Rental Rules by City / Georgia / Tybee Island

Tybee Island short-term rental rules & tax calculator

Chatham County, Georgia · 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. A city STR permit, with a new process starting 2027.
What taxes do I pay?: Total about 14% plus $5.00 per night. Check your Airbnb payout report to see which ones Airbnb collects; you pay the rest yourself.

Your 3 steps to be legal

Apply for the city STR permit.
File the monthly city room tax return.
Watch for the 2027 sector caps.

⚠️ Biggest risk: New 2027 caps may limit permits.

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

Tax calculator

Nightly rate ($) Nights Cleaning fee ($)

Rates used: GA + Chatham County sales tax 7% + Tybee Island room excise tax 7% = 14%, plus $5.00 per night. Mandatory cleaning fees are included in the taxable total. City 7% room tax (monthly return due by the 20th, even if zero). Sales tax 7% per GA DOR rate chart; GA $5/night state hotel-motel fee (stays under 31 nights; Airbnb/Vrbo collect it on their bookings).

What Airbnb collects: A monthly city room tax return is required even if Airbnb pays the tax for you.

This is the general rule for Tybee 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.

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 Tybee 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	City STR permit required; fee $200 base plus $10-$20 per allowed guest (e.g. 5 bedrooms = $440).
Occupancy	Maximum 2 adults per bedroom plus 2; parking plan, insurance and an exterior emergency-contact sign required.
2027 changes	Revised ordinance (Aug 2026) brings a new permit process with sector caps starting January 2027: verify.

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

Tybee 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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Get a personalized STR Compliance Check ($49) for your exact address in any US city: the permits, registrations and tax accounts you need, with official sources, delivered by email in 48 business hours. Not legal advice.

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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.