WA Selling, Home Business & Farm-Stay Rules: What the State Actually Sets
WA splits home-based work into two different planning categories, one needing approval and one generally not, and just reformed its short-term accommodation rules statewide, replacing the old bed-and-breakfast terminology entirely. This article covers what the state actually sets for selling produce, home business, and farm-stay, before your specific council's requirements layer on top.
WA's structure differs from the eastern states in both its home-business categories and its recent approach to short-term accommodation. Each is covered as its own section below.
Selling produce: council notification, with a voluntary DPIRD registration for small egg and poultry sellers
Selling food from home in WA is regulated under the Food Act 2008 and Food Regulations 2009. Most home-based food sales need council notification, and the answer to "can I sell food from my home kitchen" depends on the specific activity — a domestic kitchen is often not built to commercial standard, and more complex processing may need an approved purpose-built facility rather than an ordinary home kitchen. Whether you need planning approval depends on which of WA's two home-based work categories your activity falls into (covered in the next section) — and this is checked before council will register the food business itself.
Worth connecting to our WA livestock coverage: DPIRD registration and a Property Identification Code are mandatory for anyone with 50 or more poultry, but for smaller producers selling eggs or poultry meat, registration is currently voluntary rather than required — encouraged to support food safety traceability, but not enforced below that threshold.
Home business vs home occupation: a genuine planning-category split
WA's planning system distinguishes between two categories that sound similar but are treated differently: a "home business" generally requires planning approval, while a "home occupation" generally does not, provided it meets the relevant council's scheme requirements. Which category an activity falls into depends on its scale and nature, assessed by council's planning department. Building approval is a separate question again: using an existing kitchen without modification typically doesn't need building approval, but installing new facilities like an exhaust canopy or a coolroom generally does.
Farm-stay: a recent statewide reform to short-term accommodation
WA's planning rules for short-term accommodation, including farm-stay, changed with a statewide Short-Term Rental Accommodation (STRA) reform. The old "bed and breakfast" and "holiday house" terms have been replaced with new statewide definitions distinguishing hosted STRA (the host lives on-site during the stay) from unhosted STRA (the whole place is rented out with no host present). Under the reform, hosted STRA is exempt from needing planning approval across WA — a significant simplification for a farm-stay operator who lives on the property and hosts guests in spare rooms or a granny flat. Unhosted STRA (renting out a whole separate cottage or chalet with nobody on site) still generally needs planning approval.
Existing development approvals for an old-style bed and breakfast or holiday house remain valid, including any conditions such as a time limit, but a lapsed approval needs to be renewed under the new framework. Larger-scale rural tourism development — chalets, guesthouses, caravan parks — sits outside the STRA reform and is still assessed under each council's own local planning policy, which can set specific minimum lot sizes; Busselton's policy, for example, requires at least 15 hectares for chalet development and at least 10 hectares for a guesthouse, caravan park or camping ground.
An important disclaimer, worth taking seriously
The Food Act 2008 framework, the home business/home occupation planning split, and the statewide STRA hosted-exemption reform are all verifiable, state-wide facts. But whether your specific activity is classified as a home business or home occupation, and your council's own local planning policy for larger-scale rural tourism development, both depend on your specific circumstances. Confirm directly with your council before starting a food business, home business, or farm-stay operation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between a home business and a home occupation in WA?
A home business generally requires planning approval; a home occupation generally does not, provided it meets council's planning scheme requirements. Which category applies depends on the scale and nature of the activity.
Do I need DPIRD registration to sell eggs from a small flock in WA?
Not currently mandatory below 50 poultry - registration is voluntary for smaller sellers, encouraged for food safety traceability. It becomes mandatory at 50 or more poultry, the same threshold covered in our WA livestock article.
What changed with WA's short-term accommodation rules?
A statewide reform replaced the old "bed and breakfast" and "holiday house" terms with hosted and unhosted STRA definitions. Hosted STRA, where the host lives on-site during the stay, is now exempt from needing planning approval across WA.
Does the STRA reform cover larger farm-stay developments like chalets?
No. Larger-scale rural tourism development such as chalets, guesthouses and caravan parks sits outside the STRA reform and is still assessed under each council's own local planning policy, which can set specific minimum lot size requirements.