Hotel Occupancy Tax – Frequently Ask Questions
Do I file a quarterly Hotel Occupancy Tax Remittance form even if I did not have any receipts during the quarter?
YES. You will select the option to declare you did not have any taxable receipts on the remittance form and enter $0.00 taxable receipts and $0.00 tax due.
My property is in the ETJ. Do I pay HOT?
YES. You will remit HOT to the City of Johnson City.
Properties not located within the Johnson City City Limits or ETJ will remit HOT to Blanco County at a rate of seven percent 7%. Click here for more information.
Who is required to remit HOT?
A hotel, motel, short-term rental, bed & breakfast or any lodging facility in which members of the public rent sleeping accommodations. The owner, operator, or manager must collect hotel occupancy taxes from its guests and remit this to the respective State & Local entities.
The tax covers hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts, as well as condominiums, apartments and houses rented for less than 30 consecutive days. Hotel occupancy tax does not apply to hospitals, sanitariums, nursing homes, student dormitories operated by colleges and universities, or condominiums, apartments, and houses leased for more than 30 consecutive days.
What is taxable?
Taxable revenue includes your gross taxable receipts, cleaning fees and pet fees. When calculating the hotel occupancy tax due, seven percent (7%) is multiplied by the gross taxable receipts amount, cleaning fees and pet fees.
For example, if the nightly rate is $300 per night, a cleaning fee of $100 is charged, a pet fee of $50 is charged and the guest stays two nights, the total taxable receipts amount is $750.
$300 X 2 nights = $600 plus $100 cleaning fee + $50 pet fee = $750 total taxable receipts
$750 X 0.07 (7%) = $52.50 tax due
Note, taxpayers that multiply seven percent (7%) by the amount of revenue deposited to their bank account after service fees are deducted by their reservation service (AirBnB, VRBO, etc.) are not calculating the correct amount of tax due. A 15% penalty and interest charge will be assessed on the additional hotel occupancy tax due.
Do reservation services like AirBnB and VRBO remit HOT to the City of Johnson City on my behalf?
NO. Reservation services like AirBnB and VRBO do not remit HOT to the City on your behalf. In most cases, these reservation services will only remit HOT to the State on your behalf and make it your responsibility to remit HOT to the local municipality.
Always verify the services your reservation service should perform on your behalf to ensure there is not any miscommunication between you.