If you are listing your home with any third party online vendor including but not limited to Flip Key, Air BNB, Vacation Rental By Owner, Facebook, or other vendor, you are still responsible for both the 6% sales tax on that rental as well as the 6% hotel occupancy tax on rentals of fewer than 30 days.
If you fail to pay your hotel motel taxes, according to West Virginia Code § 7-18-15 the first offense is a misdemeanor punishable by not more than a $500 fine and/or not more than 30 days in jail. A second offense is a felony punishable by not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000 and/or not less than 1 nor more than 3 years jail.
If you have failed to remit this payment for rentals in the past, please contact the Assessor’s Office or Sheriff’s Office immediately to determine what steps must be taken to bring your rental business into compliance with no criminal penalties. If steps are not taken to bring your business into compliance, a criminal investigation will begin.
