Short-term rental glossary for Italy: 44 terms explained in plain English

Italian terms are kept in their original form, because that’s how you’ll see them on government portals, in your accountant’s emails and in your Comune’s regulations, followed by a plain-English explanation. Entries are grouped in five areas: rules and compliance, tax, distribution and revenue, guests and operations, automation and AI.

Rules and compliance

Art. 109 TULPS

Article of Italy’s public-security code (R.D. 773/1931) requiring anyone who hosts guests to identify them with a valid ID and report their details to the police. Since 2018 (art. 19-bis DL 113/2018) it also covers short-term rentals. In practice you comply through Alloggiati Web.

Alloggiati Web

The State Police portal for reporting guests to the Questura: within 24 hours of arrival, or within 6 hours for stays of 24 hours or less. You request login credentials from your local Questura. Maurice submits guest records automatically, on time, for every booking.

Schedina (guest record)

The record of a single guest sent to Alloggiati Web: personal details, citizenship, dates of stay and, for a single guest or the head of a family or group, the ID document details. After submission the portal makes a receipt (ricevuta) available, which you should download and keep.

Questura

The provincial headquarters of the State Police (Polizia di Stato). For hosts it’s where you get Alloggiati Web credentials and the authority to ask about guest identification, including self check-in. For practical questions, the most reliable answer comes from the Questura covering your property.

CIN (Codice Identificativo Nazionale)

National ID code issued by the Ministry of Tourism, through its national accommodation database (BDSR), to every accommodation business and short-term or tourist rental (art. 13-ter DL 145/2023). It must be displayed outside the building and shown in every listing. Full details in our CIN guide.

CIR (regional ID code)

A code several Italian regions issued to rentals before the CIN existed, under different names depending on the region (CIR, CIS, codice identificativo). It doesn’t replace the national CIN, which you need in any case: check with your Region whether the regional code must still appear in listings.

SCIA

Segnalazione certificata di inizio attività, the certified notice of business start (art. 19 L. 241/1990), filed online with the Comune’s SUAP desk. It’s mandatory for short-term and tourist rentals run as a business (art. 13-ter DL 145/2023); for B&Bs, guesthouses and other accommodation types, regional law sets the requirements.

ISTAT reporting

Reporting guest arrivals and nights for Italy’s official tourism statistics (ISTAT is the national statistics institute). Data goes through regional portals, and each Region decides who must report, including short-term rentals, and how often. Maurice sends ISTAT data automatically to the portals of supported regions.

Ross1000

Web platform used by several Italian regions to collect ISTAT data on guest movements in accommodation businesses and, where the Region requires it, short-term rentals. You can fill it in by hand, or let Maurice submit the data for you automatically.

EU Regulation 2024/1028

The EU regulation on data collection and sharing for short-term rental services, applicable from 20 May 2026. Where a registration procedure applies, hosts must show a valid registration number on listings; platforms must check it and share activity data with authorities through single digital entry points.

Locazione breve (short let)

Italian tax category for residential lets of up to 30 days, including linen and cleaning, signed by private individuals outside a business (art. 4 DL 50/2017). From 2026 the regime covers at most two apartments per owner; beyond that, the activity is presumed to be a business.

Locazione turistica (tourist let)

A let for purely tourist purposes, excluded from Italy’s ordinary residential-lease law (art. 1 L. 431/1998) and governed by the Civil Code and the Tourism Code. It can last longer than 30 days; when it doesn’t and the owner is a private individual, it’s also a locazione breve.

Contratto transitorio (transitional lease)

Fixed-term residential lease (art. 5 L. 431/1998, DM 16 January 2017): 1 to 18 months with a documented temporary need, or 6 to 36 months for university students. It’s the usual contract for mid-term rentals to workers and students in Italy.

Tax

Cedolare secca (flat rental tax)

Optional flat tax on residential rental income that replaces Italian income tax (IRPEF), its surcharges and registration and stamp duties. For short lets the rate is 21% on one property chosen by the owner and 26% on the others. See our cedolare secca guide for worked examples.

Imposta di soggiorno (tourist tax)

Municipal tax paid by guests, usually per person per night, set by each Comune in its own regulation with its own rates and exemptions (art. 4 D.Lgs. 23/2011). The host is legally responsible for payment, with the right to recover it from guests. Maurice collects it by card during online check-in.

Tourist tax return

Annual electronic return the host files by 30 June of the following year (art. 4, para. 1-ter, D.Lgs. 23/2011), on top of the periodic payments and reports required by the Comune’s regulation. Our guide to the Italian tourist tax explains who pays and who remits.

Ritenuta del 21% (21% withholding)

Tax that agents and platforms withhold when they collect short-let rent on the owner’s behalf (art. 4, para. 5, DL 50/2017). Since 2024 it’s always an advance payment: the final tax is calculated in the owner’s Italian tax return, deducting what was already withheld.

Sostituto d’imposta (withholding agent)

A party legally required to withhold tax from payments it makes to others and pay it to the Italian treasury on their behalf. In short lets this means agents and platforms that collect rent and apply the 21% withholding; non-resident ones act through a permanent establishment or a tax representative.

Partita IVA (VAT number)

The Italian VAT registration that identifies business or professional activity. For short lets you need one, for example, when from 2026 an individual lets more than two apartments, runs a business-grade accommodation, or works as a property manager. Ask an Italian commercialista to assess your case.

Distribution and revenue

OTA (Online Travel Agency)

A platform that sells stays online on behalf of hosts and properties for a commission, such as Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo or Expedia. With Maurice, OTA bookings arrive automatically, even without a PMS: see integrations.

Channel manager

Software that keeps availability, prices and bookings in sync across several OTAs to prevent double bookings; it’s often part of a PMS. Maurice integrates with PMSs and channel managers such as Smoobu, Beds24, Lodgify, Hostaway and Guesty: here’s the full list of integrations.

PMS (Property Management System)

Software for managing bookings, calendars, guests, cleaning and invoicing across one or more properties. It differs from a channel manager, which handles distribution, and from an AI assistant, which talks to guests. Maurice works alongside your PMS.

iCal

Standard calendar format (.ics file) that platforms use to share booked dates. It’s free and simple, but it updates at intervals and carries neither prices nor full guest details, so with several active channels it leaves room for overlaps and double bookings.

Overbooking

When the same unit is booked twice for the same nights, usually because of a sync delay between channels. A channel manager and up-to-date calendars prevent it; if it happens, deal with it immediately with the guest and the platform, which may apply penalties to the host.

Dynamic pricing

Changing the nightly price according to demand, season, events, day of the week and booking lead time, often with automated tools. The goal is maximum total revenue, not just a full calendar, and it’s measured with metrics such as ADR and RevPAR.

ADR (Average Daily Rate)

Room revenue divided by the nights (or rooms) sold in a period. Hypothetical example: €6,000 earned over 50 nights gives an ADR of €120. It ignores unsold nights, so always read it together with the occupancy rate.

RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Room)

Room revenue divided by the nights available, or ADR multiplied by the occupancy rate. Hypothetical example: an ADR of €120 at 70% occupancy gives a RevPAR of €84. It’s the fairest way to compare different periods or properties.

Occupancy rate

Nights sold as a percentage of nights available in a period. Hypothetical example: 21 booked nights out of 30 gives 70% occupancy. High occupancy at prices that are too low can reduce revenue, so read it together with ADR and RevPAR. Maurice’s dashboard shows occupancy for your properties.

Guests and operations

Online check-in

A process where guests, before arrival, enter their details, upload IDs, give their arrival time and accept the house rules from a link, with no app. With Maurice it also covers payments and automatically releases the access instructions: see online check-in.

Self check-in

Guests let themselves in with a key box or code, without meeting the host. In Italy a Ministry of the Interior circular of 18 November 2024 calls for in-person identification of guests, and the case law is still evolving. Read our guide to self check-in rules in Italy and check with your Questura.

Key box

A small combination safe mounted near the entrance that holds the keys for independent arrivals; it’s good practice to change the code for every stay. Maurice releases the code and access instructions as text on arrival day, from check-in time, as soon as the guest has completed online check-in.

House rules

The rules guests accept when booking: quiet hours, no parties or smoking, pets, recycling, maximum occupancy. Repeat them in online check-in, where guests confirm them, and in your welcome message; there’s a ready-made text among our guest message templates.

Early check-in

Arriving before the standard check-in time, possible only if the unit is already clean and free. Many hosts offer it as a paid extra, confirmed depending on that day’s bookings. With Maurice you can offer it as a configurable extra and charge it by card.

Late check-out

Leaving after the standard check-out time, possible only if it fits the next booking and the cleaning schedule. Like early check-in, it’s a typical paid extra: offer it a few days before departure and confirm it only when the calendar allows.

Upselling

Selling extra services to a guest who has already booked: early check-in, late check-out, transfers, extra cleaning. It works best when offered at the right moment and payable in a few taps. Maurice offers guests the extras you configure and charges them by card, paid straight to you.

Turnover

Everything that happens between one guest leaving and the next arriving: cleaning, linen change, restocking supplies, checking for damage and forgotten items. The gap between check-out and check-in determines how much room you have for early check-ins and late check-outs.

Security deposit

Money held against possible damage and returned at the end of the stay or lease; in Italian residential leases it can’t exceed three months’ rent (art. 11 L. 392/1978). On platforms, each channel’s rules apply.

No-show

A guest who neither arrives nor cancels. What you can keep depends on your cancellation policy and the platform’s rules. An online check-in still incomplete close to arrival and unanswered messages are often the first warning signs, so send a reminder in good time.

Automation and AI

AI guest assistant

AI software that answers guests around the clock, in their own language, using knowledge of the property and the area, and involves the host only when a person is really needed. Maurice is an AI guest assistant for short-term rentals, B&Bs and hotels in Italy; see also our guide to AI guest messaging.

Scheduled messages

Automatic messages that platforms or PMSs send at a set moment: on confirmation, a few days before arrival, at check-out. They’re a simple way to make sure every guest gets your online check-in link. Ready-to-use texts are in our guest message templates.

Escalation

Handing a conversation from an automated assistant to a person when a decision or an intervention is needed: a breakdown, a complaint, an unusual request. Maurice asks for the host’s help only when it’s really needed, and it doesn’t just talk to guests: it talks to the host too and does what the host tells it.

Guest portal

A web page opened from a link, with no app or account, where guests complete check-in, pay, find access instructions and Wi-Fi, and message the host or the assistant. With Maurice, guests do all of this from a single link and can reach Maurice 24/7, in their own language.

API

An interface that lets two pieces of software exchange data in a structured, secure way, for example bookings between a PMS and a check-in app. Automation platforms such as Zapier, Make and n8n rely on APIs to connect tools without code.

Webhook

An automatic notification one system sends to another the moment something happens, such as a new booking or a cancellation, with no need for periodic checks. Many booking platforms and PMSs use them to keep other tools up to date in real time.