Shasta County, CA Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)
Key Facts
- Tax rate
- 10% of rent charged
- Registration deadline
- 30 days after starting business
- Filing frequency
- Quarterly, by month-end
- First delinquency penalty
- 10% of tax due
- Fraud penalty
- Additional 25% of tax
- Interest rate
- 1.5% per month
- Appeal window
- 15 days to Board of Supervisors
Summary
Shasta County charges a 10% transient occupancy tax on rent paid at any hotel, motel, inn, or other lodging in the unincorporated county, including short-term rentals under 30 days. Operators collect the tax from guests and remit it to the county treasurer-tax collector, acting as tax administrator, on a quarterly schedule.
For the privilege of occupancy at any lodging, each transient is subject to and shall pay a tax in the amount of ten percent of the rent charged by the operator. The tax constitutes a debt owed by the transient to the county which is extinguished only by payment to the operator or to the county. The transient shall pay the tax to the operator of the lodging 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 at the lodging.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code: Supplement 22).
Full Breakdown
16 of the Shasta County Code imposes the tax on every transient, defined as anyone occupying lodging for 30 consecutive days or less, unless a written agreement sets a longer stay. The tax is 10% of the rent charged, collected by the operator at the time rent is paid, with installment payments taxed proportionally. Within 30 days of the effective date or of starting business, every operator must register the lodging with the tax administrator and post a transient occupancy registration certificate at the registration office; the certificate does not itself authorize any business activity or substitute for a required county permit.
Operators file returns and remit collected tax by the last day of the month following each calendar quarter, or on a shorter cycle the tax administrator sets. Exemptions apply only to occupancy the county lacks power to tax and to lodging operated exclusively for religious, charitable, or educational purposes by a property-tax-exempt operator, and any exemption claim must be made in writing under penalty of perjury when rent is collected. Records supporting the tax collected must be kept for three years and made available to the tax administrator on request.
Violations & Fines
Late remittance draws a 10% original delinquency penalty, plus a second 10% penalty if still unpaid by the end of the following month, plus 1.5% monthly interest on the unpaid tax. The tax administrator may add a 25% fraud penalty on top of those amounts if nonpayment is determined to be fraudulent, and unpaid amounts can be secured with a recorded lien against the operator's real property or collected by warrant and seizure of assets.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Shasta County's transient occupancy tax apply to short-term rentals?
Who actually collects the 10% tax?
What happens if an operator pays the tax late?
Can an operator appeal a tax assessment?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Shasta County
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