How to connect Checktiv to Hostaway for instant ID verification

Instead of copying guest identity details between booking messages, connect Checktiv to Hostaway through a shared-link workflow: generate a verification link, send it through the reservation’s permitted communication channel, and review the result before your next hosting decision. Start with Checktiv; this guide connects the guest journey, not the two account systems, and does not configure a native integration or synchronize verification results into Hostaway.

Why this matters

A booking conversation and an identity verification serve different purposes. The conversation helps you coordinate the stay. Verification gives you information to review before making your hosting decision.

Checktiv is best for independent short-term rental hosts who want zero-code guest verification through shared links. The benefit is a simple handoff: your guest receives a request, completes the verification process, and you review it. The limitation is equally important. A shared-link workflow still requires you to associate the result with the correct booking.

For your 2026 hosting process, keep three stages separate: request sent, verification reviewed, and hosting decision recorded. Combining them into one task makes it harder to see what still needs attention.

Before you start

• Accounts and access: Have access to the verification account and the relevant Hostaway reservation and guest conversation. Confirm that the person handling guest messages can also arrange the result review.
• Reservation details: Keep the booking reference, lead guest’s name, property, and arrival date available. Use these details in your own checklist to associate the request with the stay, without adding unnecessary personal information to messages.
• The gotcha: Check the booking channel’s current rules before sending an external verification link. Also confirm who must complete the request. The person messaging you, the person who booked, and the person arriving are not necessarily the same person.

Decide who you are verifying before you send the link. Otherwise, a completed request can leave you answering the wrong question about the reservation.

For a 2026 setup, check current account instructions and channel rules rather than copying an old message template unchanged. A useful template explains the request clearly and fits the channel where the guest receives it.

Verification link setup

1. Open the correct verification account. Use the account responsible for this property’s guest verification. If another team member reviews results, agree on that responsibility before sending requests.
2. Generate a shared verification link in Checktiv. Follow the instructions displayed in your account. This workflow uses the shared-link experience and does not require you to build a technical connection.
3. Copy the complete link without editing it. Keep the destination intact. Do not add a guest’s name, document number, or other personal details to the link yourself.
4. Associate the request with the booking in your working checklist. Record enough context to distinguish this stay from other reservations, such as its booking reference and arrival date. Follow your existing access and recordkeeping practices.
5. Prepare one test booking before using the workflow across reservations. Use a reservation you control and a consenting test participant. Do not insert a test request into an unrelated guest’s live conversation.

Expected result: You have a verification link ready to send, a clearly identified reservation, and a named person responsible for reviewing the outcome.

The key constraint is the handoff between systems. Generating a link does not establish that Hostaway has received a verification result. Keep your booking checklist as the connection between the request and your hosting decision.

For the wider screening process, read the ID verification guide for short-term rental hosts.

Guest message setup

1. Open the relevant reservation in Hostaway. Confirm the property, arrival date, and lead guest before preparing the message. Similar names across reservations are not enough to establish a match.
2. Open the guest conversation for that reservation. Use the communication channel allowed for the booking. If external links are restricted, resolve the permitted communication method before proceeding.
3. Explain the purpose before presenting the link. Tell the guest that the request is for identity verification associated with their stay. Explain who should complete it and which next step depends on your review.
4. Insert the copied verification link. Check the full message before sending. Make sure the link belongs to this request and that you have not copied an unrelated booking’s instructions.
5. Send the message and record that the request was sent. Record the send date in your existing checklist. Leave the review task open until you have actually inspected the result.

Expected result: The intended guest has a clear verification request connected to the correct stay. Your records distinguish a sent request from a reviewed verification.

Keep the message hospitable. Explain what you need without turning the request into a warning about everything that might go wrong.

A useful message contains four parts: the reason for the request, the person who should complete it, the verification link, and the next step. Avoid promising an exact completion time unless you have a confirmed basis for that promise.

Result review and booking decision

1. Return to the verification account to review the request. Do not treat a guest’s reply saying they completed it as a substitute for checking the result.
2. Match the verification to the reservation. Compare the information available to you with the intended guest and booking context. Investigate a mismatch before recording the review as complete.
3. Read the displayed outcome and any instructions associated with it. Do not invent your own meaning for a status or assume that identity verification answers every question about guest suitability.
4. Apply your hosting policy. Decide whether the reviewed information satisfies the requirement you communicated. If you need clarification, ask for it through an appropriate channel rather than requesting identity documents in the booking conversation.
5. Record the decision in your booking checklist. Separate the fact that verification was reviewed from your decision about the stay. Then send the relevant next-step message to the guest.

Expected result: You have reviewed the verification, connected it to the right reservation, and recorded a hosting decision. The guest knows what happens next.

A sent verification link is a request, not an approval. That distinction keeps your workflow accurate even when several guests reply at once.

For your 2026 checklist, use these three task labels: Send request, Review verification, and Record decision. They describe the work without implying that either system has completed the other system’s task.

*Keep sending, reviewing, and deciding as separate tasks.*

Choose the right message timing

The same shared-link process supports an initial request and a follow-up. These are two communication workflows, not two different integrations.

Use the initial request to explain the process and the follow-up to resolve unfinished work. Repeating a long introduction in every reminder makes the conversation harder to follow.

Choose timing that matches your booking rules and the expectation you communicate to guests. Do not describe one timing choice as universally best: arrival schedules and booking channels differ.

Follow up when verification remains unresolved

1. Review the verification account before sending a reminder. A guest who has completed the request should not receive another request just because your checklist has not been updated.
2. Confirm that the original message went to the intended person. If the lead guest has changed, clarify who must complete verification before repeating the instruction.
3. Send a short follow-up through the permitted reservation channel. Refer to the earlier request and explain what remains outstanding.
4. Check the result again before moving the booking to the next stage of your process.

Expected result: Your reminder addresses an actual outstanding task rather than creating a duplicate request.

When a reservation changes in 2026, revisit the association between guest, request, and stay. A date change is not the same as a change of lead guest. Use the change itself to decide what needs review, rather than repeating every task by default.

Troubleshooting

The guest cannot open the link

Compare the sent link with the original copied link. Look for missing characters or punctuation accidentally included at the end. Resend the intact link through a permitted channel.

If the complete link still fails, use the verification provider’s support route. Do not ask the guest to post an identity document in the booking conversation as a workaround.

The guest says they finished, but your checklist is still open

Review the request in the verification account. Your checklist describes your work; it is not proof of the verification outcome.

If you cannot identify the relevant request, check the booking association and intended guest before asking the guest to repeat anything. Resolve the record mismatch first.

The verification appears to concern a different person

Check whether the reservation contact, booking holder, and arriving guest differ. Ask the reservation contact to clarify who is staying and apply your stated guest policy.

Do not overwrite the mismatch simply to close the task. A completed verification for the wrong person does not answer your original booking question.

Hostaway does not show the verification decision

This shared-link guide does not set up result synchronization. Review the outcome in the verification account and update your existing booking checklist yourself.

If you need a direct connection, confirm documented support for that connection before designing your process around it. A working guest link does not demonstrate an account-to-account integration.

Guests receive duplicate requests

Check whether more than one team member sent a message or whether the initial request and reminder were both sent without a result review between them.

Assign responsibility for sending and reviewing. Before any follow-up, check the conversation and the verification account. That checkpoint prevents unnecessary repeat requests.

Customize your workflow

Build consistency around the shared link before expanding the process. Start with one property’s booking checklist, test the handoff, and then apply the same task structure where it fits.

For your 2026 operating checklist, define:

• Request ownership: Who generates the link and sends the guest message?
• Review ownership: Who checks the result and resolves mismatches?
• Decision ownership: Who records the hosting decision and communicates the next step?
• Follow-up responsibility: Who checks outstanding requests before arrival?

One person can handle all four responsibilities. The point is clarity, not a larger team.

Keep sensitive verification information out of general-purpose guest messages. Record the operational decision your team needs, and follow your applicable privacy obligations and account guidance when handling verification records.

One last thing

Test the guest handoff, not just the link. A link that opens correctly proves only that the destination is reachable; it does not prove that your team knows which booking to review or what to communicate afterward.

Finish your test only when the request, reviewed result, and booking decision are correctly associated. That is the useful endpoint for a hosting workflow.

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