Vista, CA Short-Term Rentals: Taxes & Fees (2026)
Key Facts
- Permit fee
- Set by City Council resolution, nonrefundable
- Permit term
- One year, renews with business license
- Ownership-change deadline
- New application within 14 calendar days
- First citation fine
- Up to $500 per violation
- Third citation
- Up to $1,500 and mandatory revocation
- Revocation ban
- 12 months before STR may reopen
- Governing chapter
- Vista Municipal Code Chapter 8.34
Summary
Vista requires every short-term rental owner to hold a business license, a Chapter 3.24 transient occupancy registration certificate, and a nonrefundable STR permit before renting, with the permit fee set by City Council resolution and renewed annually. Owners and listing brokers share responsibility for collecting and remitting the 10 percent Transient Occupancy Tax, and unpaid TOT is grounds for permit suspension or revocation.
C. Permit Fee. A short-term rental permit fee has been established by resolution of the City Council and shall be paid in conjunction with initial and renewal applications. The fee is nonrefundable. ... F. Short-term rentals are subject to the provisions of Chapter 3.24 of this Code regarding the collection and remittance of Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT). Failure to comply with these provisions may result in revocation of a short-term rental permit pursuant to section 8.34.090.C. A broker that collects any revenue from arranging or listing a short-term rental location in the City has primary responsibility for collecting, paying and transmitting all TOT due to the City pursuant to Chapter 3.24 of this Code.
Full Breakdown
34 sets the fee and tax framework STR owners must satisfy before they can rent a unit. 34 itself. 060(C) makes the STR permit fee a City Council resolution amount, paid at both initial application and each annual renewal, and states the fee is nonrefundable regardless of outcome. 060(E)). 24's TOT collection and remittance rules, and any broker who collects revenue from arranging or listing the rental carries primary responsibility for collecting, paying and transmitting the TOT to the City. 080(C). 090(E)). 210.
Violations & Fines
Operating without the required business license, TOT certificate or STR permit, or falling delinquent on TOT payments, exposes an owner to administrative citations of up to $500 for a first offense, $1,000 for a second within a year, and $1,500 for a third or later offense under Section 8.34.080(C), plus enforcement under Chapter 1.12. A third citation within 12 months forces revocation, and the property cannot host an STR again for a year unless sold.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Vista charge a fee for a short-term rental permit?
Who is responsible for paying Vista's Transient Occupancy Tax on a short-term rental?
Can unpaid TOT cost me my Vista short-term rental permit?
How much does the City fine STR permit violations in Vista?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Vista
How Vista compares: Cities with the Highest Short-Term Rental Taxes·California rules heatmap·Compare Vista to another location·View the California short-term rentals overview
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