San Francisco, CA

When deciding whether to become an Airbnb Host, it's important to understand the laws in your city. As a platform and marketplace, we do not provide legal advice, but want to provide some links that may help you better understand the laws and regulations in San Francisco. This list is not exhaustive, but should give you a good start in understanding your local laws. We’ll continue to update this information as more becomes available. 

If you have questions, please refer to the City’s Short-Term Residential Rental Starter Kit, contact the Planning Department or other City agencies directly, or consult a local lawyer or tax professional.

Registration assistance

Need help registering your listing or understanding if you are eligible to host in San Francisco?

Airbnb has partnered with Rocket Lawyer to help connect you with a registration pro to guide you through the registration process.

Fill out the Rocket Lawyer sign up form to have a free consultation.

Registration

Under existing law, anyone in the City of San Francisco listing a residential property for short-term rent (less than 30 days at a time) on a hosting platform like Airbnb must register for both a Business Registration Certificate and Short-Term Rental Registration Certificate. Registration is a two-step process. From March 2022, Hosts should register their short-term rentals and renew directly with the City of San Francisco instead of on Airbnb, as previously allowed.

Hosting eligibility

• Primary residency requirement: To register your listing, you must live there for at least 275 days per year (or, if you haven’t lived there for a full year, 75% of the days you have occupied the unit). You can only have one primary residence.
• Hosting activity: Your ability to share your space while you are present is unlimited. You may rent out your entire space while you are absent for up to 90 days per year.
• Liability insurance: The law requires Hosts to maintain at least $500,000 of liability insurance. If you host exclusively through Airbnb, our Host liability insurance satisfies this requirement.
• Eligible properties and violations: Properties in certain zones or buildings are not eligible for short-term rentals; review the list. Also, your unit must not have any unresolved building, housing, or planning code complaints.
• Other rules: It's also important to understand and abide by other contracts or rules that bind you, such as leases, condo board or co-op rules, HOA rules, or rules established by tenant organizations. Please read your lease agreement and check with your landlord, if applicable.

Business registration and taxes

Short-term rental operators in San Francisco must first obtain a valid Business Registration Certificate. You can apply through the San Francisco Treasurer & Tax Collector's Portal. The fee for registration is variable based on San Francisco gross receipts or payroll expenses for the current calendar year.

San Francisco imposes a 14% Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) on reservations of fewer than 30 nights. Airbnb collects and remits the TOT in San Francisco; get more information about that process.

Airbnb is currently the only Qualified Website Company in San Francisco. This means that if you host exclusively through Airbnb, you are not required to submit TOT filings or obtain a separate Certificate of Authority. Visit the City’s TOT FAQ for more information and review our Certificate of Authority to collect TOT.

Short-term rental registration

Short-term rental operators in San Francisco must also obtain a valid Short-Term Residential Rental Certificate from the Office of Short-Term Rentals in order to continue hosting on Airbnb (this is separate from the Business Registration Certificate mentioned above).

To apply for a Short-Term Residential Rental Certificate:

1. Visit the SF Public Planning Portal.
2. Create an account in the portal and follow the City’s instructions to fill out your information. You’ll need to provide:
   1. Personal information: full name, email address, phone number, and length of stay at listing address.
   2. Listing information: the address, number of bedrooms, whether you rent or own, monthly rent (if applicable), and intended use (entire space, private room or shared space).
   3. Documentation: business account number from your Business Registration Certificate, current Driver’s License, proof of liability insurance, and proof of residency (see valid forms of documents here).
3. Pay the non-refundable application fee, which is good for two years.
4. Submit your application and wait for the City’s approval.
   1. In the meantime, you can begin hosting by going to your Airbnb Host account page and selecting your listing’s Policies and rules > Laws and Regulations > Regulations.
   2. Add the temporary record number you received from the City in the registration number field and select submit. You can find this number in the email confirmation from the city or the dashboard in the SF Planning Public Portal.
5. Once you receive your registration approval, you are required to return to your listing’s Regulations page to update your registration details.

Adding registration details to your listing(s)

The law requires all Hosts to display their registration number on their listing. To add this number to your listing, go to Listings, select the listing you want, and add the number under Regulations.

Renewals and appeals

Hosts must renew their registration every two years (provided the registered unit remains in good standing). If your registration application was denied or you do not renew after your registration has lapsed, you may be subject to fines, penalties, and/or removal. According to the Office of Short-Term Rentals (OSTR) website, if your application for a certificate is rejected, or if a previously-issued certificate has been revoked by the Office of Short-Term Rentals, you may file a written appeal within thirty calendar days of the date of the notice of rejection or revocation. For further information, please review these procedures.

Airbnb will remit the registration number you entered on your listing, as well as the expiration date and ZIP code for this number. If you do not wish to share any of this data with the City, you will need to deactivate/remove your listing from Airbnb.

The City has an FAQ that answers additional questions related to registering as a short-term rental Host. You can also contact shorttermrentals@sfgov.org.

Staying compliant

• Reporting: Administrative Code, Chapter 41A.5(g) requires you to file quarterly reports in January, April, July, and October disclosing the number and dates of short-term rentals of your unit. Reports may be submitted via the Quarterly Rental Reporting Portal maintained by the City’s Office of Short Term Rentals.
• Recordkeeping: Administrative Code, Chapter 41A.5(g) requires you to keep records demonstrating compliance with the law, including records that prove primary residence, show how many days per year you occupy the unit, and indicate the number and dates of short-term rentals of your unit (your Airbnb dashboard will be helpful for this last requirement).
• Safety issues: Administrative Code, Chapter 41A.5(g) requires that when hosting, you post a clearly printed sign inside your unit on the inside of the front door that provides information about the location of all fire extinguishers in the unit and building, gas shut off valves, fire exits, and pull fire alarms.

Intermediate Length Occupancy (ILO) Dwelling Units

The Planning Code was amended in June 2020 (Ord. No. 78-20) to regulate the leasing of Dwelling Units for periods of less than a year (aka ILO Dwelling Units). The ILO designation in the Planning Code is a residential use characteristic that applies to a Dwelling Unit offered for occupancy by a natural person for an initial stay, whether through lease, subscription, license, or otherwise, for a duration of greater than 30 consecutive days but less than one year.

The ILO program sets a maximum of 1,000 ILO Dwelling Units permitted in the City within existing buildings or those buildings with permits issued prior to June 22, 2020. Eligible Dwelling Units within such buildings must submit ILO applications no later than June 22, 2022. After that date, to the extent that the 1,000 ILO Dwelling Unit limit is not met, ILO Dwelling Units may also be approved in new projects.

To learn more about the requirements for Hosts with Intermediate Length Occupancy (ILO) Dwelling Units, visit the City’s website or contact the City directly.

Licensed hotel, B&B, or timeshare

If you are listing a licensed hotel, bed & breakfast, or timeshare, you can claim an exemption. Your entry, along with your listing ID and ZIP code, will be remitted to the City for verification.

Other rules

It's important to understand and abide by other contracts or rules that bind you, such as leases, condo board or co-op rules, HOA rules, or rules established by tenant organizations. Please read your lease agreement and check with your landlord, if applicable.

Our commitment to your community

We’re committed to working with local officials to clarify how local rules impact the short-term rental community. We will continue to advocate for changes that will enable people to share their homes.