Baton Rouge STR hosts must register for lodging tax license under new law

Short-term rental (STR) operators in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, will face new regulations under an ordinance approved by the East Baton Rouge Parish Metro Council. The measure goes into effect in August 2023.

The new law defines short-term rentals as occupancies of less than 30 consecutive days and requires hosts to register with the city for a lodging tax license. Alternatively, operators can use a short-term rental marketplace, such as Airbnb or Vrbo, that’s registered to collect and remit those taxes for them. Properties operating before the new ordinance goes into effect may continue to do business as long as owners meet the requirements.

The new ordinance also sets occupancy limits. For owner-occupied rentals, where the host is present during guest stays, hosts may offer all bedrooms except for one for rent. For non-owner-occupied short-term rentals of whole homes, total occupancy is limited to two people per bedroom and the property must meet parking requirements.

Short-term rental owners can lose permission to operate if they have three violations of the regulations adjudicated by the Planning Commission during a one-year period.

In the original draft of the law, whole-home rentals would have had to follow stricter rules than owner-occupied properties. In order to do business in a residential neighborhood, they would have been required to apply for a conditional use permit with the parish Planning Commission. Part of that process would include a public hearing where neighbors would get the opportunity to weigh in with comments on a property’s short-term rental application. This provision was struck from the measure in its approved form.

The city has been working on short-term regulations since early 2020, when the Metro Council directed the Planning Office to study potential rules amid complaints about vacation rentals disrupting neighborhoods. That effort was paused later that year and resumed in 2021.

Baton Rouge vacation rentals are subject to lodging taxes that include local sales tax, local hotel occupancy tax, and Louisiana state sales tax. Operators must apply for a tax license with the city, collect local lodging taxes from guests, and file regular lodging tax returns, unless they list their property with a short-term rental marketplace licensed to remit city taxes on their behalf.

Short-term rental hosts in Baton Rouge are also required to register and file lodging tax returns with state tax authorities, even if taxes are being collected on their behalf by their short-term rental marketplace.

Airbnb collects both city and state taxes on behalf of its hosts in Baton Rouge. Vrbo, however, doesn’t collect either city or state taxes, so hosts are responsible for all lodging tax compliance.

MyLodgeTax can help short-term rental hosts in Baton Rouge simplify and automate lodging tax compliance. See our Louisiana Vacation Rental Tax Guide for more on short-term rental taxes in the state. If you have tax questions related to properties in Baton Rouge, drop us a line and we’ll get back to you with answers.