Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT)

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Tax Rate & Levy

The City imposes a tax in the amount of 10 percent of the amount of rent charged for occupying a hotel room. This tax is required to be collected from guests by hotel operators for occupancies within the City of Mountain View. The complete details of the tax are contained in Chapter 33 of the Mountain View City Code.

TOT Registration

All hotels and short-term rentals must register by completing the Registration Application - Transient Occupancy Tax. The form needs to be signed, dated and mailed to:

City of Mountain View
Finance and Administrative Services Department
Attn: Short-Term Rentals
500 Castro Street, P.O. Box 7540
Mountain View, CA 94039-7540

Payment Remittance & Reporting

All operators of hotels, as defined in the code, are required to pay the tax to the City each quarter and to file a Transient Occupancy Tax Return with the payment. The tax payment, reporting periods and tax return due dates are as follows.

Quarterly Period Due Dates

  • January 1 through March 31 due April 30
  • April 1 through June 30 due July 31
  • July 1 through September 30 due October 31
  • October 1 through December 31 due January 31

It is the responsibility of the operator to ensure payment is received or postmarked by the due date in order to avoid late penalties and interest. Any remittance is considered delinquent if not received or postmarked by the due date.

Penalties & Interest on Late Payments

A 10 percent penalty shall be added to taxes not paid by the due date. An additional 10 percent penalty shall be added if the original tax and penalty is not remitted within 30 days of the first delinquency period. In addition to the penalties, interest at the rate of 1/2 percent per month or fraction of a month shall be imposed on any delinquent payment until the remittance paid.

Exemptions

Exemptions are provided for government employees on official business and occupancies longer than 30 days. Consult the code for the exemption requirements. All operators that are claiming exemptions must complete the appropriate exemption form and include it with the Transient Occupancy Tax Return