 9% p.a. interest under the schedule. [S1, cl.5.2.3] Current application status: NOT CONFIRMED OPEN ON 05 SEPTEMBER 2026. A Cycle-1 target letter exists, but a current application deadline/window was not located. Applicants must not spend on the assumption that the incentive window is continuously open.

B. Domestic tourism event support for registered homestays

Odisha Tourism Policy 2022 as amended in 2026 states that registered homestay owners participating in domestic tourism events may receive free exhibition space plus up to 80% of actual travel expenditure, capped at ₹50,000 for one event in a financial year, available once each year. This remains an application/approval-dependent incentive and should not be booked as guaranteed revenue or reimbursement. [S7, para.15.1.11(b), p.34]

C. PM-JUGA homestay support

The central PM-JUGA tourism sub-scheme includes homestay support of up to ₹5 lakh for village-community requirements, ₹5 lakh for construction of two new rooms per household, and ₹3 lakh for renovation of existing rooms, under its own eligibility/sanction framework. The Odisha homestay guidelines also refer to PM-JUGA-supported applicants in coordinating benefits. However, a currently open Odisha PM-JUGA homestay application route was Not stated in the material reviewed. Primary implementation reporting reviewed for February 2026 listed approved projects in other States/UTs and did not establish an Odisha beneficiary window. Consequently no Odisha property should model PM-JUGA assistance as available until a current Odisha/central sanction and application route is identified.

D. General Odisha Tourism Policy incentives

General incentives for “Tourism Units” under Odisha Tourism Policy must not automatically be applied to a homestay, because the amended policy's definition of Tourism Unit lists hotels/resorts, apartment hotels and numerous other tourism facilities but not homestays; the policy separately says homestays are promoted under a separate scheme. [S7, paras.11(m), 12] Accordingly, no general Tourism Unit electricity-duty exemption, stamp-duty reimbursement or capital-investment subsidy is treated in this guide as a homestay entitlement unless a separate official instrument expressly extends it.

13 / Business implications

Translate the rules into a workable project

Before selecting or acquiring any Odisha property, the project team should establish the exact village/GP/Block/ULB/development-authority position, whether the site falls within a notified Category-1 GP, what the current post-August Category-1 residence test is, who owns the property, who could lawfully become the applicant and which family member will genuinely reside and host. Before construction or renovation, the property assessment should separately establish title/lease validity, land-use/building-permission route, whether an exemption from building-plan approval exists, fire applicability, utility arrangements, waste requirements, coastal/forest/protected-area exposure and whether the mandatory homestay room/bathroom/RCC/utilities standards can physically be achieved. The scheme does not currently establish that the tourism registration holder and the professional operating entity may freely differ. Classification wording refers to an “owner or operator,” and the revised form recognises outsourced staff, but neither point is sufficient evidence that an LLP/company may replace the eligible resident individual as the underlying registration holder. An LLP, company, lease or management agreement therefore cannot by itself solve:

• natural-person/residency eligibility;
• resident-family-host requirement;
• property title/lease requirements;
• building legality;
• local licences; or
• incentive eligibility. A property-development mandate should be made conditional on local planning/building feasibility rather than assuming that receiving Tourism Department PRC or registration allows construction. A property assessment should record at minimum: exact administrative geography; title/co-owner status; lease duration; applicant identity/residence; resident host; total building rooms versus guest rooms; proposed classification; existing building approvals; fire/local-body/FSSAI positions; utility and waste status; capex broken into potentially eligible and clearly ineligible components; current incentive cycle; and every unresolved authority question. Before the project team proposes commercial terms, it should know:

1. who can truthfully sign the application;
2. who will reside and host;
3. who holds title/lease;
4. whether the address is Category 1, Category 2 or currently ambiguous;
5. whether a company can perform the intended management role without displacing the resident host;
6. which approvals are missing;
7. whether subsidy applications are actually open; and
8. whether any proposed capex must occur only after a particular approval or sanction milestone. No fixed ownership percentage, capital contribution, return, revenue share or guaranteed income can be derived from the regulatory sources.

14 / Official-source conflicts

Resolve conflicting official instructions

Conflict 1 — Category-1 residency after the August 2026 Gazette

Source A: S1/S4. November scheme and current portal say applicant must be a resident of/belong to the notified GP. Source B: S3 proves a later official Gazette entry exists dated 05 August 2026. S18, discovery-only, reports that the amendment changes residence eligibility to the concerned Block, with notified-GP applicants receiving preference. Hierarchy/date: a valid later Gazette amendment would override the earlier provision to the extent expressly amended. However, the primary August text was not retrievable. Status: The official sources are not aligned / PRIMARY TEXT NOT RETRIEVED. Affected properties: Category-1 notified-GP projects where the proposed applicant lives elsewhere in the same Block. Authority to resolve: Department of Tourism Homestay Cell / Director Tourism; if necessary Secretary, Tourism. Request a certified/eGazette copy of the 05 August 2026 instrument and written confirmation of current portal eligibility.

Conflict 2 — Category-2 statewide versus “All GP”

Source A: S1 cl.3.1.1.2(i) says all other homestays “across the State of Odisha.” Source B: S4 says Category-2 eligible area is “All GP.” S2 revised Annex III asks for District/Block/Gram Panchayat/Village fields only. Hierarchy: main scheme text expressly prevails over inconsistent Annexures, but that does not guarantee the live portal will accept an urban address. Status: The official sources are not aligned. Affected properties: municipal corporations, municipalities, NACs and other ULB locations. Resolve with: DoT Homestay Cell and relevant district TDO before acquisition/application.

Conflict 3 — “Owned and operated” versus lessee eligibility

Source A: general definition says homestay is “owned and operated” by individual/family. [S1 cl.3.1.1(a)] Source B: the same scheme expressly permits leases; S2 Annex II calls the lessee the “Applicant.” Hierarchy: both propositions arise in the scheme itself. No express clause explains how a lessee satisfies “owned.” Status: The official sources are not aligned IN WORDING. Affected properties: all lease-based homestays. Resolve with: DoT in writing, asking whether “owned” includes the eligible long-term lessee for scheme purposes.

Conflict 4 — PAN mandatory versus “optional”

Source A: S1 main text requires valid PAN for Category-1 and Category-2 applicants. Source B: S2 revised Category-1 Annex II states “PAN Number (Optional).” Hierarchy: S1 expressly states that the main scheme text prevails over Annexures when inconsistent. Working legal-research conclusion: PAN should not be treated as optional solely because the revised form labels it that way, unless the later August amendment or portal has changed the main requirement. Status: hierarchy substantially resolves toward the main-text requirement, but portal treatment should still be verified.

Conflict 5 — Fire/building/local certificates in revised Cat-2 form

Source A: S2 Annex III lists Trade Licence, Building Plan Approval, Fire Safety Certificate, Electricity Safety Certificate and SWM evidence without an express “if applicable” qualifier. Source B: S1 Annex IX describes Fire/FSSAI/local clearances as “if applicable” for classification, and S2 Annex XII expressly recognises that a proposed built-up area may be exempt from building-plan approval. Status: OFFICIAL APPLICATION MATERIAL NOT FULLY ALIGNED WITH UNDERLYING APPLICABILITY. Affected properties: exempt small construction, old buildings and premises outside mandatory FSC categories. Resolve with: district TDO/DHC, asking what portal evidence or N/A declaration is accepted.

Conflict 6 — Category-2 capacity versus classification

The April amendment removes the Category-2 registration cap and the portal says “No limit,” while classification continues to state a maximum of six rooms/twelve beds. This is best read as different scopes rather than a direct conflict: Category-2 registration may exceed six rooms after the amendment, while the published Gold/Silver classification mechanism remains capped at six rooms/twelve beds. Written confirmation is advisable for any larger project.

Conflict 7 — Rayagada notified-GP list

S2's April list shows “Kulusing” twice in the relevant Rayagada entry. S18 reports the inaccessible later amendment replaced serial 06 “Kulusing” with “Puttasing.” Status: PRIMARY CURRENT TEXT REQUIRED. Affected properties: the Rayagada/Gunupur cluster, particularly Puttasing.

15 / Unresolved questions for the authority

Take the remaining questions to the authority

1. Please provide the complete official Gazette PDF corresponding to the 05 August 2026 eGazette entry titled “Odisha Homestay Establishment Scheme, 2025,” including Gazette number and Notification No. 10641 if that is the relevant notification.
2. Does the current Category-1 residency test require the applicant to reside in the notified GP or anywhere within the concerned Block, and what documentary evidence establishes that residence?
3. If Block residents are eligible, how is “preference” for residents of the notified GP operationalised—priority ranking, lottery weighting, first selection, or another method?
4. Has “Puttasing” officially replaced the duplicate “Kulusing” entry in the Rayagada list?
5. Can a Category-2 homestay be registered inside a Municipal Corporation, Municipality, NAC or other ULB, given cl.3.1.1.2(i)'s statewide wording but the live portal's “All GP” wording?
6. If urban Category-2 applications are permitted, what portal geography fields should be used where no GP exists?
7. How should cl.3.1.1(a)'s “owned and operated” wording be applied to a lessee expressly permitted under Category-1 or Category-2 eligibility?
8. Can a company, LLP, partnership firm, trust or society ever hold the DoT Homestay Registration Certificate, or must the holder always be an individual?
9. Can a professional management company manage reservations, housekeeping, pricing, staffing and distribution while the individual owner/family remains resident host and registration holder?
10. What operational responsibilities may not be delegated because of the “personally host guests” condition?
11. Is a caretaker ever accepted instead of resident owner/family? If yes, under what written provision?
12. Is PAN currently mandatory for Category-1 applications despite revised Annex II marking it “Optional”?
13. After deletion of the Category-2 six-room/twelve-bed cap, may an unclassified Category-2 homestay register any number of rooms permitted by local building law, or is there another operational ceiling?
14. Can a Category-2 property with more than six rooms obtain Gold/Silver classification, or does Annex VIII/3.7.3 permanently limit classification to six rooms?
15. For the revised Category-2 Annex III document list, what should an applicant upload where Building Plan Approval is legally exempt/not available?
16. What should be uploaded where a Fire Safety Certificate is not legally required for that premises?
17. Is an Electricity Safety Certificate mandatory for every Category-2 application, and which authority/document is accepted?
18. Is a Trade Licence mandatory for every rural GP homestay, or only where the relevant local law requires it?
19. What substitute is accepted for a water bill where the property uses a lawful private or community water source?
20. What substitute is accepted for an SWM user-fee receipt in a locality without that billing system?
21. Does every Category-2 unit have to conduct real-time guest check-in/check-out through Go Homestay, or is that mandatory only for financial-incentive units?
22. What is the intended unit in cl.3.5.1(l)'s bed dimensions 72'x78' and 36'x78'?
23. Is a corrigendum proposed for those bed dimensions?
24. What are the current accepted upload formats and maximum file sizes for plans, photographs, title deeds, NOCs and certificates?
25. Is there any inspection/classification fee beyond the verified application and renewal fees?
26. Is there a target processing time for Category-1 or Category-2 registration, and is it administrative or legally enforceable?
27. What is the required renewal filing period before certificate expiry?
28. What process applies to adding/removing rooms after registration?
29. What process applies on sale, inheritance, transfer, lease expiry or change of resident host?
30. Can a registration survive ownership transfer, or must a new applicant apply?
31. Is any staff/caretaker police verification required by DoT beyond foreigner-reporting and visitor-record obligations?
32. Is the Category-1 financial-incentive intake currently open; if not, what is the next officially scheduled cycle?
33. Do PM-JUGA homestay benefits currently have an approved/open Odisha route?
34. Are any current district-specific SOPs or orders additional to the statewide Gazette documents?
35. Does the Department require any specific liability/property insurance even though none is identified in the current scheme text?