County Board Approves Increase in Transient Occupancy Tax
The Arlington County Board approved an increase of 0.25 percent in the transient occupancy tax charged for hotel rooms in Arlington, which will yield approximately $1.25 million in revenue for travel and tourism promotion in the County in Fiscal Year 2020.
Are You Airbnb-ing an Arlington Address?
If you’re making money offering short-term lodging in an Arlington home, you probably need to collect the local 7.25-percent transient occupancy tax. And keep in mind that charging the tax and getting it to the County Treasurer does not cover compliance with any zoning ordinance.
If you collect $10,000 or more annually in rentals, you also must obtain an Arlington County business license.
For more information about tax issues, contact the Business Tax Division of the Office of the Commissioner of Revenue at 703-228-3060 or email business@arlingtonva.us.
For zoning questions, call 703-228-3883.
Service Upgrade
If you are opening a new business in Arlington County or an additional location for an existing Arlington business, you can now register and apply for a business license online.
The Commissioner of Revenue’s Business Tax Division:
- Licenses and assesses a business privilege tax (officially known as the “Business, Professional, and Occupational License” or “BPOL” tax) on all Arlington businesses, including home-based businesses.
- Assesses the business tangible personal property tax on all furniture, computers, fixtures, machinery and tools of all Arlington businesses and ensures that all businesses report their owned and leased equipment in the same uniform manner.
- Assesses the annual Bank Franchise Tax
- Administers custodial taxes such as the County Meals Tax, Transient Occupancy Tax, Cigarette Tax and Short-term Rental Tax. These custodial taxes are collected from customers by businesses and are considered to be held in trust by the businesses until payment to the County.
- Conducts desk audits of all business license tax applications for several factors, including verification of mathematical calculations, review of tax classifications and examination of unusual changes in gross receipts from one reporting year to another.
- Conducts in-depth field audits of selected accounts to ensure that businesses report their gross receipts properly and have the proper tax rate classification.
- Monitors, contacts and assists many new businesses.
For more information about business taxes, contact the Business Tax Division at 703-228-3060.