Jefferson Parish, LA Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Permits (2026)
Short-term rental permit rules in Jefferson Parish, LA, also called Airbnb permits, vacation rental licenses, or STR registration, list the application steps, fees, and operating requirements for hosting.
Key Facts
- Licensing office
- Department of Code Compliance and Enforcement
- Short-term rental fee
- $750 nonrefundable, adjustable yearly by CPI
- Hotel or motel fee
- $50
- Renewal deadline
- On or before November 1 each year
- Liability insurance
- At least $500,000 general liability
- Penalty
- Fine up to $500, up to 6 months, or both; each day separate
- Background look-back
- 10 years for drug, vice or violent felony convictions
Summary
Jefferson Parish requires every short-term rental to hold a lodging accommodation license from the Department of Code Compliance and Enforcement before it takes a guest. The application fee is $750, the license renews every year by November 1, and advertising or operating without it is a separate offense for each day it continues.
No bed and breakfast, hotel, motel, or short-term rental shall engage in the business of rental of room or rooms, and facilities without first filing application, initial or renewal, with the department of code compliance and enforcement and obtaining a lodging accommodation license. ... The lodging accommodation license shall be renewed annually on or before November 1 st of each calendar year. ... The processing fee for hotels and motels shall be fifty dollars ($50.00). The processing fee for bed and breakfast or short-term rental establishments shall be seven hundred fifty dollars ($750.00). The director of the department of code compliance and enforcement is authorized to adjust the fee for bed and breakfast or short-term rental establishments annually based upon the consumer price index (CPI) as ascertained on the first business day of July of each calendar year. ... Proof that the owner or operator has current, valid, general liability coverage of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00) or more, verified with a current insurance certificate, for the proposed short-term rental property
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 20 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
Section 17.5-5 bars any bed and breakfast, hotel, motel or short-term rental from renting rooms until the operator files an application, initial or renewal, with the Department of Code Compliance and Enforcement and obtains a lodging accommodation license. The license cannot be transferred from one place or one individual to another, so a sale of the property or a change of operator means a new application. The department must refuse a license or renewal to any establishment with a notice of violation of the Code of Ordinances outstanding for more than 45 days. The license is a regulatory license, not a revenue license, and it sits on top of the Jefferson Parish Occupational License Tax under article VI of chapter 35.
Section 17.5-6 sets the application. The nonrefundable processing fee is $750 for a short-term rental, against $50 for a hotel or motel, and the director can adjust the short-term rental fee each year using the consumer price index as measured on the first business day of July. A short-term rental applicant files a deed showing ownership or, for a lessee, an owner's affidavit and a signed current lease. Every applicant also files an affidavit naming the local responsible party, a copy of the brochure required by section 17.5-2, and an insurance certificate proving general liability coverage of at least $500,000 on the property. In the OBM-1, OBM-2, FC-2, H-1, H-2, C-1, GO-1, GO-2 and BC-1 districts the applicant also proves primary residency: an owner shows a Louisiana Homestead Exemption, and a renter shows two of a Louisiana driver's license with the property address, voter registration, or a utility bill for that address.
Issuance requires written approval from the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office and the parish attorney's office, plus a passed inspection by the department. The Sheriff's background check looks back ten years for drug, vice or violent felony convictions. The parish attorney checks for a suspended or revoked lodging license within five years. For renewals, the department must send written notice at least 60 days before expiration, and an expired license is immediately invalid.
Violations & Fines
Advertising or operating a short-term rental without a valid license is unlawful under section 17.5-12. The penalty is a fine of up to $500, up to six months in jail, or both, in the discretion of the court or the bureau of administrative adjudication, and each day counts as a separate offense. Failing to timely apply for, renew or post the license is grounds for a suspension or revocation hearing under section 17.5-8, and operation must cease within 72 hours of a revocation notice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my Jefferson Parish rental need a license?
How much does the license cost and when does it renew?
Can I transfer the license when I sell the property?
Does the license number have to appear in my online listing?
What insurance does the application require?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Jefferson Parish
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