Florida · Orange County

Orange County

county Restricted Needs review · last verified 2026-07-02

In unincorporated Orange County, short-term rentals are heavily zoning-restricted rather than allowed-with-registration. Single-family transient rental (a stay of less than 30 days) is permitted only in the R-3 zoning district; short-term rental of 179 days or less is permitted only in specified commercial (C-1/C-2/C-3) and industrial (I-1A/I-1/I-5/I-2/I-3/I-4) districts or in Planned Developments where expressly permitted; in all other districts it is prohibited. Where a rental is legally permitted, operators still need the Florida DBPR vacation rental license and must register/remit the Orange County Tourist Development Tax. Incorporated cities within the county have separate programs. (This record was corrected: the prior version described an Orange County, CALIFORNIA permit program.)

Not legal advice. Last verified 2026-07-02 · sources linked below.

Requirements checklist

  • state Florida DBPR Vacation Rental License Required
    Fee: $170 / year · Renewal: annual · Applies to: Any owner renting an entire dwelling unit/condo to guests for periods of less than 30 days (or 1 calendar month, whichever is less) more than three times in a calendar year, or advertised/held out to the public as a place regularly rented to guests. · official page ↗
  • county Orange County Tourist Development Tax (TDT) Account Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: Monthly returns; account is ongoing. · Applies to: Anyone (owner, manager, or agent) who collects rental charges for transient accommodations (rentals of six months or less) in Orange County must register a TDT account and remit monthly to the Orange County Comptroller. · official page ↗

Taxes

TaxRateAdministered byAirbnb remitsVrbo remits
Florida State Transient Rental Sales Tax 6% Florida Department of Revenue Yes No
Orange County Discretionary Sales Surtax 0.5% Florida Department of Revenue Yes No
Orange County Tourist Development Tax (TDT) 6% Orange County Comptroller (self-administered) Yes No

Lodging-tax estimator

Estimate the combined transient/lodging tax (~12.5%) on a stay in Orange County. Estimate only — not tax advice.

Operating rules

Primary residence
Min stay (nights)
30
Max nights / year
Max occupancy
Zoning-restricted
Yes
Cap on licenses

Grandfathering: Fla. Stat. 509.032(7)(b): "A local law, ordinance, or regulation may not prohibit vacation rentals or regulate the duration or frequency of rental of vacation rentals." That paragraph "does not apply to any local law, ordinance, or regulation adopted on or before June 1, 2011." Orange County's zoning-based transient-rental restrictions are administered as a zoning/use scheme; whether specific provisions predate June 1, 2011 or otherwise survive preemption is a legal question outside the scope of this record.

Zoning: Orange County regulates transient/short-term rentals through its zoning code: single-family transient rental (<30 days) only in R-3; short-term rental (<=179 days) only in listed commercial/industrial districts or expressly-permitting Planned Developments; prohibited in all other districts. Administered by the Orange County Zoning Division.

  • Single-family transient rental (renting a single-family dwelling for a period of less than 30 days) is permitted only in the R-3 zoning district.
  • Short-term rental (length of stay of 179 days or less) is permitted only in Commercial C-1, C-2, C-3 and Industrial I-1A, I-1/I-5, I-2/I-3, and I-4 zoning districts, or in Planned Developments (PD) where short-term rental is expressly permitted.
  • In all other zoning districts, short-term rental and single-family transient rental are prohibited.
  • This record covers UNINCORPORATED Orange County only; incorporated cities (e.g., Orlando, Winter Park, Apopka, Windermere, Edgewood) have their own separate STR programs.
  • A large concentration of legal nightly vacation rentals near Lake Buena Vista / the US-192 corridor sits in Planned Developments or districts where such use is expressly permitted; the general residential rule remains a 30-day minimum.
  • State law: a Florida DBPR vacation rental license and Orange County Tourist Development Tax registration still apply wherever the rental is legally permitted.

Enforcement

Active enforcement
Zoning-based prohibition enforced by Orange County code enforcement; single-family rentals of less than 30 days are prohibited outside the R-3 district, and short-term rentals (179 days or less) are prohibited outside the specified commercial/industrial districts and expressly permitted Planned Developments.
Fines
Notes
The unincorporated Orange County short-term rental regime is a zoning restriction, not a permit-with-registration scheme: single-family transient rental (<30 days) is allowed only in the R-3 zoning district, and short-term rental (<=179 days) only in listed commercial/industrial districts or Planned Developments where expressly permitted; it is prohibited in all other zoning districts. No official county fine schedule was confirmed firsthand from an official source for this record. NOTE: The prior version of this record erroneously described an Orange County, CALIFORNIA short-term-rental permit program (pwds.oc.gov / ocpublicworks.com / myOCeServices.ocgov.com), including a two-violation one-year suspension and a County of Orange Noise Control Ordinance Section 4-6-5 (55 dB day / 50 dB night). Those facts pertain to Orange County, California and have been removed.

Get change alerts for Orange County

RuleGrid checks Orange County every night. Add your email and we'll alert you the moment a rule changes — free, one email per change, unsubscribe anytime.

By subscribing, you agree to receive RuleGrid change alerts. Unsubscribe anytime. Privacy policy.

Frequently asked questions

Is Airbnb legal in Orange County?
In unincorporated Orange County, short-term rentals are heavily zoning-restricted rather than allowed-with-registration. Single-family transient rental (a stay of less than 30 days) is permitted only in the R-3 zoning district; short-term rental of 179 days or less is permitted only in specified commercial (C-1/C-2/C-3) and industrial (I-1A/I-1/I-5/I-2/I-3/I-4) districts or in Planned Developments where expressly permitted; in all other districts it is prohibited. Where a rental is legally permitted, operators still need the Florida DBPR vacation rental license and must register/remit the Orange County Tourist Development Tax. Incorporated cities within the county have separate programs. (This record was corrected: the prior version described an Orange County, CALIFORNIA permit program.)
Do I need a license or registration for a short-term rental in Orange County?
Yes — Orange County requires: Florida DBPR Vacation Rental License; Orange County Tourist Development Tax (TDT) Account. See the requirements checklist for fees, renewal, and official links.
What taxes apply to short-term rentals in Orange County?
Florida State Transient Rental Sales Tax (6%), Orange County Discretionary Sales Surtax (0.5%), Orange County Tourist Development Tax (TDT) (6%) — roughly 12.5% combined. Use the lodging-tax estimator on this page for a specific stay.
Does Airbnb or Vrbo collect the taxes for me in Orange County?
It varies by tax and platform in Orange County — see the "Airbnb remits" / "Vrbo remits" columns in the tax table. Where a platform does not remit, the host registers and remits directly.

Official sources

Informational summary of publicly available sources; not legal advice. Verify against the linked official sources.