The Minister for Art, Sport and Tourism, Mr O'Donoghue, is introducing a "more flexible" set of regulations for hotels and guesthouses next year which may affect smaller guesthouses.
The move has been welcomed by the Irish Hotels Federation, which says it worked with the Minister to amend the existing rules, set by Bord Fáilte in 1988.
These standards "do not reflect modern best practice or recent changes in consumer tastes and practices", said Mr O'Donoghue. Speaking to reporters at the IHF annual conference in Galway, the Minister said many of the regulations were "of a different age". He has approved changes which will include dropping the minimum number of bedrooms required by hotels in city areas from 20 to 15, and allowing for "more flexibility" in the required size of lounges and bedrooms.
Guesthouses will have to have seven bedrooms, instead of the minimum of five, however, and all such rooms must have a shower or bath en suite. Rules on provision of food and drink will also be amended.
The stipulated availability of meals three times a day will be dropped to allow for one main meal, apart from breakfast.
