Short-Term Rental Taxes and Licenses in Kentucky

Five stacked layers of short-term rental rules. From the bottom: state, county, city, special districts, and HOA and CCRs. The state layer is marked, the one this page covers.

Step one of five

Kentucky is the layer that never changes.

Everything on this page applies right across Kentucky, wherever the property sits. That makes it the one part you can settle before you know the address.

The four layers above it are the ones that move: county, city, special purpose districts, then private rules like an HOA or a neighbourhood covenant that appear in no government database at all. Two properties on opposite sides of the same street can owe different totals.

Run your address for the other four

What Kentucky charges statewide

These apply across Kentucky. Counties and cities add their own on top, which is where the totals diverge.

Tax	Rate	Applies to	Confidence
Sales and Use TaxKentucky Department of Revenue	6%	Total rent and all mandatory fees including cleaning.	High	Source
State Transient Room TaxKentucky Department of Revenue	1%	Rent only (excludes cleaning and incidental fees).	High	Source

Drawn from the Kentucky jurisdictions researched so far. These are the statewide figures only. Open a city below, or run your own address, for the county, city and district layers that stack on top.

Does the platform collect it for you

Statute covers only the state sales and transient room taxes. Local lodging, city, or county taxes remain the owner’s responsibility.

Channel	What you charge	Who remits the state layer	Confidence
AirbnbPlatform is merchant of record	Nothing, the platform collects all of it	The platform	High	Source
VrboYou are merchant of record	7% (6% sales tax + 1% state transient room tax)	You do	High	Source
Booking.comYou are merchant of record	7% (6% sales tax + 1% state transient room tax)	You do	High	Source
ExpediaYou are merchant of record	7% (6% sales tax + 1% state transient room tax)	You do	High	Source
GoogleYou are merchant of record	7% (6% sales tax + 1% state transient room tax)	You do	High	Source
WhimstayYou are merchant of record	7% (6% sales tax + 1% state transient room tax)	You do	High	Source
DirectYou are merchant of record	7% (6% sales tax + 1% state transient room tax)	You do	High	Source

Still yours to charge: Local city lodging taxes, County room taxes, Any special district assessments.

Questions owners ask about Kentucky

Does Airbnb collect and remit Kentucky state taxes for me?

Airbnb collects and remits both the 6% Kentucky state sales tax and the 1% state transient room tax for all bookings in Kentucky. These state taxes are handled by Airbnb automatically, but you are still responsible for any local lodging taxes not collected by Airbnb.

Source

What is the Kentucky state tax rate for short-term rentals?

Kentucky short-term rentals are subject to a 6% state sales tax on total charges plus a 1% state transient room tax on rent. The combined state rate is 7%. Additional city or county taxes may apply.

Source

What counts as a short-term rental in Kentucky?

A short-term rental in Kentucky is any rental for less than 30 consecutive days. Rentals of 30 days or more, with a written lease, are exempt from state tax.

Source

Do I need a state license or registration to collect rental tax in Kentucky?

Yes, you must register for a Kentucky Sales and Use Tax and Transient Room Tax Account to collect and remit state taxes on short-term rentals.

Source

When are Kentucky short-term rental tax returns due?

Returns are due by the 20th of the month after the reporting period. Depending on your volume, you might file monthly, quarterly, or annually.

Source

Are long stays exempt from Kentucky short-term rental taxes?

Yes, rentals of 30 or more consecutive days are exempt from both state sales and transient room taxes if covered by a written lease or contract.

Source

What happens if I do not have any bookings during a filing period?

You must file a zero return if you have an active Kentucky tax account, even if you had no bookings or tax due for that period.

Source

Is rent to government guests exempt from Kentucky lodging tax?

Yes, rent to the U.S. government or Kentucky state and local government entities is exempt from the state sales and transient room taxes.

Source

Does the Kentucky marketplace facilitator law cover county and city taxes?

No, platform facilitators are only required to collect and remit state sales and transient room taxes. City, county, and district taxes remain the responsibility of the owner.

Source

Already researched

Nothing in Kentucky yet

No Kentucky jurisdiction has been run. Start one and the page publishes itself, usually within a few minutes.

Run the first one

After the research

Setting the rates takes an afternoon. Running the property never stops.

The tax setup on this page is a one-time job, and you can do it yourself. Owners call us about everything underneath it.

The work How often

Channel tax settingsRates entered on each platform, direct included Once

Pricing against the marketRates moved as comps, events and pace change Daily

Guest messagingEnquiries, check-ins, problems at 2am 24/7

Listings and distributionContent, photos and settings across every channel Ongoing

Turnovers and coordinationCleans, maintenance, the gaps between stays Every checkout

Reviews and reputationFollow-up that earns the five star, disputes that do not Every stay

We run 300+ properties across 50+ cities and 7 countries, remotely, without standing in any of them. A property in Kentucky is no harder for us to take on than one down the road from our last partner.

See how Corzly manages properties

We do not register, file or remit for you, and we are not tax professionals.