Cost to open a homestay in Vietnam or Indonesia: 2026 checklist

Ask ten hosts what it cost to open a homestay and you will get ten numbers, most of them guesses. The cost to open a homestay depends on the building you start with, the town, the number of rooms and how much you do yourself. A four-room house in Đà Lạt that already has bathrooms is a different project from a new villa in Canggu that needs a building approval first.

So this post does not give you a price list. Price lists copied from other blogs go out of date quickly and rarely match your situation. Instead it gives you every cost category a homestay in Vietnam or Indonesia actually has, how to estimate each one with real quotes, and the official government fees we could confirm from official or named sources, as of October 2026.

Where we could not find an official figure, we say so. Fees and tax rules change, and they differ by province and regency, so confirm each line with the local office before you rely on it.

The cost to open a homestay, category by category

Every budget falls into two groups: one-off costs before the first guest, and running costs that start the day you open. Most first-time hosts budget the first group carefully and forget the second.

Licences and official fees in Vietnam

Our Vietnam homestay licence guide explains each step. Here is what the official fees look like.

• Business registration. A household business registers at commune level. The registration fee is set by each province. Hanoi, for example, charges 0 đồng for business registration filed online from 25 July 2026 under Resolution 78/2026/NQ-HĐND; filing in person still pays the province's schedule. Check your own province's resolution.
• Business licence fee (lệ phí môn bài). Abolished from 1 January 2026, together with lump-sum tax, under Resolution 198/2025/QH15. Older cost guides still include it.
• Security and order certificate. Police procedure pages list an appraisal fee of 300,000 đồng per certificate (Ninh Bình provincial police, based on Circular 218/2016/TT-BTC).
• Notice to the tourism department. We found no fee for the notice itself. Missing it or sending it incomplete can cost VND 500,000 to 1,000,000 in fines (<a href="https://pbgdpl.gov.vn/Pages/tin-tuc-hd-pbpl.aspx?ItemID=9535&l=HoatdongPBGDPLodiap">Ministry of Justice).

The official fees are small. The real money in this category is the fire safety work and the time.

Licences and official fees in Indonesia

Our Bali villa licence guide covers ownership, KBLI codes and the 2026 OTA checks.

• NIB through OSS. Free. A regency licensing office's service standard lists the NIB as "tidak dipungut biaya", no charge (DPMPTSP Demak). Costs appear only if you pay an agent or need a notary for a company deed.
• Building approval (PBG) and fitness certificate (SLF). These go through the regency. Under Law 1/2022 the building approval is one of the services that carry a regional licensing levy (retribusi), and each regency sets its own rate in a bylaw (DDTCNews). The amount depends on the building, so ask the regency office for a written estimate before you budget.
• Foreign owners. A PT PMA has capital requirements that dwarf every other licence cost. Read the licence guide and talk to a licensed adviser first.

Fire safety and the building

No government publishes a price for fire equipment, because it depends on your building. In Vietnam, almost any homestay of two storeys or 50 m² falls under the fire rules described in the licence guide, and the minimum file includes internal fire rules and a firefighting plan. Get two supplier quotes based on your floor plan, and ask each supplier to list extinguishers, alarms, emergency lights and exit signs separately so you can compare.

Building works are the most variable line of all. Budget them from contractor quotes only, and add a contingency for surprises once walls are opened.

Furniture, linen and supplies

Vietnam's tourism rules give you a useful starting list. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism lists the minimum for a homestay: a sleeping area, kitchen, bathroom and toilet; a bed, mattress or mat, blankets, pillows, mosquito net and towels; and covers and towels changed for each new guest. Even in Indonesia, that list is a sensible baseline.

How to estimate:

• Linen: plan at least three sets per bed: one on the bed, one in the wash, one spare. Multiply by beds, then by your supplier's quote per set.
• Towels: the same logic per guest the room sleeps.
• Room fittings: list everything per room once (bed, side tables, wardrobe, curtains, kettle, hangers), get a price per item, multiply by rooms.
• Consumables: soap, toilet paper, coffee, water. Estimate per stay, then multiply by expected stays a month.

Photos, software and OTA commission

Photos decide whether anyone clicks. Get a quote from a local photographer for all rooms and common areas, and plan to redo them when you change the decor.

Software is a monthly running cost, so budget it as months, not as a one-off. A tool that replaces both a PMS and a channel manager means one bill instead of two.

OTA commission is often the biggest running cost after cleaning. Airbnb publishes its rates; Booking.com and Agoda set yours in your contract. Our Airbnb vs Booking.com fees guide explains what each charges on, and the free OTA fee calculator works out what you keep per booking.

Cleaning, utilities and taxes

Cleaning and laundry. Work out a cost per turnover: cleaner time, laundry per set, consumables. Multiply by the number of stays you expect, not the number of nights. Short stays mean more turnovers. Our turnover day guide helps you plan the work itself.

Utilities. Take your last three bills and assume they rise once guests run air-con and hot water all day. Add internet at a business-grade speed.

Taxes in Vietnam. Household businesses with revenue up to VND 1 billion a year pay no VAT or personal income tax but still report revenue; above it, accommodation pays VAT and PIT, filed quarterly. The licence guide has the sources and rates.

Taxes in Indonesia. Regional hotel tax (PBJT) applies to villas at no more than 10%, set by each regency. For income tax, individuals on the final SME scheme pay 0.5% of turnover, and the first Rp500 million a year is not taxed, according to the tax office, which says this still applies after PP 20/2026.

A hypothetical worksheet

This is an illustration, not a quote. Say you are opening a four-room homestay with four double beds. Only the official fee lines contain real figures; every other line shows how to calculate it, and you fill in your own quotes.

How Santara AI helps once you open

Santara AI does not handle licences or tax filing. It is the software line in your budget, and it covers the daily running side.

It replaces both the PMS and the channel manager: one calendar per room feeds Airbnb, Booking.com, Agoda and the rest of 54 channels, and a direct booking site is included in every plan. New bookings create cleaning tasks automatically, and the Daily Brief email at 6am lists the day's arrivals, departures and cleans.

For tracking costs after opening, the Reports screen shows one monthly statement per property: gross booking revenue minus channel fees minus the expenses you add, giving the owner's net. You can download it as CSV. Revenue is counted at checkout, and currencies are never converted.

FAQ

Keep reading

• Guest registration in Vietnam and Indonesia
• Short-term rental glossary
• Direct booking websites for vacation rentals

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