Saint Paul, MN Short-Term Rentals: Taxes & Fees (2026)

Chapter 379 of the Saint Paul Legislative Code sets the licensing framework for short-term rentals, and Sec. 03 ties the actual dollar fee to the citywide fee schedule the council maintains under Chapter 310. That schedule, codified in Sec. 01's Class R license fee table and locked in by Sec. 00, all classed as Class R, meaning the Department of Safety and Inspections (DSI) director can issue them without a council hearing absent objections. Sec. 03(b) fixes the license term at one year from the date of issuance, with annual renewal required to keep operating, and Sec.

03(c) makes both the host and platform licenses non-transferable, a sale of the property or a change in platform ownership does not carry the license forward. Sec. 15 further provides that once a fee schedule is in effect, renewal fees due before an increase are not offset or refunded, and any posted fee changes apply going forward to new applications and renewals rather than retroactively. Operating a short-term rental or a short-term rental platform without the corresponding valid license is unlawful under Sec. 02, and Sec.

13 makes any violation of the licensing chapters a misdemeanor, in addition to whatever adverse license action, suspension, revocation, or added conditions, DSI pursues under Chapter 310's uniform procedures. Hosts and platforms pay through the same DSI licensing intake used for the chapter's other Class R business licenses, and the $11,181 platform fee is set far higher than the $45 host fee, reflecting the far larger citywide footprint a booking platform's license covers versus a single dwelling unit host license.