A visitor, a guest, or a tenant?

Being the landlord or property manager of a property, you're the one to decide who live in it. Of course you will have a tenant who submitted an application and screening, and a co-applicant whom, together with the tenant also submitted an application and lives together in your property under terms of lease agreement. But what if there are people who comes into your property and live there without your permission, or who are introduced to you to be only a guest, but live in your property for quite a period of time.

Let us distinguish first which is which, a visitor is someone who comes to visit the tenant, who has a distinguished personal address of their own and did not have the intention to spend an overnight in the tenant's place; a guest is someone who came to visit the tenant but has the intention to stay for an overnight or so, and also has to have a distinct personal address; a tenant on the contrary is the person/s who submitted and application, undergone screening and is approved by the landlord/property manager to occupy and live in his property with a corresponding lease agreement.

When will a guest be considered a guest only? That will vary on how you indicate it on your lease agreement, like in the statements below: 

"A guest may only be permitted to come in the property for a maximum of 5 consecutive days in a month, not exceeding 14 days in a 6 month period, beyond that s/he shall be required to submit an application and shall be subject for approval to be considered a tenant."

"A guest can only stay for a period for 5 days with proper permission from propery manager. If the guest exceeds than said limit, an additional charge shall be required for guests who stays in the property for more than 7 days in a month."

"Any guest staying in the property more than 2 weeks in any 6 month period will be considered a tenant, who should follow the application process, and must be added in the lease agreement. Landlord may also increase the rent at any such time that a new tenant is added to the lease or premise."

Once you have determined the number of days a guest has been staying in your property, you should talk and determine with your tenant if the guest will be staying for more days, or they should sign them up an application to have them included in the lease agreement.