Airbnb Help Center

Why does Airbnb Korea ask for an accommodation business license instead of my business registration certificate?

Because they prove different things: the accommodation license proves this specific property may legally host guests, while the business registration certificate identifies the person or company for tax purposes.

Why won't Airbnb show me the exact address before I pay?

Officially it's host privacy/safety — but it also happens to block guests from booking direct and skipping the platform fee entirely.

Why does a refund require the host's consent?

It doesn't always. If you cancel within the deadlines of the refund policy on your reservation, the amount that policy sets is refunded on cancellation without the host's consent. Host consent only matters when you want back more than the policy allows. If the host cancels, the place has a serious problem, or Airbnb's Major Disruptive Events Policy applies, you can be refunded regardless of the host's policy.

Why are cancellation penalties so steep?

What feels like a "cancellation fee" is usually not a separate fee. It's the part of the nightly price the host's refund policy doesn't give back. Short stays use policies such as Flexible, Moderate, Limited and Strict, and stays of 28 nights or more have separate long-term policies. Your actual deadline and refund are whatever your reservation's refund policy and the estimated refund before cancelling show.

The host agreed to a full refund — why didn't the ~14% service fee come back?

It depends on how the refund was processed. Airbnb says that when a guest cancels, the service fee is refunded only if the cancellation is within the free-cancellation period. When a host sends back more than the policy requires after that, it is a discretionary refund, and Airbnb's help pages don't say whether the service fee comes back in that case. Start by checking which line item is missing in your refund details.

I checked out normally, but now the host claims damage that "wasn't there before" and is billing me extra.

Retroactive false damage claims are a documented recurring scam pattern — check-in photo/video evidence is essentially your only defense.

Why is there always a service fee on top of the listing price?

Airbnb found that a price jump between the search screen and checkout screen made guests abandon bookings — so it moved to a single 15.5% host-side fee instead.

I'm a host — what actually happens to ME if I have to cancel a confirmed reservation?

Since August 22, 2022, canceling without a valid reason gets you a penalty fee — starting at $50 and scaling up to 50% of the reservation value the closer it is to check-in — deducted straight out of your future payouts.

As a guest, if the HOST cancels on me, am I actually made whole?

You get your money back, but "rebooking assistance" is not a cash guarantee — Airbnb's own policy states it has no obligation to cover the price difference if a comparable replacement now costs more.

Fees from hosts, fees from guests, cancellation penalties from hosts who cancel — where does all this money actually go?

Mostly nowhere productive. In 2025 Airbnb generated $4.6B in free cash flow (a 38% margin), spent $3.8B of it buying back its own stock, paid zero dividends, and still finished with $11.4B just sitting in cash and short-term investments.

I'm the one paying — why can a host reject my booking based on my profile/review score?

What Airbnb is really protecting isn't the guest — it's the host supply. Losing one bad-experience host is the platform's worst-case scenario.

The place didn't match the listing photos at check-in — how do I get a refund?

Tell the host or Airbnb within 72 hours of discovering the problem, with photos or video. This is handled by Airbnb's Rebooking and Refund Policy, and Airbnb decides the refund or rebooking help from the evidence.

Can I get a bad guest review deleted?

Not just because you disagree with it — only reviews that violate Airbnb's content policy (personal info, factually false claims, harassment) can be reported for removal.

Can a minor book a place on their own?

No — Airbnb's terms require account holders to be 18 or older, full stop.

Why is there a separate cleaning fee on top of the nightly rate?

It's the host's own charge for post-checkout cleaning, not something Airbnb adds — hosts set it themselves.

Does AirCover insurance actually apply to my situation?

Host damage protection covers up to $3M and host liability insurance covers a separate $1M — but only if you booked and paid through Airbnb itself, and only if you report it.

I was charged again after checkout — what is this?

The host filed an additional charge (usually for damage or extra cleaning) within Airbnb's 72-hour post-checkout window.

How does someone become a Superhost?

Automatic quarterly review, no application — hit 10+ stays (or 100+ nights across 3 reservations), 90%+ response rate, under 1% cancellation rate, and a 4.8+ rating, and the badge appears on its own.

Why is my Airbnb host payout lower than the guest’s reservation total?

The guest total and the host payout are different ledgers. Airbnb deducts host-side fees, co-host shares, and sometimes tax withholding, while the guest total can include separate guest fees and taxes.