Practical guide
The tourist tax in Lyon: how much, and who pays it over
Your guests pay it, but you answer for collecting it. Here is what it costs in Lyon, what Airbnb does in your place, and what stays on your desk.
Updated 23 September 2026 · 3 min read
Who collects it
In Lyon the tourist tax goes to the Metropolis, not to the City. Everything runs through its online service, where you open an account for each property.
The guest pays it, the host collects it and passes it on. It is never a cost to you: it is money passing through.
How much, in 2026
One thing decides the amount: whether your rental holds an official star rating or not.
- Unrated rental — the usual case: 5% of the nightly price before tax, per person, capped at €5.39 per person per night;
- rated rental, per person per night: €0.88 for one star, €1.10 for two, €1.87 for three, €2.86 for four, €3.96 for five.
These amounts include the 10% additional levy collected by the Metropolis. You will sometimes see the cap quoted as €4.90: that is the same figure without that extra part.
The rates are voted again every autumn for the following year. Before paying your quarter, a glance at the current scale on the Metropolis portal avoids an honest mistake.
Is an official rating worth it
A rating fixes the tax at an amount per person per night instead of a percentage. For three stars, €1.87: the tipping point sits around €37 before tax per person per night. Below that the percentage costs less; above it, the rating does.
It is only one factor: a rating also affects your tax regime and how your listing reads. But it is the one you can work out in thirty seconds.
Who is exempt
- under-eighteens;
- people on a seasonal employment contract working in the Metropolis;
- people in emergency or temporary rehousing;
- people housed for less than one euro a night.
An exemption has to be justified: keep a record of the reason, it belongs in the summary statement.
What the platform does for you
When the platform takes the guest's payment — which is Airbnb's case for a non-professional host — it collects the tax and pays it straight to the Metropolis, twice a year.
What stays with you:
- bookings taken directly, by phone, email or bank transfer: yours to declare and to pay over;
- the summary statement of your nights: dates, number of people, number of nights, nightly price, tax collected, grounds for exemption;
- displaying the rate inside the property;
- your registration number, which is the City's business: see our guide.
When to declare
The declaration is quarterly, by the 20th of the month following the end of the quarter: 20 April, 20 July, 20 October, 20 January. The payment notice follows, due within thirty days.
A nil return is accepted: a quarter with no letting still gets declared.
What you risk
- no declaration: from €750 to €12,500;
- an omission or a mistake: €150 per error;
- tax not collected from the guest, or collected and not paid over: from €750 to €2,500.
Before any fine, the Metropolis can assess the tax itself after a formal notice left unanswered for thirty days, with late interest.
This guide gives general pointers. It is not legal advice, and the obligations that come with letting a property remain its owner's. The law that applies is French law; legal texts are cited in French.