Hotel Room Occupancy Tax - Frequently Asked Questions

It depends on the type and frequency of the rental. If you only ever rent just one room to your guest, you are not required to collect the tax. If you rent more than one room to guests, and have either three or more separate rentals in a year or more than 14 total nights rented in a year, you will have to collect the tax.

You are not required to collect the hotel tax for a single rental of up to 14 days, or two rentals totaling 14 days or fewer. If you rent the apartment through an online booking platform for three occasions during the year (for any number of total days), or on one occasion for more than 14 days, you would be required to collect the hotel tax. Separate from your tax obligation, you will need a short-term rental registration for any rentals for fewer than 30 days. Please refer to the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement website.

You do not have to collect the hotel tax if you rent only one bedroom in your house to guests. The rental of only one bedroom in your home to guests is not considered the operation of a hotel but does require a short-term rental registration if you rent for a period under 30 consecutive days.

The hotel tax does not apply if you rent to a permanent resident (i.e., a continuous rental for 180 days or more). Therefore, if your “long-term leases” are for 180 consecutive days or more, you do not have to collect the hotel tax.

You do not have to collect the hotel tax if you meet any of the following criteria:

• You rent only one room in your own home to guests.
  
  
• You rent room(s) or an apartment to the same occupant for a period of at least 180 consecutive days.
  
  
• During a year, you rent an apartment or room(s) for up to 14 days or for fewer than three occasions (regardless of the total number of days). If you rent more than one room or apartment at a single location, those occasions/days will be added together to determine if the totals exceed three occasions or 14 days in a given year.

Sales tax and Hotel tax are independent from each other. Some people who do not collect sales tax on rentals are confused about the hotel tax for the following reason: Before December 1, 2003, many rentals of "bungalows" for a week or more were not subject to the sales taxes or to the hotel tax. (“Bungalows” are furnished living units, designed for single-family occupancy.) Effective December 1, 2003, that exemption was repealed, but only for the hotel tax. It is still in effect for the sales tax.