Hawaii’s Green Fee took effect on January 1, 2026, raising the state’s transient accommodations tax by 0.75 percentage points to fund conservation, climate resilience, and visitor infrastructure. The charge is not a separate ticket or trailhead fee. It is built into the hotel tax that lodging operators already collect, which now runs 11.00% at the state level, up from 10.25%.1Department of Taxation, State of Hawaii. Transient Accommodations Tax Law Changes From 2025 Legislative Session State officials project it will generate about $100 million a year.2Office of the Governor. Gov. Green Signs Historic Senate Bill 1396 Codifying a Green Fee to Mitigate Climate Impacts in Hawaii
What It Adds to Your Bill
On a per-night basis, the increase is small. A $400 hotel room picks up about $3 in additional tax from the 0.75-point bump.2Office of the Governor. Gov. Green Signs Historic Senate Bill 1396 Codifying a Green Fee to Mitigate Climate Impacts in Hawaii The state rate is 11.00%, and counties may add their own TAT surcharge of up to 3% on top of that.1Department of Taxation, State of Hawaii. Transient Accommodations Tax Law Changes From 2025 Legislative Session The line item on your folio will not read “Green Fee.” It appears inside the transient accommodations tax total.
The charge applies to hotels, resorts, vacation rentals, and timeshare properties. It shows up whether you book directly, through a travel agent, or through an online platform.
Who Pays and Who Doesn’t
Anyone staying in a transient accommodation in Hawaii pays. Under state tax law, a “transient” is any person staying temporarily rather than making the accommodation a permanent home, and that includes residents as well as out-of-state visitors.3Cornell Law Institute. Hawaii Code R. 18-237D-1-06 – Transient, Defined A Hawaii resident booking a weekend on a neighbor island is technically subject to the TAT on that stay.4Department of Taxation. Transient Accommodations Tax There is no separate resident carve-out based on a Hawaii driver’s license or state ID. In practice, most of the burden falls on tourists because residents rarely book their own state’s hotels.
Military personnel have a clear exemption. Living accommodations provided to service members on permanent duty assignment in Hawaii are exempt from the TAT, and the same applies to military personnel receiving a temporary lodging allowance while finding housing or awaiting reassignment out of state.4Department of Taxation. Transient Accommodations Tax Because the Green Fee is folded into the TAT, that exemption carries through automatically.
Where the Money Goes
Act 96 splits the revenue equally among three uses:5Hawaiʻi Green Fee Advisory Council. Hawaiʻi Green Fee Advisory Council
- Environmental stewardship, including protecting land and marine resources, preserving native plants and wildlife, removing invasive species, and restoring coral reefs.
- Climate and hazard resilience, including hardening infrastructure, mitigating wildfire and flood risks, and improving watershed management.
- Sustainable tourism, including destination management, beach nourishment, and park improvements.
State agencies overseeing land and natural resources, state parks, transportation, agriculture, and wastewater infrastructure share in these funds. The Green Fee Advisory Council transmitted its first round of spending recommendations to the legislature in February 2026.5Hawaiʻi Green Fee Advisory Council. Hawaiʻi Green Fee Advisory Council The equal split means the money is not purely for conservation. A third of it goes to infrastructure that absorbs the wear tourists create.
What About Cruise Passengers
Act 96 also tried to apply the TAT to cruise ships for the first time, imposing an 11% surcharge on gross cruise fares prorated by the portion of the voyage spent docked in Hawaiian ports, with counties permitted to add up to 3% more. That piece is not being collected. The Cruise Lines International Association and several cruise companies sued the state, and on December 31, 2025, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued an injunction blocking the cruise ship portion of the Green Fee while the appeal proceeds. The injunction does not touch hotels, vacation rentals, or other land-based lodging, which continue paying the full 11% state TAT. The cruise litigation remains unresolved.
How Lodging Operators Collect It
If you run a hotel, a vacation rental, or a timeshare in Hawaii, there is no new form or separate remittance for the Green Fee. It flows through the same TAT infrastructure you already use. You collect the 11% state TAT plus any county surcharge from the guest as part of the room charge and remit the total to the Hawaii Department of Taxation.1Department of Taxation, State of Hawaii. Transient Accommodations Tax Law Changes From 2025 Legislative Session
Returns are filed on Form TA-1 monthly, quarterly, or semi-annually depending on volume, with payment due by the 20th of the month following each period. Calendar-year filers must also file an annual reconciliation on Form TA-2 by April 20.6Hawaii County, HI. Transient Accommodations Tax Late filings trigger penalties and interest under Hawaii’s general tax administration rules.
Online travel platforms and booking agencies that arrange short-term stays also carry reporting obligations. Even when a platform collects and remits taxes for a host, the property owner typically still needs to file a return reporting gross rental receipts. Operators new to short-term rentals should register with the Department of Taxation and obtain a TAT license before accepting the first booking.