The Digital Services Act (DSA) (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065) is new European Union (EU) legislation that impacts online platforms that offer services to consumers based in the EU and the European Economic Area (EEA). The DSA’s objective is to promote a transparent and safe online environment, and to define responsibilities and accountability for a range of online platforms, including Vrbo. 

Requirements 

The DSA introduces several new rules and requirements, but the most relevant to professional lodging suppliers are trader disclosures. 

Vrbo must gather business-related information from professional suppliers worldwide that wish to offer their services to travelers using Vrbo’s sites in Europe. Some of this information must also be displayed on Vrbo’s European sites. Vrbo must also conduct due diligence to ensure that the information provided by suppliers is reliable and complete. 

We will gather the following information from professional suppliers: 

  • The supplier’s legal business name (displayed). 
  • If registered on a Business Register, the name of that register and the accompanying Business Registration Number (displayed if provided). 
    • A Business Registration Number is a unique identifier provided when a business is established. Countries may have different names for this number, but the request is for partners to provide the publicly available number linked to the registration or creation of their business. Do not provide sensitive or private numbers. Partners may also use a publicly available number provided by a local jurisdiction, like a city.  
  • A self-certification that the services offered by the supplier are compliant with applicable laws (displayed).  
    • Suppliers must provide content, services and/or activities that comply with the laws applicable to their services. The laws which may apply will depend on the type of services provided by the supplier and may include, but are not limited to, rules relating to fraudulent or deceptive content, health or safety regulations, offensive or discriminatory content, or trademark or copyright violations. 
  • A certificate of incorporation (not displayed), but only from suppliers who have not already shared a valid VAT/GST number, a Tax Identification Number (TIN), or a Business Registration Number with Vrbo. 

We encourage professional partners to provide DSA-required information so their listings can continue to be visible to European travelers after February 17, 2025.  

Private hosts who are incorrectly designated as professional can update their information in the Vrbo owner dashboard by visiting Property, then How You Host, then Property Description. The DSA does not apply to private hosts who provide accommodation not related to their trade, business, or profession. 

How to provide the necessary information  

Independent properties 

You can provide this information by navigating to your Local laws dashboard. 

Properties linked to a global agreement   

We will reach out to your corporate global or regional contacts to gather the corporate information, which will be displayed on individual property listings. Typically, a global agreement applies to large vacation rental property managers.