Georgia Short-Term Rental Laws by City (2026)
Short-term rental rules in Georgia are set city by city — a property that is legal to rent nightly in one town can be prohibited a few miles away. The table below covers 2 Georgia cities (2 human-verified against official sources), with each city's legal status, permit cost, and last-verified date.
Statewide short-term rental rules in Georgia
Georgia has no statewide short-term rental license and no preemption law, so cities and counties are free to permit, restrict, or even ban STRs, and repeated attempts to pass state preemption (most recently HB 1121 in 2024) have died in committee. At the state level, STRs are simply taxable lodging: stays of fewer than 90 continuous days owe Georgia's 4% state sales tax (plus local sales taxes), and a flat $5-per-night state hotel-motel fee applies to the first 30 nights of a stay. Since July 1, 2021 (HB 317), booking platforms such as Airbnb and Vrbo are 'marketplace innkeepers' that must collect and remit these state taxes, plus local hotel-motel excise taxes, on the bookings they facilitate. City and county rules apply on top of state law — check your local market's page.
Full statewide rules: permits, taxes & enforcement
Georgia has no statewide short-term rental license and no preemption law, so cities and counties are free to permit, restrict, or even ban STRs, and repeated attempts to pass state preemption (most recently HB 1121 in 2024) have died in committee. At the state level, STRs are simply taxable lodging: stays of fewer than 90 continuous days owe Georgia's 4% state sales tax (plus local sales taxes), and a flat $5-per-night state hotel-motel fee applies to the first 30 nights of a stay. Since July 1, 2021 (HB 317), booking platforms such as Airbnb and Vrbo are 'marketplace innkeepers' that must collect and remit these state taxes, plus local hotel-motel excise taxes, on the bookings they facilitate. City and county rules apply on top of state law — check your local market's page.
Reviewed by the STR Rule Watch research team against 8 official sources. How we verify data
Georgia statewide STR rules at a glance
| Legal status | Allowed, no permit required |
|---|---|
| Permit required | No |
| Renewal | No renewal required |
| Total occupancy taxes | ~4% of gross revenue |
| Insurance | None — Georgia imposes no statewide STR insurance mandate (some cities require liability coverage locally). |
| Enforcement | A. |
| Current rules effective | 2021-07-01 |
State law & local authority
No state preemption: Georgia gives local governments full authority over short-term rentals, so cities and counties may zone, cap, license, or prohibit STRs (Atlanta, Savannah, Athens-Clarke, and many others do). Preemption/grandfathering bills modeled on Arizona/Tennessee-style protections have been introduced repeatedly — HB 523 (2019-2020, Rep. Kasey Carpenter, favorably reported by substitute in House Regulated Industries but never passed) and HB 1121 (2024, which would have barred local governments from 'suspending or prohibiting the continued use of property as a short-term rental unit') — but none has passed; HB 1121 died in the House Governmental Affairs Committee. No statewide STR bill was enacted in the 2025-2026 biennium, which adjourned sine die in the early hours of April 3, 2026 (legislative day 40, April 2).
State-level taxes
| Tax | Rate | Who collects |
|---|---|---|
| Georgia state sales tax4% of the listing price including cleaning fees, for reservations of fewer than 90 continuous days (Airbnb states 'reservations 89 nights and shorter'). Local county/city sales taxes of roughly 2-5% are added on top. Marketplace facilitators with $100,000+ in Georgia sales must collect and remit (effective April 1, 2020); Airbnb and Vrbo collect on their bookings, while hosts taking direct bookings must register with the Georgia DOR and collect themselves. | 4% | varies |
| Georgia state hotel-motel feeFlat $5.00 per night per accommodation (not a percentage; rate_pct 0 is a placeholder). Applies to hotels, motels, cabins, and short-term rentals; not collected after the 30th consecutive day ('extended stay rental' exemption; DOR FAQ: fee stops on the 31st day of continuous occupancy). O.C.G.A. § 48-13-50.3 and DOR Rule 560-13-2-.01. Under HB 317 (effective July 1, 2021), marketplace innkeepers (Airbnb, Vrbo, etc.) collect and remit on facilitated bookings; direct-booking hosts collect and file monthly via the Georgia Tax Center. | 0% | varies |
| Local hotel-motel excise tax (state-authorized, locally imposed)Not a state tax, but authorized by state law (O.C.G.A. § 48-13-50 et seq.): cities/counties impose roughly 0-8% on the first 30 days of a stay. HB 317 (2021) made marketplace innkeepers responsible for collecting it on facilitated bookings ($100,000 platform threshold). Rates vary by jurisdiction — see local market pages. | 0% | varies |
Enforcement & penalties
State-level enforcement is limited to tax compliance administered by the Georgia Department of Revenue (monthly state hotel-motel fee and sales tax returns via the Georgia Tax Center; DOR may audit marketplace innkeepers under O.C.G.A. § 48-13-50.4). All operational enforcement (permits, zoning, occupancy, nuisance) happens at the city/county level.
No STR-specific state penalties. Standard Georgia tax penalties and interest under Title 48 apply for failure to register, collect, or remit sales tax and the state hotel-motel fee.
Statewide sources
- Georgia Department of Revenue — State Hotel-Motel Fee FAQretrieved July 10, 2026
- Georgia Department of Revenue — State Hotel-Motel Feeretrieved July 10, 2026
- Georgia Rules & Regulations, Subject 560-13-2 — State Hotel-Motel Fee (Rule 560-13-2-.01)retrieved July 10, 2026
- Georgia Department of Revenue — Marketplace Facilitatorsretrieved July 10, 2026
- O.C.G.A. § 48-13-50.4 — Obligation of marketplace innkeepers to collect and remit taxes (FindLaw)retrieved July 10, 2026
- Georgia Municipal Association — HB 317, Lodging Facilitator; Short-Term Rental Platforms Collecting Hotel-Motel Taxesretrieved July 10, 2026
- LegiScan — Georgia HB 1121 (2023-2024): short-term rental grandfathering bill (died in committee)retrieved July 10, 2026
- Airbnb Help Center — Occupancy tax collection and remittance by Airbnb in Georgiaretrieved July 10, 2026
| City | Status | Permit fee | Last verified |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | Permit required | $150 | July 10, 2026 |
| Savannah | Restricted | $400 | July 10, 2026 |
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This page is informational only and is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Regulations change frequently — verify current requirements with each jurisdiction before operating. HOA and condo rules may prohibit short-term rentals regardless of city law.