Rental Rules by City / Louisiana / New Orleans

New Orleans short-term rental rules & tax calculator

Orleans Parish County, Louisiana · Verified against official sources Oct 24, 2026

📋 The Basics

Can I rent my place short-term here?: Only in some areas
Do I need a permit?: Yes. You need an NSTR (residential) or CSTR (commercial) license; new NSTR licenses come by lottery.
What taxes do I pay?: Total about 11.75% plus $5.50 per night. Check your Airbnb payout report to see which ones Airbnb collects; you pay the rest yourself.

Your 3 steps to be legal

Check whether your block can get an NSTR license and enter the quarterly lottery.
For commercial, get zoning and Planning Commission approval first.
Register for parish taxes and the per-night fee.

⚠️ Biggest risk: Buying expecting a license: NSTR is mostly one per block.

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

Tax calculator

Nightly rate ($) Nights Cleaning fee ($)

Rates used: Orleans Parish gross rentals tax 5% + Orleans Parish occupancy tax 6.75% = 11.75%, plus $5.50 per night. Mandatory cleaning fees are included in the taxable total. City/parish taxes per nola.gov: 5% gross rentals + 6.75% occupancy, plus $5/night NSTR fee ($12 for CSTR) and $0.50/night occupancy privilege (shown as $5.50 flat). Louisiana state sales tax NOT included: verify with LDR.

What Airbnb collects: Confirm in your payouts which parish taxes and the per-night fees Airbnb remits; anything it does not, you file with the Bureau of Revenue.

This is the general rule for New Orleans. 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 New Orleans lists are on the New Orleans 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

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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 New Orleans. Cancel anytime.

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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

Two permit types	NSTR (non-commercial, residential) and CSTR (commercial). Each unit rented under 30 days needs a license.
NSTR lottery	New NSTR licenses are issued by quarterly lottery, generally one per square (block); next application window and lottery dates are posted by the city. Licenses are non-transferable and renew yearly (2026 renewal ran in April to June).
CSTR	Requires a Non-Structural Renovation permit, City Planning Commission conditional-use approval, floorplan, evacuation and operations plans, and a noise monitoring device.
Fines	Up to $1,000 per violation at adjudication.

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

New Orleans'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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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.