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Kirkland, WA Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Permits (2026)

Heavy Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified April 2026

Short-term rental permit rules in Kirkland, WA, also called Airbnb permits, vacation rental licenses, or STR registration, list the application steps, fees, and operating requirements for hosting.

Key Facts

State license
DOR required
City portal
FileLocal
License display
In every listing
Renewal
Annual
Penalty
500 dollars per unlicensed listing

Summary

Operators must register their Kirkland STR through the FileLocal business license portal, state DOR, and include the City license number in every online listing under Ordinance O-4755.

A short-term rental operator must maintain primary liability insurance to cover the short-term rental dwelling unit in the aggregate of not less than one million dollars or conduct each short-term rental transaction through a platform that provides equal or greater primary liability insurance coverage. Nothing in this section prevents an operator or a platform from seeking contributions from any other insurer also providing primary liability insurance coverage for the short-term rental transaction to the extent of that insurer's primary liability coverage limits.

[ 2019 c 346 s 5.]

Legislative questions or comments

Call the Legislative Hotline

1-800-562-6000

TTY for deaf/hard of hearing: 1-800-833-6388

Learn more about the Legislative Hotline

Studies, audits, and reports

Source: Kirkland FileLocal LicensingView official code

Full Breakdown

Kirkland short-term rental registration runs in parallel across three agencies. 37 requires all hosts to obtain a Washington business license through the Department of Revenue, register for sales and lodging tax, and complete the short-term rental registration questions during application. gov), which adds Kirkland endorsement and assigns the unique Unified Business Identifier (UBI) and city account number. The city endorsement fee is roughly 125 dollars plus gross receipts tiers, renewed annually. 030 to include the local business license number in every advertisement or online listing and to provide the City with a 24/7 local emergency contact, a signed acknowledgment of short-term rental rules, and proof of liability insurance.

Kirkland may contract with a compliance monitoring service that scrapes online listings to identify unregistered STRs and issues notices of violation starting at 500 dollars per unregistered listing. Operators must renew their registration annually and update contact information within 30 days of any change. Failure to register before first booking is a violation that may be cumulative across every night the unit operated without a license.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to include my license number in my Airbnb listing?
Yes, RCW 64.37.030 requires the Washington business license or UBI number to appear in every STR advertisement, and major platforms provide a field for it.
How long does Kirkland registration take?
Combined state and city registration through FileLocal is typically processed within 10 business days, though host contact verification and compliance review can extend the timeline.

Sources & Official References

Other rules in Kirkland

All Kirkland rules

How Kirkland compares: Most Airbnb-Friendly Cities in America·Compare Kirkland to another location·View the Washington short-term rentals overview

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Short-Term Rental Permits in Nearby Cities

How other cities in King County handle short-term rental permits.

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Auburn, WA
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Kent, WA
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Federal Way, WA
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Seattle, WA
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Bellevue, WA
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