For Direct Premium (USA): Hospitable files and remits applicable taxes on your behalf in most US states. Check the state-by-state list below to see exactly which taxes we handle for your location. For states not yet on the list, you are responsible for filing and remitting the taxes we collect and pass through to you.
Direct Basic taxes
When you select Basic as your plan, you'll need to add any fixed-rate and percentage-based taxes you need Hospitable to collect from the guest from either the Taxes section in Preferences or the Taxes section in Property details < Pricing. These fields will only be visible after you set your Direct plan to Basic.
All of the taxes you add will be visible on each of your properties' Pricing < Taxes section. From that page, you should check all taxes that are applicable to that specific property.
Based on the taxes you input here, Hospitable will calculate the tax amount for each booking request and collect it from the guest if the booking is accepted. You must specify which charges each tax applies to (eg. nightly rate). You should also specify the maximum applicable length of stay. You will receive that tax amount in your Stripe payout and Hospitable will report the amounts in your Metrics Taxes reports.
Depending on your location, you are generally required to file and remit those amounts to the appropriate jurisdiction in a timely matter. We recommend that you keep records of all of your tax filings and remittances.
Direct Premium taxes (USA)
With Premium, you won't need to setup anything for your taxes to work. For USA properties, Hospitable works with a tax services provider to calculate all applicable sales and lodging taxes based on the address of each of your properties. You can check the taxes we collect on the Property < Direct page after selecting the Direct Premium plan.
The initial quote we prepare for guests shows them the Total before taxes (USA only), to put your direct booking offering on the same footing as most other OTA channels when guests are price shopping. If the guest proceeds to the next step, we then show them estimated taxes, which are generally within a few cents of the actual taxes. On the final page of the booking flow, on the Review & Confirm screen, we will make a live tax calculation to confirm the correct amount and show that to the guest, as well as a drop-down so they can view which taxes will be collected.
Tax remittance: Hospitable files and remits taxes in most US states
Hospitable files and remits applicable taxes on your behalf in the states listed below. This means we handle the tax filing and payment to the relevant authorities — you don't need to take any action for these taxes. Our goal is to take as much of the filing and remitting burden off of you as possible, and we are continuously expanding our coverage.
Click your state to see exactly which taxes Hospitable remits for your location:
If your state is not listed above
If your property is in a state not yet on the list, Hospitable will still calculate and collect all applicable taxes from your guests — but instead of remitting them to the authorities, we pass the tax amounts through to you with your payout. You are then responsible for filing and remitting those taxes to the appropriate jurisdiction in a timely manner.
We report all tax transactions in detail in your Metrics Taxes reports to make filing easier. You are required to keep records of those payments, and Hospitable may require you to sign affidavits attesting that you have done so.
We are actively expanding our tax remittance coverage to additional states. Check back regularly to see if your state has been added.
Direct Premium taxes (UK, AU)
For Australia and the UK, taxes are inclusive of your booking amount and you will need to file with the appropriate authority based on your revenue. Hospitable does not file and remit taxes for you with the exception of the Victorian Short-Term Rental Levy from January 1, 2025.
Special Tax Scenarios
Depending on your property and guest types, you may encounter situations where standard tax rules don't quite fit. Here's how Hospitable handles common edge cases.
Tax-Exempt Guests
Hospitable does not currently support guest-level tax exemptions. There is no setting or field to upload tax exemption certificates, and taxes are applied uniformly to all bookings based on your configured tax rules.
If a guest claims tax-exempt status:
The tax will still be applied to the booking automatically.
The guest can seek a refund directly from the relevant tax authority after their stay, using their exemption documentation.
Alternatively, you may choose to issue a manual courtesy refund outside of Hospitable's system — but this is entirely at your discretion and is not handled within the platform.
Long-Term Stay Tax Rules
In many U.S. states and local jurisdictions, stays of 30 days or more are exempt from short-term lodging taxes (though not necessarily all taxes). The exact threshold and rules vary by jurisdiction.
How this works on each plan:
Direct Premium (Avalara): Avalara automatically applies the correct tax treatment based on the length of stay and the jurisdiction's rules. No manual action is needed.
Direct Basic: You can set a "maximum applicable length of stay" on each tax rule. For example, if your local lodging tax only applies to stays under 30 nights, set the maximum to 29. Bookings that exceed this length will not have that tax applied.
💡 Tip: If you're unsure whether your jurisdiction has a long-term stay exemption, check with your local tax authority or a tax professional.
Multiple Tax Jurisdictions
Properties can be subject to multiple overlapping taxes — for example, a state tax, a county tax, and a city tourism levy all applying to the same booking.
How this works on each plan:
Direct Premium (Avalara): Multiple jurisdictions are handled automatically based on your property's address. Avalara determines all applicable tax types (state, county, city, special district) and applies them. If your property's jurisdiction is incorrect, Hospitable Support can work with Avalara to create a jurisdiction override.
Direct Basic: You must manually add each applicable tax in your tax settings. Add a separate tax entry for each jurisdiction (e.g., one for state, one for county, one for city). All configured taxes will be applied to each booking.
💡 Tip (Direct Basic): Double-check with your local tax authority to make sure you've accounted for all applicable taxes. Missing a jurisdiction can lead to compliance issues.
Can I Override or Adjust Tax on a Specific Booking?
Currently, there is no way to override or adjust the tax amount on an individual booking. Taxes are calculated automatically based on your configured rules (Basic) or Avalara's jurisdiction data (Premium) and applied uniformly.
Changes to your tax settings apply to future bookings only — existing reservations use the tax rules that were in effect at the time of booking.
Fixing Tax Issues
Here are solutions to common tax-related problems.
"I set the wrong tax rate — how do I fix existing bookings?"
Changes to your tax settings apply to future bookings only. Existing reservations will continue to use the tax rules that were in place when the booking was created.
(For Direct Basic Only) To correct the rate going forward, update your tax settings in Settings → Taxes.
(For Direct Premium Only) To correct tax rates, you'll need to reach out to Hospitable Support, as this can only be done via Avalara, our third-party tax partner.
For existing bookings with incorrect tax amounts, you may need to manually adjust with the guest outside of Hospitable (e.g., a partial refund or additional charge via your payment processor).
"A guest is disputing the tax amount"
Direct Premium:
Tax rates are determined by Avalara based on the property's address and jurisdiction. If a guest believes the tax is wrong, contact Hospitable Support — the team can investigate the Avalara transaction data and verify the applied rates.
If Hospitable remits taxes on your behalf in your area and you've received a notice from a tax authority, contact Support with the details so they can investigate.
Direct Basic:
Since you configure tax rates manually, double-check that your rates match what your local tax authority requires.
If the guest's concern is valid and you set the wrong rate, you may need to issue a manual refund for the difference.
"My tax ID isn't being validated"
If you're having trouble with tax ID validation:
Double-check the format — make sure your tax ID matches the expected format for your jurisdiction (e.g., correct number of digits, proper prefix).
Verify the ID is active — confirm with your tax authority that the ID is current and in good standing.
Try again later — validation services can experience temporary outages. Wait a few minutes and retry.
If the issue persists, contact Hospitable Support with your tax ID and a screenshot of the error.
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