Calvert County, MD Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)
Key Facts
- Tax rate
- 5% of the transient charge
- Covers
- Hotels, motels, inns, cottages, short-term rentals
- Fund
- Tourism Development Incentive Fund
- Grant cap
- $25,000 per organization per fiscal year
- Appeal window
- 30 days to County Administrator
- Enacted
- Ord. No. 36-22, effective 8-30-2022
Summary
Calvert County's accommodations tax, set at 5% of every transient charge under Code § 136-22, applies to hotels, motels, inns, cottages and any other lodging accommodation as defined in § 136-21, including residential dwellings rented through a hosting platform. The tax funds county administration and the Tourism Development Incentive Fund.
§ 136-21. Definitions. ... HOSTING PLATFORM A person or entity that facilitates an accommodation by providing booking services through which a host may lawfully provide a residential dwelling unit as a hotel. LODGING ACCOMMODATION An establishment, including an apartment, hotel, cottage, hostelry, inn, motel, rooming house or tourist home, that offers sleeping accommodation for compensation to any transient. ... ... § 136-22. Imposition and rate. The Board hereby imposes an accommodations tax in the amount of 5% of the amount paid as a transient charge.
Full Breakdown
Calvert County levies its accommodations tax under Article IV of Chapter 136, adopted August 30, 2022 by Ordinance No. 36-22. Section 136-21 defines a LODGING ACCOMMODATION broadly, as an establishment including an apartment, hotel, cottage, hostelry, inn, motel, rooming house or tourist home that offers sleeping accommodation for compensation to any TRANSIENT, meaning a guest staying no more than four consecutive months. That definition, combined with the HOSTING PLATFORM definition covering any person or entity that lets a host lawfully offer a dwelling unit as a hotel, pulls short-term rentals booked online into the same 5% rate that traditional hotels and motels pay under § 136-22.
1: five percent goes to the County's general fund to cover administrative costs, a monthly share attributable to lodging inside Chesapeake Beach or North Beach goes to those municipalities, and the remainder funds county tourism marketing, with up to 20% of that remainder available as grants of up to $25,000 per organization per fiscal year to help pay special-event permit fees. The Board may adopt further collection regulations under Title 20 of the Local Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland and may increase the Treasurer's surety bond to cover accommodations tax revenue under § 136-24B. 3.
Violations & Fines
Article IV does not set out a separate misdemeanor penalty for hotel operators; enforcement runs through the same remittance mechanics that apply to every lodging accommodation. Missing the 21st-of-the-month filing and payment deadline under § 136-23D costs the operator the 0.5% administrative retention otherwise allowed under § 136-23E, and because the tax is held in trust for the County under § 136-23C, the Department of Finance and Budget can collect unpaid amounts as trust funds owed regardless of the type of lodging accommodation involved.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Calvert County's hotel tax apply to short-term rentals too?
What does Calvert County do with the hotel occupancy tax it collects?
Can a business appeal a denied tourism grant funded by the hotel tax?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Calvert County
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