Dorchester County, SC Short-Term Rentals: Taxes & Fees (2026)
Key Facts
- State accommodations tax rate
- 7% of gross rental proceeds
- Additional guest-charge tax
- 5% (room service, laundry, etc.)
- Owner-occupied exemption
- fewer than 6 rooms, owner's abode
- Non-transient threshold
- 90+ continuous-day stays exempt
- Liable party
- furnisher of the accommodation
- Multi-location hosts
- must report proceeds per address
Summary
Short-term rental hosts in Dorchester County collect South Carolina's 7 percent accommodations tax on gross rental proceeds under S.C. Code § 12-36-920(A), the same statute that taxes hotels and motels. The tax reaches any residence rented to transients for a fee, with a narrow exemption for an owner's own home when fewer than six rooms are rented, and it does not apply once a guest's stay reaches 90 continuous days.
(A) A sales tax equal to seven percent is imposed on the gross proceeds derived from the rental or charges for any rooms, campground spaces, lodgings, or sleeping accommodations furnished to transients by any hotel, inn, tourist court, tourist camp, motel, campground, residence, or any place in which rooms, lodgings, or sleeping accommodations are furnished to transients for a consideration. This tax does not apply: (1) where the facilities consist of less than six sleeping rooms, contained on the same premises, which is used as the individual's place of abode; or (2) to gross proceeds from rental income wholly excluded from the gross income of the taxpayer pursuant to Internal Revenue Code Section 280A(g) as that code is defined in Section 12-6-40(A). The gross proceeds derived from the lease or rental of sleeping accommodations supplied to the same person for a period of ninety continuous days are not considered proceeds from transients. ... (E) The taxes imposed by this section are imposed on every person engaged or continuing within this State in the business of furnishing accommodations to transients for consideration.
Full Breakdown
Section 12-36-920(A) imposes a seven percent sales tax on the gross proceeds from renting any room, campground space, lodging or sleeping accommodation to transients, and it expressly lists "residence" alongside hotels, inns, tourist courts, motels and campgrounds, so a Dorchester County host renting a house or a room through an online platform owes the same 7 percent as a hotel does. Two exemptions apply: facilities with fewer than six sleeping rooms on the same premises used as the owner's own place of abode are excluded entirely, and rental income wholly excluded from gross income under Internal Revenue Code Section 280A(g) is not taxed either.
A guest who rents the same unit for 90 continuous days or more is not a "transient" for purposes of the tax, so long-term corporate or extended-stay rentals fall outside it. Subsection (B) layers a separate 5 percent tax on specific additional guest charges at any taxed lodging, limited to room service, laundering and dry cleaning, in-room movies, telephone service, and meeting-room rentals; charges outside that list are not covered by subsection (B). in the business of furnishing accommodations to transients for consideration," meaning the host, property manager or booking platform collecting on the owner's behalf is the party responsible for remitting it.
A host who owns or manages units in more than one county or municipality must report the gross proceeds from each location separately on the sales tax return under subsection (D). Locally, Dorchester County's accommodations tax advisory committee, created under Code Sec. 40-97, only recommends how the county's share of this state-collected revenue is spent; the committee sets no additional local rate on short-term rentals.
Violations & Fines
The tax is collected by whoever furnishes the accommodation, whether that is the property owner, a manager, or a booking platform remitting on the host's behalf, and that party remains liable to the South Carolina Department of Revenue for the full 7 percent even if a guest disputes or refuses to pay it. Hosts operating in more than one county or municipality must break out gross proceeds by location on the return rather than reporting a single combined figure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does South Carolina's 7 percent accommodations tax apply to my Airbnb or VRBO listing?
Is the tax owed if my guest books a 3-month stay?
Is my cleaning fee subject to the accommodations tax?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dorchester County
How Dorchester County compares: Cities with the Highest Short-Term Rental Taxes·Compare Dorchester County to another location·View the South Carolina short-term rentals overview
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