Russia's Supreme Court confirms residential homes can be used as guest houses

Russia's Supreme Court has ruled that an individual residential home can legally be used as a commercial guest house, overturning lower court decisions against the practice.

The case began when a municipal administration sued the owners of a guest house, asking the court to ban its commercial use. The administration argued that the permitted use of the land plot — individual housing construction — did not include guest house services. It also claimed the building threatened people's life and health, harmed the environment, and violated public interests.

A first-instance court rejected the claim, but appeal and cassation courts found that the plot was being used with violations. The owners then appealed to the Supreme Court, pointing to Federal Law No. 127-FZ of June 7, 2025, which established an experiment on providing guest house services.

The Supreme Court's civil chamber overturned the appeal and cassation rulings. According to the court's press service, the special law means there is no need to change the designated purpose of the land plot in order to use an individual residential house as a guest house.

The experiment runs from September 1, 2025 to December 31, 2027 in certain Russian regions. Its goal is to create a legal framework for guest house activities and allow private homes to provide such services for the development of tourism.