<![CDATA[This study examines how community-based homestays in Buluh Duri Tourism Village, Serdang Bedagai Regency, meet Indonesia’s homestay business standards and what the observed compliance gaps imply for sustainable rural tourism development. Rather than treating sustainability as a direct regulatory outcome, the study uses regulatory compliance as an analytical entry point to examine the institutional and governance conditions that shape implementation in a developing rural destination. The study used a qualitative bounded case-study design and examined two homestays operating in the village. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, non-participant observation, document review, and limited tourist feedback, triangulating across sources. Compliance was assessed against the product, service, and management requirements specified in Ministerial Regulation of Tourism and Creative Economy No. 9 of 2014; environmental sustainability was examined as a complementary analytical dimension rather than as a formal regulatory category. The findings show uneven and partial implementation. Basic accommodation and hospitality practices were present, but gaps were observed in facility adequacy, service standardization, administrative routines, emergency preparedness, and environmentally responsible practices. The cross-case comparison suggests that compliance differences are associated with financial capacity, technical knowledge, training exposure, and the strength of institutional support. The study contributes a context-sensitive compliance perspective to the homestay and community-based tourism literature by showing how regulatory requirements interact with local implementation capacity. The findings support phased capacity building, technical assistance, and collaborative village-level governance rather than assuming that uniform standards can be implemented independently of local resources and institutional conditions.]]>
