Accommodation tax

What it means

Accommodation tax is one of the local taxes a municipality may introduce by a generally binding regulation. It is paid by an individual who stays in the municipality temporarily for payment, meaning a guest at a hotel, guesthouse, cottage or flat rented for a short time.

The tax is charged per person per night at a rate set by the municipality. The regulation may also set exemptions, for example for children, people with disabilities or participants in school trips. Rates differ between municipalities and tend to be higher in tourist centres.

Although the guest pays it, the accommodation provider carries the responsibility. The provider is the tax payer: it collects the tax from guests, keeps a register of guests and passes the tax collected on to the municipality by the deadline and in the manner set by the regulation.

How it works in practice

With short-term rentals through online platforms this tax is often forgotten. The provider must register with the municipality, keep a guest book with the statutory details and pay the tax on time. Some platforms collect the tax, but that does not end the provider’s responsibility to the municipality.

Tax collected from guests is not the provider’s revenue. In the books it is a liability to the municipality, and in tax records it is kept apart from sales. Mixing it with income inflates both the income tax base and the turnover for VAT, an avoidable mistake.

Municipalities increasingly compare platform data and the foreigners’ register with what providers have declared. Thanks to DAC7 reporting, the tax administration also knows who earned how much through platforms.

What to watch out for

The most common mistake is not collecting the tax from guests and finding out only at a municipal inspection. The provider then has to pay it out of its own pocket, plus a penalty. The price of accommodation should therefore be set so that accommodation tax is clearly shown on top.

Watch the guest register too. Missing details in the guest book are a separate breach that both the municipality and the foreign police fine, even if the tax was paid correctly.