Platform Licenses
Short-Term Rental Platforms are companies that facilitate rentals and charge a fee for the facilitation. Ordinance 125490 defines a platform as "a person or entity that provides a means through which an operator may offer a dwelling unit, or portion thereof, for short-term rental use, or which a bed and breakfast operator may offer a bed and breakfast unit and from which the person or entity financially benefits." An example of a platform is an online rental service like Airbnb or VRBO.
Publishing a short-term rental advertisement without charging a fee for facilitating accommodations does not make the publisher a short-term rental platform.
How to Apply for a Platform License
This license is for companies that facilitate online bookings and payments for short-term rentals. It is not intended for individual rental operators.
To apply for a platform license, contact our customer service team during our regular business hours, Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. You can reach us by phone at 206-386-1267 or via email at STR@seattle.gov.