East Orange, NJ Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)
Key Facts
- Tax rate
- 3% of room rent
- Who pays
- the transient guest
- Adopted
- 11-7-2016, Ord. No. 46-2016
- Filing deadline
- 28th of each month
- Minimum penalty
- $1,000 per offense
Summary
In the City of East Orange, hotels and motels must charge a 3% room occupancy tax on every taxable rental, paid by the guest and collected by the establishment, under Code Chapter 247, Article III, adopted in 2016.
There is hereby established a hotel and motel room occupancy tax in the City of East Orange, which shall be fixed at a uniform percentage rate of 3% on charges of rent for every occupancy of a hotel or motel in the City of East Orange in a hotel or motel subject to taxation pursuant to Subsection (d) of Section 3 of P.L. 1966, c. 30, N.J.S.A. 54:32B-3 (sales tax).
Full Breakdown
East Orange City Code Chapter 247, Article III, adopted 11-7-2016 by Ordinance No. 46-2016, implements New Jersey's enabling statute, P.L. 2003, c. 114 (N.J.S.A. 40:48F-1 et seq.), which lets a municipality tax hotel occupancy at a uniform rate up to 3%. Section 247-37 fixes the East Orange rate at exactly 3% on rent charged for every hotel or motel occupancy in the City that is already subject to the state sales tax under N.J.S.A. 54:32B-3. The tax is layered on top of everything else: § 247-38 makes clear it applies in addition to any other tax or fee any governmental entity imposes on hotel occupancy.
The purchaser, meaning the transient guest, bears the tax, and the vendor (the hotel or motel) may not assume or absorb it, nor advertise that the tax will be waived, absorbed or refunded. The person who collects rent from guests must also collect and remit the tax, filing a monthly return with the New Jersey Division of Taxation by the 28th of each month covering the prior month's collections, with the State Treasurer then distributing the certified revenue back to the municipality. An exemption applies where the guest is already exempt from the state Sales and Use Tax under N.J.S.A. 54:32B-9(a).
Violations & Fines
Each instance of a vendor assuming, absorbing, or falsely advertising that it will assume or absorb the tax is a separate offense, and each day such a representation continues counts as its own separate offense; the penalty for violating these provisions is a minimum fine of $1,000.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is East Orange's hotel occupancy tax rate?
Who pays East Orange's hotel occupancy tax, the guest or the hotel?
When must East Orange hotels remit the occupancy tax?
Sources & Official References
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Transient Occupancy Tax in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Essex County handle transient occupancy tax.