Is Airbnb Legal in Seattle? 2026 Rules, Permits & Taxes

License required

Yes

Taxes on a stay

15.7% + $4

Fine for hosting without a permit

$1,000

Listings showing a permit number

89%

Next rule change

Jan 1, 2027

Listing figures: AirROI, 12 months to September 2026. A number on a listing doesn't prove the permit or license is valid, and a missing one doesn't prove there is none.

The rules in brief

Who needs it

Every host who rents a home, or part of a home, in Seattle for fewer than 30 consecutive nights, including a room in the host's own home. A unit that is not the host's primary residence also needs RRIO registration.^{1,5,7,8,9,19,26,29}

Issued by

City of Seattle Finance and Administrative Services (operator license); Seattle City Finance (business license tax certificate)

Valid for

The operator license is valid for 12 months from the day it is issued and renews on that date. The business license tax certificate expires every December 31, and an RRIO registration lasts 2 years.

Processing

Allow 48 hours after applying for a new business license tax certificate before starting the operator license application; paper applications take longer than the online portal.

On listings

The number must appear on every listing

Platform checks

Platforms must require a license number in every listing and remove a listing when the city notifies them, and they report every licensed operator and listing URL to the city each month. Airbnb asks hosts to add the license number and expiration date to the listing.

Fees

Who qualifies

• The operator owns the unit: the license covers up to two dwelling units the operator owns, and if there are two, one must be the primary residence
• Renters cannot get a license unless they live in the Downtown Urban Core and the unit operated as a short-term rental before September 30, 2017
• A unit that is not the operator's primary residence, including a backyard or basement unit on the same lot, must be registered under RRIO before it is listed
• Rented rooms without their own kitchen and bathroom are covered by the license for the home they are in and need no second license
• Not allowed: RVs, tents, garages, boats and other spaces that are not dwelling units, live-work units, caretaker's quarters, and over-water or shoreline-restricted homes
• The license is issued in the owner's name; a property manager can list and run the rental for the owner

How to apply

1. 1 Get a Seattle business license tax certificate through FileLocal (with a Washington UBI number if the state requires one), and allow 48 hours after applying before starting the operator license.
2. 2 If the unit is not your primary residence, register it with RRIO through the Seattle Services Portal before applying.
3. 3 Apply for the short-term rental operator license in the Seattle Services Portal, listing the address of each unit and uploading two documents that show your primary residence; a paper application is available but takes longer.
4. 4 Pay $75 per unit and add the license number, in the format STR-OPLI-##-######, to every listing.
5. 5 Renew each year in the Seattle Services Portal under My Records, before the anniversary of the issue date.

Permit rules

Two city licenses

Every Seattle host needs a business license tax certificate and a short-term rental operator license; operating without the operator license can bring fines.^1,5 In force since January 1, 2019

$75 per unit, renewed every year

The operator license costs $75 per unit and is valid for 12 months from the date of issue; it must be renewed annually.^1,5 In force since January 1, 2019

Seattle business license tax certificate

Anyone doing business in Seattle needs a business license tax certificate, renewed by December 31. The 2026 fee is $73 for Seattle revenue under $20,000 and $147 from $20,000 to $499,999, and a new business pays the minimum fee until it has a tax history.¹⁹

Washington business license

A host also needs a Washington business license and Department of Revenue account once gross income reaches $12,000 a year or the business must collect sales tax.¹⁸

License number on every listing

The operator license number must appear on every listing, including platform listings, in the format STR-OPLI-##-######, and platforms may remove listings that use a wrong format.^1,5

Platforms report to the city and remove listings

Platforms such as Airbnb need a Seattle platform license, report every licensed operator and listing URL each month, and must remove a listing when the city notifies them.^1,5 In force since January 1, 2019

Advertised price must be the total price

Since May 12, 2025 a federal rule requires any advertised price for a short-term rental to show the total price, including mandatory fees such as cleaning fees; taxes and other government charges may be shown separately.^4,21 In force since May 12, 2025

Two units per operator

Most operators may run two units, their primary residence and one secondary unit they do not live in; an operator with no Seattle primary residence can license one unit.^1,5,26 In force since January 1, 2019

License in the owner's name

A property manager may list and run the rental, but the operator license must be in the owner's name.⁵

What counts as a primary residence

A primary residence is the person's usual place of return for housing, shown by two documents such as a driver's license, voter registration or tax and insurance records; an operator can have only one.⁹ In force since January 1, 2019

Rented rooms share the home's license

Rooms without their own kitchen and bathroom do not count toward the two units, so one license covers every room rented in the same home.⁵

Renters cannot hold a license

Tenants may not get an operator license unless they live in the Downtown Urban Core and the unit has operated as a short-term rental since before September 30, 2017.^5,29

Legacy units from before September 30, 2017

Operators who rented units before September 30, 2017 and can show a rental registry and a continuous business license may keep them under zone rules; in the Downtown Urban Core they may operate an unlimited number of legacy units, and only there can renters qualify.^1,5,26 In force since January 1, 2019

Backyard and in-law units need their own license

An accessory dwelling unit or detached accessory dwelling unit counts as a separate dwelling unit, so renting it needs a license of its own and uses one of the two allowed units.⁵

Dwelling units only

Short-term rentals are allowed in most structures built as dwelling units, but not in RVs, tents, garages, boats, live-work units, caretaker's quarters, or over-water and shoreline-restricted homes.^2,6,26 In force since January 7, 2018

The limit is on units, not nights

The license caps how many units an operator may offer, at one or two, rather than how many nights a year a unit can be rented.^1,5 In force since January 1, 2019

Fewer than 30 consecutive nights

Seattle treats a rental of a home, or part of a home, for fewer than 30 consecutive nights as a short-term rental; longer stays fall outside the operator license.^5,6

RRIO registration for homes you do not live in

A dedicated short-term rental unit that is not the host's primary residence, including an accessory unit on the same lot, must be registered under RRIO before it is listed; a home used as the primary residence needs no RRIO registration or inspection.^5,7 In force since January 1, 2019

RRIO fee and inspection

RRIO registration costs $126 per property for two years, and every registered property is inspected at least once every 5 to 10 years, by a City inspector ($241.50) or a private inspector.^7,8 In force since January 2026

Local contact in King County

Guests must be given a local contact who lives in King County and can answer inquiries at the rental throughout the stay.^1,5 In force since January 1, 2019

Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, fire extinguisher

Every unit needs working smoke detectors and carbon monoxide alarms in every bedroom and on all habitable floors, and a properly maintained, charged fire extinguisher.^1,3 In force since January 1, 2019

Safety notice with the maximum occupancy

Each unit must display the emergency contacts, street address, a floor plan with fire exits, how to reach the City's Customer Service Bureau with complaints, the maximum occupancy, and the operator's or local contact's details in a conspicuous place.^1,3 In force since January 1, 2019

$1 million of liability insurance

City and state law both require liability insurance of at least $1 million for the rental, or booking every stay through a platform that provides equal or greater coverage.^1,3 In force since January 1, 2019

City B&O tax threshold rose to $2 million

Since January 1, 2026 a business whose Seattle taxable revenue is under $2 million may owe no city B&O tax, and above the threshold the tax applies after a $2 million standard deduction; an annual return reporting gross revenue is still required when no tax is due.²⁰ In force since January 1, 2026

No separate Seattle tax on short-term rentals

After state law changed lodging excise taxes in 2018, the City Council repealed the ordinance that would have added a Seattle city tax on short-term rentals.⁵ In force since June 2018

Median nightly rate, booked nights

$200

Taxes on that night (15.7% + $4)

$35

Guest pays, before Airbnb and cleaning fees

$235

What the host still handles

• A Seattle business license tax certificate, renewed by December 31 each year, which is required before the operator license can be issued
• A Washington business license and Department of Revenue tax account when gross income reaches $12,000 a year or the business must collect sales tax; the Department treats advertising a home on an online marketplace as taxable business activity
• An excise tax return that reports rental income under Retailing and Retail Sales Tax, claims the 'Gross Sales Collected by Facilitator' deduction for tax Airbnb collects, and pays any Retailing B&O tax left after the small business credit
• An annual Seattle B&O tax return, even when no tax is due^{11,12,13,15,16,17,30}

• Operating without an operator license, or breaking another rule of the code: a $500 penalty for a first violation and $1,000 for each second or later violation within five years. Each day can count as a separate violation.^1,5
• A host with two or more citations or notices of violation in three years can be charged with a misdemeanor.¹
• A license can be denied, revoked or not renewed: false information on an application can end the license, and the Director can act on any violation of the code. No license is renewed until outstanding penalties and fees are paid.^1,26
• Platforms that fail to remove a listing the city has flagged pay $500 a day per listing for the first ten days and $1,000 a day after that, until the listing is removed.¹
• Operating a business in Seattle without a business license tax certificate can draw a $513 citation.⁵
• Land use or housing code violations that are not fixed in time can be fined $150 to $500 a day, and inspections are charged to the owner.⁶

1. January 1, 2027 Upcoming
   Business license tax certificate fees rise

   Seattle raises business license tax certificate fees every January 1 by the regional consumer-price-index increase: the 2027 fee is $76 for Seattle revenue under $20,000 and $154 from $20,000 to $499,999.¹⁹

2. January 29, 2026 Not in force
   House Finance advances HB 2559, a 4% local short-term rental tax

   HB 2559 would let counties, cities and towns impose a short-term rental tax of up to 4% from April 1, 2027. The House Finance Committee passed it on January 29, 2026; as of October 17, 2026 the bill sat in House Appropriations and no short-term rental tax has been enacted.^22,23

3. January 1, 2026
   Seattle B&O tax threshold rises to $2 million

   The Seattle business and occupation tax threshold rose from $100,000 to $2 million of annual taxable revenue, with a new $2 million standard deduction above the threshold.²⁰

4. January 2026
   RRIO registration fee set at $126

   As of January 2026 the Rental Registration and Inspection Ordinance charges $126 per property for two years of registration, plus $31.50 for each additional unit.⁸

5. May 12, 2025
   Federal total-price rule takes effect

   The Federal Trade Commission rule on unfair or deceptive fees began to apply to short-term lodging, so advertised prices must include mandatory fees such as cleaning fees.^4,21

6. March 11, 2025 Not in force
   Senate passes a 4% local short-term rental tax; House does not

   ESSB 5576 would let counties, cities and towns tax short-term rental stays up to 4%. It passed the Senate 27 to 21 on March 11, 2025 and has not been enacted, so Seattle has no local short-term rental tax.^24,25

Estimate what a Seattle home could earn

1. 1. Chapter 6.600 - Short-Term Rentals, Seattle Municipal Code · City of Seattle (Municode)
2. 2. 23.42.060 - Short-term rentals, Seattle Land Use Code · City of Seattle (Municode)
3. 3. Chapter 64.37 RCW - Short-term rentals · Washington State Legislature
4. 4. 16 CFR Part 464 - Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations
5. 5. Short-Term Rentals · City of Seattle Finance and Administrative Services, Business Regulations
6. 6. Short-Term Rentals · Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections
7. 7. Rental Registration & Inspection Ordinance - Owners & Managers · Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections
8. 8. RRIO Program Fees · Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections
9. 9. Director's Rule STR-1, Primary Residence · City of Seattle Finance and Administrative Services
10. 10. Short Term Rental License (open data) · City of Seattle Open Data portal
11. 11. Lodging rates and changes flyer, Quarter 2 (April 1 - June 30, 2026) · Washington Department of Revenue
12. 12. Lodging Rates and Changes, October 1 - December 31, 2026 (rate spreadsheet) · Washington Department of Revenue
13. 13. Convention Center Taxes, Tax Reference Manual · Washington Department of Revenue
14. 14. Convention and trade center tax · Washington Department of Revenue
15. 15. Lodging taxes · Washington Department of Revenue
16. 16. Personal home rentals · Washington Department of Revenue
17. 17. Online marketplaces and property managers · Washington Department of Revenue
18. 18. Apply for a business license · Washington Department of Revenue
19. 19. Business Licenses · Seattle City Finance
20. 20. Business Taxes · Seattle City Finance
21. 21. The Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees: Frequently Asked Questions · Federal Trade Commission
22. 22. HB 2559 bill summary and history (2025-26) · Washington State Legislature
23. 23. House Bill Report HB 2559 (Finance Committee) · Washington State Legislature
24. 24. SB 5576 bill summary and history (2025-26) · Washington State Legislature
25. 25. House Bill Report ESSB 5576 (Finance Committee) · Washington State Legislature
26. 26. Short-Term Rental Operator License Application · City of Seattle Finance and Administrative Services
27. 27. Lodging - transient (short-term) · Washington Department of Revenue
28. 28. Lodging Information, Rates and Changes, January 1 - March 31, 2025 · Washington Department of Revenue
29. 29. Seattle, WA · Airbnb Help Center
30. 30. Occupancy tax collection and remittance by Airbnb in Washington · Airbnb Help Center