Cincinnati, OH Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)
Key Facts
- Tax rate
- 4% of rent (since Dec. 1, 2002)
- Prior rate
- 3% through Nov. 30, 2002
- Small-rent exemption
- Rents of $2/day or less
- Registration deadline
- Within 30 days of opening
- Delinquency penalty
- 10% of tax owed
- Fraud penalty
- 25% of tax owed
- Revenue destination
- Convention Center Fund
Summary
Cincinnati levies a 4% excise tax on rent charged to transient guests staying in the city's hotels, collected by the operator as trustee for the city under Cincinnati Municipal Code Chapter 312. Guests paying $2 or less per day are exempt. Hotels must register with the city treasurer within 30 days of opening and post a transient occupancy registration certificate on-site.
There is hereby levied a tax of three percent on all rents received by a hotel for lodging furnished to transient guests, which rate shall remain in effect until November 30, 2002. From and after December 1, 2002, the rate shall be four percent. Such tax constitutes a debt owed by the transient guest to the city which is extinguished only by payment to the operator as trustee for the city, or to the city. The transient guest shall pay the tax to the operator of the hotel at the time the rent is paid.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 48 Update 4).
Full Breakdown
Cincinnati Municipal Code § 312-3 levies a tax on all rents received by a hotel for lodging furnished to transient guests -- defined in § 312-1-T as anyone occupying a room for sleeping accommodations for less than 30 consecutive days. The rate was 3% through November 30, 2002, and has stood at 4% since December 1, 2002. The guest owes the tax to the city, extinguished only by payment to the operator as trustee or directly to the treasurer; if rent is paid in installments, the tax is prorated with each installment and becomes due in full once the guest stops occupying the room.
Section 312-5 exempts rents not within the city's taxing authority, rents paid by the State of Ohio or its subdivisions, and rents of $2 a day or less, though the $2 exemption must be claimed in the manner the treasurer prescribes. Operators must separately state and charge the tax on every bill (§ 312-7) and may not advertise that they will absorb it. Within 30 days of the chapter's effective date or of opening, § 312-9 requires every operator to register with the treasurer and obtain a transient occupancy registration certificate, posted conspicuously on the premises.
Returns and full remittance are due by the last day of the month following each calendar quarter under § 312-11, and all collected tax is held in trust for the city until then. Revenue collected under this chapter is credited to the city's Convention Center Fund under § 312-25.
Violations & Fines
Under § 312-13, an operator who misses a remittance deadline owes a 10% delinquency penalty on top of the tax; if the treasurer finds the nonpayment fraudulent, an additional 25% penalty applies, plus 1% monthly interest on the unpaid tax. If an operator fails to collect or report the tax, § 312-15 lets the treasurer estimate and assess the amount owed after notice and a hearing opportunity; unpaid, final assessments become immediately due and collectible as a city debt under § 312-23.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cincinnati
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