Is Airbnb Legal in San Francisco? 2026 Rules, Permits & Taxes

Registration required

Yes

Taxes on a stay

16%

Yearly night cap

90 nights

Fine for hosting without a permit

Up to $1,000

Active Airbnb listings

4,260

Latest rule change

Aug 31, 2026

The rules in brief

Who needs it

Every host who rents all or part of a home for fewer than 30 nights, including a single private room while the host is home.^{4,6,8,11,12,13,16}

Issued by

San Francisco Planning Department, Office of Short-Term Rentals; the business registration certificate comes from the Treasurer & Tax Collector

Valid for

The registration is good for two years from approval and is then renewed; the business registration certificate renews every year by the last day of February.

Processing

The city publishes no fixed review time; a host may list with the application record number while the review is pending.

On listings

The number must appear on every listing

Platform checks

Platforms must confirm that a home is registered before providing or charging a fee for booking services, and must send the city a monthly affidavit; Airbnb passes the registration number, expiration date and ZIP code to the city.

Fees

Who qualifies

• A natural person who is the owner or tenant of the unit and its permanent resident: living and sleeping in it at least 275 nights per calendar year, and for at least 60 days before applying
• Only that one unit may be offered; a host who lives in one unit of a multi-unit building cannot rent a different unit
• A valid San Francisco business registration certificate and liability insurance of at least $500,000 (or bookings only through a platform that provides equal or greater coverage)
• The unit cannot be an accessory dwelling unit (ADU), a below-market-rate or public housing unit, a single-room-occupancy unit, a dormitory, a commercial or industrial space, a vehicle or boat, or in The Presidio, Fort Mason or Treasure Island
• The unit and the whole property must be free of open building, housing and planning code enforcement cases
• Tenants may apply: the owner is notified, the lease still governs, and in a rent-controlled unit monthly rental income cannot exceed the monthly rent paid to the landlord

How to apply

1. 1 Check that you qualify: permanent resident of the unit for at least 60 days, 275 nights a year, one unit only, and an eligible building type.
2. 2 Register a business with the Treasurer & Tax Collector using the business type Accommodations, at the address of the unit, to get a Business Account Number.
3. 3 Apply online with the Office of Short-Term Rentals through the SF Public Planning Portal: business registration certificate (a pending-application receipt is enough), two proofs of residency, proof of $500,000 liability insurance unless your platform provides it, and the $925 fee.
4. 4 Put the application record number (for example 2023-123456STR) in the registration field of every listing; after approval, replace it with the certificate number (for example STR-0001234).
5. 5 Once approved, file a quarterly report of nights rented, renew the business registration each year, and file transient occupancy tax for stays booked outside Airbnb.

Permit rules

Two registrations before hosting

A host needs a business registration certificate from the Treasurer & Tax Collector and a registration from the Office of Short-Term Rentals. A complete pending application is enough to list.⁶

Registration lasts two years

An approved registration is good for two years after the approval date. The certificate cannot be transferred to a new owner or a different unit.^4,5

Separate listings for hosted and unhosted stays

A host who offers both whole-home stays and room stays must create a separate listing for each.⁶

Registration number on every listing

While an application is pending, every listing must carry the application record number; after approval it must carry the certificate number. A wrong number can get a listing removed and booked stays cancelled.^4,6

Platforms must verify registration

A hosting platform must verify that a home is registered with the Office of Short-Term Rentals before providing or taking a fee for booking services, and must send the city a monthly affidavit.⁶

Advertised price must include mandatory fees

Since July 1, 2024, California's Honest Pricing Law (SB 478) bars a host or platform from advertising a short-term rental price that leaves out mandatory fees; government taxes and fees may be listed separately.¹⁴ In force since July 1, 2024

Permanent residents only, 275 nights a year

Only a natural person who lives and sleeps in the unit at least 275 nights per calendar year can host short stays there; if the host has not held the unit for the full previous year, the test is 75% of the days since moving in.⁴

60 consecutive nights before applying

Before applying, an applicant must have lived and slept overnight in the unit for at least 60 consecutive nights.⁴

One unit per host

A permanent resident may offer only the one unit they live in. Owning or living in a multi-unit building does not allow renting a different unit.⁴

Second homes and future residents are not eligible

A host who does not currently live in the unit cannot get a certificate, even if they plan to move in later.⁶

Unit types that cannot register

Accessory dwelling units, below-market-rate and public housing units, single-room-occupancy units, dormitories, commercial and industrial space, boats and vehicles cannot be registered.⁴

Not allowed in The Presidio, Fort Mason or Treasure Island

Units in The Presidio, Fort Mason and Treasure Island cannot be registered for short-term rental.⁴ Applies to: The Presidio, Fort Mason, Treasure Island

Leases and HOA rules still apply

The city notifies the owner when a tenant applies and notifies co-owners of tenancy-in-common buildings. It does not enforce leases, HOA bylaws or CC&Rs, but those can still prohibit short-term rentals. In a rent-controlled unit, monthly rental income cannot exceed the rent the host pays.⁴ Applies to: Tenants, condo and HOA buildings

90 unhosted nights a year

Entire-home stays while the host is not home overnight are limited to 90 nights per calendar year. Hosted stays, when the host is home overnight, are not limited.⁵

At most five distinct renters at once

No more than five distinct renters, whether long-term, intermediate-length or short-term, may live in the same unit at the same time.⁴

Neighbor notice in RH-1(D) districts

For a unit in an RH-1(D) zoning district, the city notifies owners and tenants within 300 feet and holds the application 45 days for comment before deciding.⁴ Applies to: RH-1(D) zoning districts

Accessory dwelling units: 30-night minimum

Legally established accessory dwelling units may be rented only for stays of 30 days or longer, per guest.⁶ Applies to: Accessory dwelling units

Stays of 30 nights or more are outside the short-term rules

Rentals of more than 30 consecutive nights to the same visitors are not short-term rentals and carry no hotel tax, though tenant protections and rent control rules may apply. Unhosted stays of 30 nights or more still count against the 275-night residency test.⁶

$500,000 liability insurance

A host must carry liability insurance of at least $500,000 covering short-term rental use, or book every stay through a platform that provides equal or greater coverage. Airbnb says its host liability insurance satisfies the requirement for hosts who book only on Airbnb.^4,16

Quarterly reports of nights rented

Approved hosts report the nights rented, hosted and unhosted, within 30 days after each quarter ends (January, April, July and October), even when there were none. A pending application does not file reports.⁵

Fire-safety sign and two years of records

A host posts a printed sign inside the front door showing the fire extinguishers, gas shut-off valves, fire exits and pull alarms, and keeps records proving primary residence and the dates of every rental.¹⁶

No open code enforcement on the property

The unit must be free of open enforcement cases; in an apartment or tenancy-in-common building the whole property must be free of them, and all sleeping rooms must be legally recognized for overnight sleeping.⁴

Noise and parties can cost the certificate

Ongoing noise, event or party complaints can lead to revocation of the certificate, and no exterior signage is allowed.⁵

30 days to appeal a denial or revocation

A rejected, suspended or revoked registration can be appealed in writing within 30 calendar days, but the host must still cancel reservations and remove listings of fewer than 30 nights while the appeal is pending.⁶

Median nightly rate, booked nights

$200

Taxes on that night (16%)

$32

Guest pays, before Airbnb and cleaning fees

$232

What the host still handles

• A San Francisco business registration certificate (business type Accommodations) from the Treasurer & Tax Collector, before applying to the Office of Short-Term Rentals; renewed each year by the last day of February
• Annual transient occupancy tax and TID returns, due January 31, for any stays booked outside Airbnb or another Qualified Website Company, filed even when no rent was received
• A business personal property statement (Form 571-STR) with the Assessor-Recorder when the annual notice requires it, due May 7
• No Certificate of Authority is needed for hosts^{5,9,10,11,15,16,17}

• Civil penalties of up to $1,000 per day for the period of the unlawful activity, in a lawsuit brought by the City, against an owner, business entity or hosting platform that breaks Chapter 41A.³
• Administrative penalties of at least $484 per day for each unit in violation, starting on the day the Office of Short-Term Rentals issues a Notice of Violation and running until the violation ends.^5,8
• Repeat violations: $968 per day per unit for a second violation, and referral to the City Attorney's Office for additional civil or criminal penalties.⁷
• Misdemeanor: a fine of up to $1,000, up to six months in county jail, or both, with each unit rented counted as a separate offense.³
• Listings with a missing or wrong registration number can be removed from the platform and pending reservations cancelled.^4,6
• The registration can be revoked for ongoing noise, event or party complaints; a host whose application is denied, or whose certificate is suspended or revoked, must cancel reservations and remove listings of fewer than 30 nights even while appealing.^5,6

1. August 31, 2026
   Planning fee schedule for 2026-27 takes effect

   The Planning Department's fee schedule for fiscal year 2026-27 came into effect on August 31, 2026; it lists the Short-Term Residential Rental registry application at $925 and the notice-of-violation penalty at $484 a day.⁸

2. July 28, 2026
   Tourism Improvement District board extends the higher rates again

   On August 18, 2025 and again on July 28, 2026 the Tourism Improvement District board voted to extend the 1% increase, so the 2.25% and 2.00% rates continue.¹⁵

3. February 2026
   Business registration renewal moves to the end of February

   Beginning in 2026, San Francisco business registrations renew by the last day of February, as part of one annual business registration and tax form.⁵

4. November 1, 2024
   Tourism assessment rises by 1 point

   The Tourism Improvement District board raised the assessment by 1% in both zones, to 2.25% in Zone 1 and 2.00% in Zone 2, effective November 1, 2024.¹⁵

5. July 1, 2024
   California Honest Pricing Law takes effect

   SB 478 began requiring advertised prices, including short-term rental prices, to include all mandatory fees.¹⁴

6. January 1, 2024
   Tourism Improvement District assessment extends to hosts

   Short-term residential hosts became subject to the Tourism Improvement District assessment on January 1, 2024. From May 1, 2024, Airbnb and the other Qualified Website Companies include the assessment when they remit the hotel tax for hosts.¹⁰

Estimate what a San Francisco home could earn

1. 1. San Francisco Administrative Code, Chapter 41A (Sections 41A.5 to 41A.7) · American Legal Publishing, for the City and County of San Francisco
2. 2. California Revenue and Taxation Code section 7280 - Occupancy taxes · California Legislative Information
3. 3. San Francisco Administrative Code, Section 41A.5 (Unlawful conversion; remedies) · American Legal Publishing, for the City and County of San Francisco
4. 4. Become a Certified Host · San Francisco Planning, Office of Short-Term Rentals
5. 5. Maintain Your Certified Host Status · San Francisco Planning, Office of Short-Term Rentals
6. 6. FAQs on Short-Term Rentals · San Francisco Planning, Office of Short-Term Rentals
7. 7. Complaints and Enforcement · San Francisco Planning, Office of Short-Term Rentals
8. 8. Fee Schedule Calculator (effective August 31, 2026) · San Francisco Planning Department
9. 9. Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) · San Francisco Treasurer & Tax Collector
10. 10. Notice to Short-Term Residential Hosts: Tourism Improvement District Assessment and Filing Changes · San Francisco Treasurer & Tax Collector
11. 11. Register a Business · San Francisco Treasurer & Tax Collector
12. 12. First Year Free · San Francisco Treasurer & Tax Collector
13. 13. Guide to opening a short-term residential rental · SF.gov
14. 14. SB 478 - Hidden Fees (Honest Pricing Law) · California Attorney General
15. 15. San Francisco Tourism Improvement District · San Francisco Tourism Improvement District Management Corporation
16. 16. San Francisco, CA · Airbnb Help Center
17. 17. Occupancy tax collection and remittance by Airbnb in California · Airbnb Help Center