Seattle requires short-term rental operators to hold a city business license tax certificate and a short-term rental operator's license, at $75 per unit and renewed annually. Most operators may run two units they own: their primary residence and one secondary unit. The city lists penalties of $500 for a first violation and $1,000 for later ones.
Facts
| Field | Value | Stated by |
|---|---|---|
| Place | Seattle | - |
| State | WA | - |
| Jurisdiction type | city | - |
| Permit required | Yes | Source 1 |
| Permit name | Short-term rental regulatory license (operator's license), plus a Seattle business license tax certificate | - |
| Permit fee (USD) | $75 | Source 1 |
| Fee notes | $75 per unit for the STR operator regulatory license. | - |
| Renewal period | annual (valid 12 months from the date issued) | Source 1 |
| Non-owner-occupied rental allowed | Restricted (only in some zones, tiers or numbers) | Source 1 |
| Caps and zoning limits | Most operators may operate up to two dwelling units they own: the primary residence and one secondary unit in which the operator does not live. Renters may not obtain operator licenses, with a Downtown Urban Core exception for units operating since before Sept. 30, 2017. | Source 1 |
| Annual night cap | unknown | - |
| Local lodging tax | unknown | - |
| State lodging tax | unknown | - |
| Platform collects tax | Yes | Source 2 |
| Tax notes | The Washington Department of Revenue says transient lodging is subject to retail sales tax plus local lodging taxes, with rates by location in its lookup tool (no percentage on the pages read). It says some marketplaces collect and pay these taxes by agreement and names Airbnb; hosts on other channels handle the taxes themselves. | - |
| Penalties | $500 for the first violation; $1,000 for second and subsequent violations. | Source 1 |
| Fields not confirmed | Annual night cap; Local lodging tax; State lodging tax | - |
| Last checked | 2026-10-07 | - |
| Dataset row id | seattle-wa | - |
"unknown" means the value was not found on the official pages read on the check date, not that no such rule exists. "Stated by" points to the numbered source below.
Sources
- City of Seattle: Short-Term Rentals
- Washington Department of Revenue: Online marketplaces and property managers. Published on dor.wa.gov. Address: https://dor.wa.gov/education/industry-guides/lodging-guide/online-marketplaces-and-property-managers
- Washington Department of Revenue: Lodging - transient (short-term). Published on dor.wa.gov. Address: https://dor.wa.gov/education/industry-guides/lodging-guide/lodging-transient-short-term
At most one official page per place is linked; every other source is cited as text with its full address.
Sources last checked: 2026-10-07