Legal · Meera Stay India Private Limited

The fine print, as plainly as we could write it

Questions about any of this? Write to support@aanganstay.com.

Last updated: 24 October 2026

These terms apply to anyone listing a property on Aangan. They are in addition to the main Terms of Service.

1. Right to list

  • You must have the lawful right to receive paying guests at the property — as owner, lessee with landlord permission, or authorised manager.
  • Where your municipal corporation requires a homestay / B&B registration, you must hold a valid registration and provide the certificate number on request.
  • Co-operative housing societies often have their own rules — it is your responsibility to comply.

2. Listing accuracy

  • Photos must be of the actual property, current within the last 12 months.
  • Amenities, occupancy and price must be accurate. Any meaningful inaccuracy entitles the guest to a full refund and we will refund regardless of the cancellation policy.

3. Safety standards

  • Working smoke alarm in every sleeping area where the property uses indoor cooking or open flames.
  • A clearly visible fire extinguisher in homes that prepare meals for guests.
  • Working external door locks; means to lock from the inside.
  • First-aid kit accessible to guests.
  • Emergency contact card with local police, hospital and the host's mobile, displayed prominently.

4. Guest verification & check-in

State police regulations require hosts to record guest details at check-in. You agree to do this and to comply with any local Form-C or equivalent requirement for foreign nationals.

Guest contact details. Before a stay you are shown the guest's name only. A guest's phone number and email are personal data, and we share them only where needed: you can message the guest in the app once the booking is confirmed, and from two days before check-in until checkout contact details and directions can be exchanged in the chat. At other times contact details in messages are hidden. This keeps a record of what was agreed and keeps the booking protected for both of you.

5. Pricing & what you take home

Listing is free. For each booking, Aangan Stay charges you a host fee of 15.5% of the room amount and cleaning fee, or 8% on a booking made through your own direct link. GST at 18% is charged on the fee. Guests pay no service fee.

Your payout is the room amount and cleaning fee, less the host fee, the GST on that fee, and TDS at 0.1% of the room amount and cleaning fee under section 194-O of the Income Tax Act. For example, on a booking of ₹7,466 (room and cleaning) through the marketplace: fee ₹1,157.23, GST on the fee ₹208.30, TDS ₹7.46, payout ₹6,093.01. We give you a tax invoice for the fee once the payout is paid. GST collected from the guest on the stay is remitted by Aangan Stay to the government.

Which rate applies. The 8% rate is for guests you bring yourself: it applies when a guest's first contact with you on Aangan Stay was through your own direct link. If a guest first found you on Aangan Stay (by searching, opening your listing on the site or app, saving it or messaging you), the 15.5% rate applies to every booking that guest makes with you, including bookings made through your direct link, with no time limit. We decide this from our records, and each booking shows which rate was applied and why.

Keeping bookings on the platform. You agree not to ask or encourage a guest introduced by Aangan Stay to book or pay outside the platform, or to book through another account to obtain the lower rate. Contact details shared in messages are hidden except close to a confirmed stay. If we find a booking was moved off the platform or the lower rate was obtained this way, we may charge the 15.5% fee on it, withhold it from your payouts, and suspend or remove your listings.

The fee that applies to a booking is the one in force when the booking is made. Bookings made before 13 October 2026 keep the earlier terms (no host fee).

6. KYC

  • Before your first payout you must complete KYC: PAN, Aadhaar (we store only the last 4 digits), bank account verification.
  • KYC is performed by an authorised partner (Cashfree Secure ID). You consent to your data being shared with that partner solely for verification.
  • Reverification may be requested if our risk system flags inconsistency.

7. Payouts

  • Payouts are sent to your verified bank account or UPI ID within 2 working days of check-out.
  • Payouts are gated on completed KYC and a verified PAN. Without a verified PAN, or if KYC lapses, payouts are held until you verify.
  • If a guest cancels late, you are still paid your share of what they forfeit: half of your earnings for a cancellation 3 to 6 days before check-in, and all of them for a cancellation less than 3 days before. A guest who cancels 7 or more days before is refunded in full and nothing is payable.
  • The TDS deducted under section 194-O is deposited against your PAN, shows in your Form 26AS, and we give you a TDS certificate (Form 16A) for it.
  • A plain-language guide, with an example and the person to contact about a payout, is at How and when you get paid.

8. Conduct

  • You will not discriminate against any guest on the basis of religion, race, caste, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, or any other ground protected by Indian law.
  • You will not solicit off-platform payments. Doing so is a serious breach and may result in delisting and forfeiture of pending payouts.
  • You will respond to guest messages within a reasonable time (we measure this; chronic non-response affects listing visibility).

9. Booking requests and cancellations by hosts

How guests book. For each listing you choose either instant booking (a guest is confirmed the moment they pay) or approve each request. With requests, the guest pays first and you have up to 24 hours to accept or decline, or less when the check-in is sooner; the deadline is shown on the booking and in the email we send you. Accepting confirms the booking. If you decline, or do not answer in time, the guest is refunded in full and the dates open again. Until you accept, the guest can also withdraw the request for a full refund. Declining a request is not a cancellation.

Where you cancel a confirmed booking we may (a) refund the guest in full at your cost, (b) levy a cancellation penalty (typically the host fee Aangan would have earned), and (c) reduce your listing visibility for a period proportional to the disruption. Repeated cancellations may result in delisting.

Honouring confirmed bookings. Refusing a guest who arrives with a confirmed booking and meets the house rules shown on your listing is treated as a cancellation by you. When a guest reports a problem at check-in your payout for that booking is held while we look into it; if the report is confirmed the guest is refunded in full, you are not paid for the booking, and the penalties above apply. State your house rules (unmarried couples, local ID, pets, alcohol) on the listing so guests know them before they book.

10. Property damage, liability and insurance

10.1 Our role

Aangan Stay, operated by Meera Stay India Private Limited, is an online marketplace. We connect independent property owners, operators and managers ("hosts") with travellers looking for a short stay ("guests"). We do not own, lease, manage, operate or control any listed property, and we have no staff at any host's premises. Collecting the guest's payment, issuing the invoice and paying tax on a booking as the law requires of an e-commerce operator does not make us the provider of the accommodation or the occupier of your property.

10.2 Your property, your insurance

  • You are solely responsible for insuring your property and its contents. Aangan Stay does not provide insurance, a damage guarantee or any host-protection cover, and you bear the financial risk of hosting paying guests.
  • We strongly recommend a policy that expressly covers short-term paying guests. Many ordinary home policies exclude commercial letting, so tell your insurer that you host guests and ask for a homestay or commercial extension.
  • At a minimum, consider cover for fire and allied perils, burglary and theft, damage by guests, and public liability for injury to guests and visitors.
  • Keep cash, jewellery, documents and other valuables locked away or off the premises.

10.3 The guest's responsibility

Under the Terms of Service every guest agrees to leave your property, including its fixtures, furniture, electronics and appliances, in the condition they found it, and to pay for damage, loss or destruction caused by themselves or by anyone they bring or invite during the stay. Ordinary wear and tear is not damage. A claim for damage is a claim by you against the guest.

10.4 If a guest damages your property

  • Keep a record. Take dated photos or a short video of the rooms before check-in and at checkout.
  • Report it within 48 hours of checkout from the booking, using "Report damage": photos or video, what happened, and the cost to repair or replace, based on an estimate or bill. Claims made later, or without evidence, are not accepted. One claim can be made per booking.
  • The guest replies within 48 hours. They see your photos and either accept the amount or dispute it with their own account and photos.
  • If the guest disputes it, or does not reply, we review it. We look at both accounts and decide whether an amount is owed: in full, in part, or not at all. We give both of you the decision and the reasons. Dated photos taken at checkout carry weight; so does anything the guest reported to you on arrival.
  • Payment. The amount accepted or decided is paid by the guest directly to you, within 7 days. We show the guest your UPI ID for this purpose, and you confirm in the app when it arrives. A guest who has not paid by then cannot make new bookings on Aangan Stay until it is settled.
  • What we cannot do. We do not hold a security deposit and cannot take money from a guest's account, so we cannot guarantee that a guest pays. You must not ask a guest for a deposit in cash or outside the platform.
  • If it goes further. You remain free to file a police complaint or a civil claim. On a lawful request from the police or a court we provide the guest's verified identity and booking details.
  • You must not hold a guest's ID or belongings, stop a guest from leaving, or threaten a guest in order to recover damage. Doing so is a serious breach of these terms.
  • A damage claim does not change your payout for the booking.

10.5 Limits on our liability

To the fullest extent the law allows, Aangan Stay is not liable for physical damage to your property, theft or loss of belongings, vandalism, misuse of utilities, or any other loss you suffer from a guest's stay, and is under no obligation to compensate you for, repair or restore such damage. Reviewing a claim under 10.4 is a service to both parties, offered in good faith; it does not make us liable for the damage or for an amount a guest fails to pay. Nothing in these terms excludes liability for our own fraud or wilful misconduct, or any liability that cannot be excluded under Indian law.

10.6 Injury and claims by other people

You are responsible for keeping your premises safe (see section 3). You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Meera Stay India Private Limited, its directors, officers and employees against any claim, proceeding, medical cost or legal expense arising from the injury, illness or death of, or loss suffered by, a guest or any other person at your premises, except to the extent it was caused by our own negligence or wilful misconduct.

11. Indemnity

In addition to 10.6, you agree to indemnify Aangan against claims by guests or third parties arising out of (a) inaccurate listing information, (b) breach of these terms, or (c) damage caused at the property by your acts or omissions. This is in addition to remedies under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.