Santa Clara, CA Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Permits (2026)

250, anyone hosting a short-term rental (a stay of 30 days or less) inside city limits must first obtain an Administrative Permit for Short-term Rentals and hold a current City Business License; advertising or operating before that permit issues is itself a violation. The registration form requires the property owner's signature, the host's name and contact information, the rental address, the business license number, the anticipated rental frequency, and contact information for a local contact person who must be reachable 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Submitting an incomplete application results in automatic denial, and the Council sets the registration fee by resolution, updated periodically; failing to pay the full fee stops the application from being processed at all. Once approved, the registration is personal to the host, cannot be assigned or transferred, and automatically expires the moment the property is sold or transferred to a new owner. Registrations run on a calendar-year basis with fees prorated quarterly, and hosts must renew annually by remitting all Transient Occupancy Tax owed for the year, showing proof of a current Business License, and resubmitting the application requirements; missing the December 15 renewal deadline lets the registration lapse. 38 and trash service obligations, and the City Manager may issue additional administrative rules to implement the program.