Rental Rules by City / South Carolina / Hilton Head Island

Hilton Head Island short-term rental rules & tax calculator

Beaufort County, South Carolina · Verified against official sources Oct 24, 2026

📋 The Basics

Can I rent my place short-term here?: Yes, with a permit
Do I need a permit?: Yes. You need a yearly Town STR permit and a business license.
What taxes do I pay?: Total about 10%. Check your Airbnb payout report to see which ones Airbnb collects; you pay the rest yourself.

Your 3 steps to be legal

Get the Town STR permit.
Get a Town business license.
Open a Town tax account and file every quarter.

⚠️ Biggest risk: 5% of unpaid tax per month late, plus a possible summons.

Words confusing? See the glossary. Details and official sources are below.

Tax calculator

Nightly rate ($) Nights Cleaning fee ($)

Rates used: SC state sales tax 5% + SC state accommodations tax 2% + Town accommodations tax 1% + Town beach preservation fee 2% = 10%. Mandatory cleaning fees are included in the taxable total. Town 3% (1% accommodations tax + 2% beach preservation fee) on stays under 90 days, filed quarterly. Beaufort County local option sales/accommodations taxes not included: verify.

What Airbnb collects: What Airbnb collects here: verify on Airbnb's local tax help pages and in your payout reports; you remain responsible for any tax it does not collect.

This is the general rule for Hilton Head Island. Does your address qualify?

The free info covers the city as a whole. Your property can still be different: zoning can change from one street to the next, and an HOA or condo ban can stop rentals even where the city allows them. The penalties Hilton Head Island lists are on the Hilton Head Island page.

Your $49 Compliance Check looks at your exact property:

Whether your exact address and zone allow short-term rentals
A check of HOA / condo rental restrictions to look for
Which permits and tax accounts you personally need
What you're missing right now
A personal report with clear next steps and official sources, by email
A refund if we report a rule in error (refund policy)

🔎 How we check: official city, county and state sources, a last-verified date on every page, and nothing guessed. Learn more

Check my address: $49

🔔 Stay notified: $4.99/month

Rules don't change every week, but they do change, and nobody emails you when they do. We'll alert you when city rules, tourist taxes, HOA-related laws, or Airbnb/Vrbo policies change in Hilton Head Island. Cancel anytime.

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Need guest waivers and booking tools too? Click here for more info

Why use this instead of a web search?

Instead of scattered, sometimes outdated pages, you get the city, county and state rules on one page, with official sources linked, a last-checked date, and unconfirmed items marked "verify" instead of guessed. How we verify →

Advanced details (laws, fees, sources)

Rules

Permit	A Town of Hilton Head Island short-term rental permit is required (annual, May 1 to April 30); fee reported as $150 per bedroom: verify with the Town.
Business license	Anyone owning a rental property (or partial interest) needs a Town business license.
Tax account	Open an account with Town Revenue Services; returns are due quarterly (Apr 20, Jul 20, Oct 20, Jan 20), even with zero sales.
Penalties	5% of unpaid tax per month late, plus a possible $1,092.50 municipal summons.

Items marked "Verify with the city" could not be confirmed from an official source; call the office listed before relying on them.

Sources

Free tools

Free "Is my rental legal?" checklist · Free tourist tax calculator

Rules can change

Hilton Head Island's rules, its tax rates and platform policies can change through a council vote, a new state law or a court ruling, often with little notice to hosts. We re-check this page monthly; subscribers get notified. Stay Compliant for $4.99/mo.

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Rules, tax rates and Airbnb/Vrbo policies can change without warning, and hosts who miss a change can be fined. Get alerts when your city, county or state changes, deadline reminders, a pending-bill watch list and a monthly host brief (even in quiet months: "we checked on [date]; no changes"). Compare plans.

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Not legal or tax advice. Last verified Oct 24, 2026. Rules and rates change: confirm with the official sources linked before you rent or file.