Lancaster, CA Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)
Key Facts
- Tax rate
- 7% of rent charged
- Covered stays
- 30 consecutive days or less
- Enforcing official
- Tax administrator (city manager)
- Reporting
- Quarterly, due month-end after quarter close
- Late penalty
- 10%, plus 10% more after 30 days
- Fraud penalty
- 25% additional
- Records retention
- 3 years, available for inspection
Summary
Lancaster charges a 7% transient occupancy tax on hotel and short-term rental stays under 30 days. Operators collect the tax at the time rent is paid and remit it quarterly to the city's tax administrator, the city manager.
For the privilege of occupancy in any hotel, each transient is subject to and shall pay a tax in the amount of seven percent of the rent charged by the operator. This tax constitutes a debt owed by the transient to the city which is extinguished only by payment to the operator of the hotel at the time the rent is paid. If the rent is paid in installments, a proportionate share of the tax shall be paid with each installment. The unpaid tax shall be due upon the transient's ceasing to occupy space in the hotel.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 10 - 2025).
Full Breakdown
030 sets Lancaster's transient occupancy tax at seven percent of the rent charged by the operator for any stay of 30 consecutive days or fewer. The tax is a debt owed by the transient to the city, extinguished only when paid to the operator with the rent; if rent is paid in installments, a proportionate share of the tax is due with each installment. 020 defines a covered "hotel" broadly: any structure occupied or designed for occupancy by transients for dwelling, lodging or sleeping, including tourist homes, motels, studio and bachelor hotels, lodging and rooming houses, apartment houses, dormitories, public or private clubs, and mobilehomes or house trailers at a fixed location, meaning short-term rentals fall within the tax's reach.
060). 070, operators file quarterly reports and remit the full tax collected to the tax administrator by the last day of the month following each calendar quarter; the administrator may set shorter reporting periods. 110). 040).
Violations & Fines
A late remittance draws a 10% penalty under Section 3.16.080, plus a second 10% penalty if still unpaid 30 days after the original delinquency date. Fraud in nonpayment adds a 25% penalty on top of both delinquency penalties, and unpaid tax accrues interest at 0.5% per month until paid; all penalties and interest become part of the tax owed. Under Section 3.16.150, any operator who fails to register, keep records, file reports, or who files a false or fraudulent return is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable under Chapter 1.12. Operators may not advertise that they will absorb the tax or that it won't be added to rent (Section 3.16.050). Assessed operators may request a hearing within 10 days of notice, and an unfavorable determination may be appealed to the city council per Section 3.16.100.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Lancaster's hotel occupancy tax rate?
Do short-term rentals count as hotels under Lancaster's tax code?
What happens if an operator pays the transient occupancy tax late?
Who is exempt from Lancaster's transient occupancy tax?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lancaster
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Transient Occupancy Tax in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Los Angeles County handle transient occupancy tax.