Sevier County, TN

Gatlinburg, TN short-term rental permit

To rent overnight in Gatlinburg, get the city's tourist residency permit at City Hall first. The town counts three hundred and forty seasonal homes for every thousand dwellings. The cost that follows is a gross receipts tax, which the city says the owner pays rather than the guest.[5]

Every rule below links to the official source it comes from, verified October 2, 2026.

Can you rent short term in Gatlinburg?

Get a permit first

What you apply for: Tourist residency permit

Seasonal homes
1,641
Housing units
4,830
Residents
3,663

U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates

  • City rulePermit required
  • City fee$15
  • Tax on each staySet locally
  • Seasonal homes340 per 1,000

Gatlinburg short-term rental permit

Renting overnight in Gatlinburg requires a tourist residency permit, applied for at City Hall. The application fee is $15. Alongside the permit you obtain a Tennessee Department of Revenue tax identification number, and the business license renews yearly with the state. The real cost arrives afterward. A gross receipts tax of 1.25 percent applies to total gross sales excluding sales tax. The city states plainly that it comes from the business owner and is not an add-on tax to the customer. It is due by the twentieth of the following month, so receipts from May 1 to 31 are payable by June 20.[5]

What Gatlinburg asks of you

  • Renting overnight in Gatlinburg requires a tourist residency permit, applied for at City Hall.[5]

  • The application fee is $15.[5]

  • A Tennessee Department of Revenue tax identification number has to be obtained alongside it, and the business license renews yearly with the state.[5]

  • Gross receipts tax runs at 1.25 percent of total gross sales excluding sales tax. The city states plainly that it comes from the business owner and is not an add-on tax to the customer.[5]

  • That tax is due by the twentieth of the following month: May's receipts are payable by June 20.[5]

Apply on the Gatlinburg site

What Tennessee asks wherever you host

These rules apply at this address whatever the city decides.

  • Tennessee's definition covers a residential dwelling rented for a fee, in whole or in part, for under thirty continuous days. Hotels fall outside it, as do bed-and-breakfast establishments.[1]

  • A local ordinance passed after a property began operating as a short-term rental does not reach that property. The rules in place when it started keep governing it. A sale or other transfer ends that protection. Thirty continuous months without rental use end it as well. Three separate breaches of a generally applicable local law have the same effect.[1]

  • A city with a permit or application process may suspend a property's use while it lacks a permit. That power holds only when the city's requirements are reasonable.[1]

Tennessee short-term rental rules

What a guest pays on top of your nightly rate in Gatlinburg

Each layer is set by a different authority, and not all of them are collected by the platform.

Short-term rental tax layers in Gatlinburg
LayerRateRemitted to
Tennessee state sales tax[3]7%The state revenue department
Local sales tax[4]2.75%The state revenue department
City room occupancy tax[2]Not publishedThe city

Gatlinburg's 1.25 percent gross receipts tax is not in this table because it is not charged to the guest: the city says it comes from the owner. The room occupancy tax a guest does pay is levied by ordinance and capped at four percent where it rests on T.C.A. § 67-4-1402.[2]

Tennessee occupancy taxAirbnb taxes for hosts

What the census counts

How much of Gatlinburg is already a second home

The Census Bureau counts 1,641 of Gatlinburg's 4,830 homes as vacant for seasonal, recreational or occasional use. That is 340 out of every 1,000. It ranks Gatlinburg 1st of the 9 Tennessee cities on this site for the share of its housing stock kept for part-year use.

Rank in the state
1st of 9
Share of housing
340 per 1,000
Median home value
$332,000

U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates, tables B25004, B25001, B01003 and B25077.

Nearby and comparable

Where Gatlinburg sits among its neighbors

Nashville, TN

Restricted by zone

If you live in the home, apply for an owner-occupied permit. New non-owner-occupied permits are not issued in AR2A, R, RS or RM zones.

Nashville short-term rental rules

Sevierville, TN

Permit required

310 seasonal homes, 32 per 1,000 housing units.

Sevierville short-term rental rules

Townsend, TN

Permit required

141 seasonal homes, 288 per 1,000 housing units.

Townsend short-term rental rules

Knoxville, TN

Permit required

851 seasonal homes, 9 per 1,000 housing units.

Knoxville short-term rental rules
StatewideEvery Tennessee city on this site, in one tableState law, the tax stack and every city we cover in Tennessee, with what each one asks of a host.Tennessee short-term rental rules

Keep exploring

FAQ

Gatlinburg short-term rental questions

How much is a Gatlinburg tourist residency permit?

The application fee is $15, and you apply at City Hall.[5]

Who pays Gatlinburg's gross receipts tax?

The owner. The city is explicit that the 1.25 percent of gross sales comes from the business owner and is not an add-on tax to the customer.[5]

When is the Gatlinburg gross receipts tax due?

By the twentieth of the following month: receipts from May 1 to 31 are due by June 20.[5]
Read nextHow to start an AirbnbThe six steps in order, starting with the permit check.Read the guide

Sources

  1. Public Chapter 972, Acts of 2018, the Short-Term Rental Unit Act, Tennessee Secretary of State, read on September 20, 2026
  2. Room Occupancy Tax, municipal finance reference, Municipal Technical Advisory Service, University of Tennessee, read on September 20, 2026
  3. Taxation of Short-Term Rental Units, June 2026, Tennessee Department of Revenue, read on October 2, 2026
  4. Tennessee sales tax rate file, fourth quarter 2026 (TNR2026Q4AUG21), Tennessee Department of Revenue, through the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, read on October 2, 2026
  5. Apply for a Tourist Residency Permit, City of Gatlinburg, read on September 20, 2026

This page is not legal advice. It summarizes the official sources listed on this page as they read on October 2, 2026. Rules can change after that date, so check with the issuing office before you apply or publish a listing.

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