Getting a Kerala homestay classified by the Department of Tourism

Kerala built its homestay model around families who live in the house and share it with guests. The Department of Tourism's classification reflects that, and it shapes what an owner can and cannot delegate.

Kerala's homestays in Fort Kochi, Munnar, Alappuzha, Varkala and Wayanad grew out of a simple idea: the traveller stays with a Malayali family. The Department of Tourism's classification scheme is written for that model, and its guidelines are unusually clear about who qualifies.

The conditions that decide eligibility

• The family lives there. Classification is given only to units where the owner, together with his or her family, is physically residing.
• The owner applies. The classification is issued only in the name of the owner of the house.
• No leased or rented houses. The guidelines state that leased or rented houses will not be considered.
• Six rooms at most may be given to tourists.

For an NRI whose Kerala house stands empty most of the year, this means the homestay classification is not the right tool. For a family that lives in the house and has spare rooms, it is.

The eight documents

The Department lists the uploads that go with an application:

• Acceptance of regulatory conditions on ₹200 stamp paper, in the prescribed pro forma.
• Residence certificate from the panchayat, municipality or corporation.
• Ownership certificate of the building from the same local body.
• An up-to-date land tax receipt.
• Police clearance certificate from the local Station House Officer.
• Registration with the Office of the Food Safety Commissioner (a registration, not a licence).
• The existing plan and elevation of the building.
• Photographs: two of the exterior and two of the interior.

Applying, fee and inspection

The application is made online, with an application fee of ₹3,750 per homestay paid online at the time of submission. An inspection committee then visits and checks the house against the Department's checklist, which decides the category. Moving to a higher category is only considered at reclassification.

Validity and duties afterwards

• A classification or reclassification is valid for three years.
• The certificate must be displayed.
• Foreign guests must be reported: the guidelines insist that C Form submission be done properly. Since the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, this is Form-III on indianfrro.gov.in, within 24 hours of arrival.
• Any change to the unit must be reported to the Department within 30 days.

Local body and tax questions

The classification is a tourism status. Your panchayat or municipality may have its own requirements for a house used to receive paying guests, so ask the secretary's office before you begin. GST follows national rules: 5% without input tax credit on rooms up to ₹7,500 a night since 22 September 2025, 18% above. Whether you need to register is a question for your accountant.

Preparing the file in the right order

The local body documents take longest, so start there: residence and ownership certificates from the panchayat or municipality, then the police clearance. The stamp-paper acceptance and the food safety registration can follow, and the photographs come last, once the rooms are ready for inspection.

How Hexuvium can help a Kerala host family

Since the family must live in the house, our role in Kerala is support rather than substitution. The classification stays in the owner's name. Under a management mandate we can run the listing and pricing, answer guests in English and other languages, organise cleaning and linen, and file Form-III — while the family remains the host the guidelines require.