Salt Lake City
Can you run an Airbnb or do rental arbitrage here? What the city requires: permits, taxes, safety rules and enforcement.
Red light: licenses only in mixed-use, downtown and a few other zones
Salt Lake City requires a business license for every short-term rental, and it issues them only for listed zones, which generally don't include residential ones.[1, 2] One person can hold only one license,[3] and running without one means $1,000 in civil penalties every seven days.[4]
Our verdict, based on the sources at the end of this guide.
The Salt Lake City Council passed its short-term rental license ordinance on June 16, 2026,[8] and the city set July 1, 2026 as the day it starts taking applications.[2] You need the license before you advertise or accept bookings, and it is issued only for property in a listed zone.[1, 3] The city says these rentals are generally not allowed in residential zones.[2] One person can hold only one license,[3] and each rental is capped at 200 nights per annual license period.[9]
Key requirements
Zoning check
A license is issued or renewed only for property zoned MU2, MU3, MU5, MU6, MU8, MU11, M1, M1-A, D1, D2, D3, D4, GMU, RP, BP, A or JRF.[3] The city says short-term rentals are generally not allowed in residential zones, but are allowed in mixed-use, downtown and gateway zones.[2] You can check a property's zoning district on the city's map.[1]
License first
Get the business license before you advertise the property or accept bookings.[1] Each dwelling unit needs its own license, and a license can't be transferred between people or properties.[10] A change in ownership or control needs a new application.[10]
Who can apply
Agents can't hold a license unless they are the bona fide owner or have the sole right of occupancy to the unit.[3] The city's page describes the applicant as the property owner, and asks for a Property Authorization Form when someone applies on the owner's behalf.[1]
Application papers
Send the unit's address and description, proof of ownership or legal authority, contact details for the owner and a local contact, and a safety certification on the city's checklist.[11] The application also needs a local contact affidavit, landlord or HOA consent where it applies, and your signature allowing inspections.[11] Upload a government photo ID, plus an HOA authorization letter for a condo.[1]
License fee
The fee schedule lists a $342 per rental unit fee for short-term rentals, and the license renews and is paid every year.[5, 12] Its short-term rental base fee row shows no amount, while its standard commercial base fee is $198 from Sept 2026.[5] A news report puts the total at a $198 base fee plus $342 per unit.[13]
Operational and safety standards
Stay limits
Each stay must be at least two consecutive nights by the same guest.[9] A rental can't be occupied for more than 200 nights within any annual license period.[9]
Occupancy, parking and noise
Maximum occupancy follows the fire and building codes.[9] Provide at least one off-street parking stall for the exclusive use of guests, and make sure guests follow the noise, waste and nuisance rules.[9]
Local contact
Name a local contact person who lives or has an office in Salt Lake County and is available 24 hours a day.[3, 7] They must respond within two hours of the city contacting them.[9] If they resign, the license is suspended until you name a new one.[3]
Listings and signs
Put your license number in every ad, listing and other promotion, in a conspicuous place.[9] Display the license number and the local contact's information on or near the front door, along with the city's notice inside the rental.[1, 9]
Safety and inspections
The unit must meet the city's self-certification standards.[9] The city can inspect on cause or complaint, and refusing an inspection is a violation.[14] Keep records showing you comply and give them to the city on request.[9]
Tax obligations
Room taxes
You must collect and remit all transient room taxes.[9] The state's sales tax guide lists a 1.07% state transient room tax, plus 0.25% in Salt Lake County, a municipal one of up to 1.5%, a county one of up to 4.25% and a Salt Lake County tourism one of up to 0.5%.[15]
What counts as a transient room
The state guide defines it as accommodations in hotels, motels, inns, trailer courts, campgrounds, tourist homes and similar stays of less than 30 consecutive days.[15] Room and trailer space rentals for 30 consecutive days or more are exempt.[15]
Find your rate
Local rates depend on the address.[6] The Tax Commission points you to its rate lookup on the Taxpayer Access Point, where you enter a street address or the full nine-digit ZIP code, and it also offers a lookup tool you search by county and then city.[6]
Enforcement
No license
Operating without a license brings $1,000 in civil penalties that accrue every seven calendar days.[4] Other violations of the chapter follow the penalties in chapter 5.88.[4]
Listings as evidence
Utah law lets a city require a business license or permit before you operate a short-term rental.[16] A city can't punish you only for listing a rental on a booking website, but it can use the listing as evidence when it has other information that you broke a city rule.[16]
Suspension
Three verified violations of noise, nuisance, parking or other operational standards within 12 months can get the license suspended for the rest of the license period.[4] You can't rent, advertise or offer the unit during a suspension, and each day you do is a separate violation.[4]
Revocation
If a license is suspended for three consecutive license periods, the city may revoke it.[4] The dwelling and the licensee are then ineligible for a new license for at least three years.[4]
Licensing blocks
No license is issued or renewed if the property, owner or licensee has an unresolved nuisance citation under chapter 11.18.[3] The same goes for property under the dangerous building code or with outstanding Title 18 or 21A violations.[3]
Appeals
You can appeal city enforcement actions under chapter 2.75 of the city code.[17]
Bottom line for arbitrage
Skip Salt Lake City unless the property sits in an approved zone, and don't plan on running more than one.
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Sources
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