The Kansas lodging tax, known in statute as the transient guest tax, is a local tax that cities and counties can add to the price of short-term stays at rates ranging from 1% to 10%. It sits on top of the 6.5% state sales tax and any local sales tax, so the combined rate a guest pays can climb well into the double digits. Most Kansas jurisdictions that levy it charge somewhere between 4% and 6%.1Kansas Department of Revenue. Transient Guest Tax Rates and Effective Dates
What the Rate Is and How It Stacks
The transient guest tax applies to gross receipts from renting sleeping rooms. It does not apply to separately billed charges for meals, entertainment, or other services. Because it’s a local option tax, not every Kansas city or county imposes one, and the rate varies by jurisdiction.
State law caps the default rate at 2%, but Kansas cities can adopt a charter ordinance to exempt themselves from that cap and set a higher rate. That’s why larger cities charge well above 2%. Overland Park, for instance, has authorized a rate of up to 9% through a charter ordinance.2City of Overland Park. Charter Ordinance No. Ninety-Nine To confirm the exact rate for a specific address, use the Kansas Department of Revenue’s rate locator tool.3Kansas Department of Revenue. Kansas Sales and Use Tax Rate Locator
Which Properties Owe the Tax
Kansas defines the covered businesses as hotels, motels, and tourist courts — any building that offers sleeping rooms to the public for pay.4Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Code 12-1692 – Promotion of Tourism and Conventions; Definitions That definition is broad enough to reach short-term rentals listed on Airbnb, VRBO, and similar platforms, if they meet the room threshold.
The threshold depends on the property type. Traditional hotels and motels must have more than two bedrooms furnished for guest use. For short-term rental listings, the threshold is two or more rooms.5Kansas Legislative Division of Post Audit. Reviewing Select Cities’ Use of Transient Guest Tax Revenues Renting out a single spare bedroom on Airbnb does not create a tax obligation. Listing two or more rooms does.
When Airbnb or VRBO Collects It for You
Kansas requires large rental platforms to collect and remit the transient guest tax on behalf of their hosts. Under Senate Bill 50, effective July 1, 2021, a marketplace facilitator that provides a platform where third parties offer rooms, homes, apartments, or cabins for stays of less than 29 consecutive days must collect and remit the tax once its total Kansas sales exceed $100,000 in the current or prior calendar year.6Kansas Department of Revenue. Notice 21-24 Marketplace Facilitators – Lodging The platform has 30 days after crossing that threshold to register.
In practice, this means Airbnb and VRBO handle the tax automatically for most Kansas bookings on their sites. If all your bookings run through a platform that already collects, you don’t remit for those bookings yourself. If you also take direct reservations off-platform, you’re responsible for collecting and remitting on those stays. One boundary worth noting: entities that facilitate hotel room sales as described in K.S.A. 36-501 are not treated as marketplace facilitators for those transactions, so a hotel handles its own collection.
Exemptions
The most common exemption is length of stay. Kansas defines a “transient guest” as someone occupying a room for no more than 28 consecutive days.7Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Code 12-1696 – Promotion of Tourism and Conventions; Definitions Once a guest passes day 28 at the same property, the tax stops applying. The first 28 days remain taxable.
Federal government purchases are treated separately. When the federal government pays for lodging directly through a centrally billed account, the transient guest tax does not apply. Federal employees paying with individually billed accounts do not qualify, even when they are later reimbursed. The distinction is who actually makes the payment.8GSA SmartPay. Kansas Tax Information
Registering as an Operator
Before collecting any transient guest tax, register with the Kansas Department of Revenue by filing the Kansas Business Tax Application (Form CR-16).9Kansas Department of Revenue. Kansas Business Tax Application The form asks for your Federal Employer Identification Number or Social Security Number, the legal business name, the property’s physical address, and the date you began operations.10Kansas Department of Revenue. Pub KS-1216 – Business Tax Application In Part 2, select “Transient Guest Tax” as one of your applicable tax types.
Registration is free and can be completed online through the Department of Revenue’s Customer Service Center.11Kansas Department of Revenue. Customer Service Center Once approved, you’ll receive a tax registration number to use on every return.
Filing and Payment
The transient guest tax is generally due monthly. Each return and payment must be submitted by the 25th of the month following the reporting period, so January activity is due by February 25. Operators who file quarterly or annual sales tax returns may be permitted to file transient guest tax on the same schedule, with the Department’s approval.12Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Code 12-1694 – Same; Collection, Payment and Disposition of Transient Guest Tax
You report on the Transient Guest Tax Return (Form TG-1), which asks for total gross receipts from room rentals broken out from exempt receipts such as stays that exceeded 28 days.13Kansas Department of Revenue. Kansas Transient Guest Tax Return Form TG-1 The law requires you to keep records of gross rental receipts separate from other retail sales.14Findlaw. Kansas Code 12-1698 Filing runs through the Customer Service Center, with payment by Electronic Funds Transfer or credit card. Credit card payments may carry a processing fee.
Penalties for Late or Missed Filings
Kansas doesn’t run a separate penalty regime for the transient guest tax. When an operator fails or refuses to pay, the state enforces collection using the same tools that apply to the retailers’ sales tax under K.S.A. 79-3617.14Findlaw. Kansas Code 12-1698 That gives the Department of Revenue the authority to assess penalties, charge interest on unpaid balances, and pursue delinquent accounts through standard sales tax collection procedures. The Department can also examine your books and records during business hours to verify the accuracy of returns.12Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Code 12-1694 – Same; Collection, Payment and Disposition of Transient Guest Tax
Individual cities may add their own penalties by local ordinance. Failing to register a taxable property compounds the exposure, since back tax builds up for every period you should have been collecting, alongside whatever penalties the state and city assess.
Where the Money Goes
The transient guest tax funds tourism. State law directs revenue toward promoting tourism and conventions, and the underlying statutes carry that title.4Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Code 12-1692 – Promotion of Tourism and Conventions; Definitions In practice, cities and counties use the money to fund convention and visitors bureaus, support event venues, and market their communities to travelers.