Cupertino, CA Short-Term Rentals: Host Platform Liability (2026)
Key Facts
- Booking cutoff
- 5 business days after non-compliance notice
- Record retention
- 3 years after each short-term rental stay
- Governing sections
- Sec. 5.08.060 and Sec. 5.08.070
- Platform violation penalty
- Misdemeanor charge
- Subpoena response window
- At least 30 days
Summary
Cupertino requires short-term rental hosting platforms to collect and remit transient occupancy tax, prompt hosts to post the City's registration number, and cut off bookings for non-compliant listings within five business days. A platform that ignores these duties is guilty of a misdemeanor under Municipal Code Sections 5.08.060 and 5.08.070.
Hosting platforms shall be required to prompt hosts to include the City-issued registration number in their listing(s), in a format designated by the City. Upon notice from the City that a listing is non-compliant, hosting platforms shall cease any short-term rental booking transactions for said listing(s) within five business days. A hosting platform shall not complete any booking transaction for any residential property or unit subject to a City notice, until notified by the City that the residential property or unit is in compliance with the local registration requirement. ... Any host violating any provision of this Chapter, or hosting platform that violates its obligations under Section 5.08.060, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. ... Any host who violates any provision of this Chapter, or hosting platform that violates its obligations under Section 5.08.060, shall be subject to administrative fines, citations and administrative penalties pursuant to Title 1.
Full Breakdown
12, responsible for collecting and remitting the tax unless the City and the platform have a separate voluntary collection agreement. Platforms must retain, for three years after any stay, records of every reservation, tax payments, whether the stay was hosted or unhosted, length of stay, and guest counts; a platform that does not track hosted versus unhosted stays must keep a good-faith approximation instead. Platforms must prompt hosts to display the City-issued registration number on each listing, and once the City notifies a platform that a listing is non-compliant, the platform must stop taking bookings for that listing within five business days and cannot resume until the City confirms compliance.
070(D). The City Council may also issue administrative subpoenas under Government Code Sections 37104 to 37109 to obtain listing names, addresses, length of stay, and price paid, giving the platform at least thirty days to produce the records.
Violations & Fines
Under Section 5.08.070, a host or hosting platform that violates its Section 5.08.060 duties, including the five-business-day booking cutoff, is guilty of a misdemeanor. A platform found liable in a criminal, civil, or administrative case must reimburse the City and any participating law enforcement agency for their full investigative costs and pay all back transient occupancy taxes, on top of administrative fines and citations available under Title 1.
Frequently Asked Questions
What must a short-term rental hosting platform do under Cupertino law?
What happens if a hosting platform ignores a City non-compliance notice?
Can Cupertino force a hosting platform to hand over listing data?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cupertino
California rules heatmap·Compare Cupertino to another location·View the California short-term rentals overview
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