RuleGrid

Georgia · White County

White County

county Restricted Verified · last verified 2026-07-15

Short-term rentals in UNINCORPORATED White County, Georgia are legal but materially restricted under the Official Code of White County, Chapter 16, Article II, Short-Term Rental Host License, adopted by the Board of Commissioners as Resolution No. 2024-01 ("ADOPTED, this the 8th day of January, 2024") and effective January 31, 2024 (the resolution's effective-date blank is left unfilled in the signed PDF; the 01/31/2024 date is established by the County Clerk's date stamp on the executed resolution, the county's own document title "STR Host License Ordinance (Effective 01.31.2024)", and the Business Tax Office page stating the license is administered at its "lasted revision effective January 31, 2024"). This amended an earlier STR ordinance; no later amendment was found as of July 2026. An STR is "A lodging accommodation offered to transient guests for a period of time not to exceed 30 consecutive days," and the definition "shall exclude group living or group homes, campgrounds, RV parks, bed and breakfasts, motel, hotels or other lodging uses." Operating requires THREE separate county approvals: (1) a Short-Term Rental Host License ($125.00 per STR property, annual, expires December 31), (2) an Occupational Tax Certificate (business license; fee set by an employee-count schedule plus a one-time $25 admin fee), and (3) "the authority to collect and remit hotel/motel taxes" — the county lodging tax is 8% ("I certify that 8% lodging tax will be remitted to White County for this property"). Two hard restrictions drive the "restricted" status rather than mere registration: (a) a COUNTYWIDE NUMERIC CAP — "the governing authority has established the maximum number of host licenses to be issued and to be active at any time shall be 650"; and (b) a CATEGORICAL SUBDIVISION BAN — "A license will not be issued to any property located in a platted subdivision as depicted on the adopted map established for this purpose as referenced in Section 16-208 of this article, unless the subdivision has covenants which specifically allows for short-term rentals." The Official Subdivision Map (Sec. 16-208) exists "to identify platted subdivisions of common development, 4 or more lots, for the purposes of excepting those subdivisions from allowing short-term rentals in residential land use districts unless the covenants specifically allow it, as identified in Appendix C, Article VII, Section 702, Item B"; only the Board of Commissioners may approve map amendments/revisions, though CED staff may add new subdivisions after final plat approval. Applicants must first "Obtain an approved Short-Term Rental Eligibility Form from the White County Planning Office," on which planning staff answer "Is this property located in a subdivision based upon the adopted map?" and may bar operation outright: "Following review, property owner was advised they could not operate a STR on the property listed above based on White County Code Section 702 (b) or (c)." Properties inside a platted subdivision must swear a NOTARIZED affidavit that "the subdivision or homeowners' association covenants do allow short-term rentals," expressly subject to "O.C.G.A. § 16-10-71 governing false swearing (which has a penalty range of a fine of not more than $1,000.00 or by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years, or both)." Properties permitted as a vacation rental tourist cabin development under Article VII are issued a license under this chapter. Ongoing operating conditions include a 24/7 responsible party who must respond "within two hours" to complaints, proof of "commercial or specific short-term rental insurance," the host license number on every advertisement, in-unit posting of responsible-party contact/street address/floor plan with fire exits/max occupancy load/emergency and courtesy notices, parking confined to "the driveway and/or within the garage area," a copy of house rules filed with the Business Tax Office, and an advisory (not mandatory) hours provision: "Check-in/departure and other rental-related activities SHOULD occur between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m." There is NO minimum-stay requirement, NO annual night cap, and NO primary-residence requirement anywhere in Chapter 16, Article II. Grandfathered status exists and survives a sale if the new owner applies within 60 days; licenses are themselves non-transferable. Enforcement escalates warning → 30-day suspension (second same-nature violation in 12 months) → revocation (third) with a 12-month reapplication bar for the same property; operating more than 30 days without paying the license carries a warning plus "a penalty of three times the required short-term rental host license fee due," and a citation if unpaid within ten calendar days. Violations are misdemeanors "amenable to the process of the county magistrate court and upon conviction, shall be punished as provided in O.C.G.A 15-10-50." NOTE: this record covers unincorporated White County only ("County. Unincorporated White County."); the cities of Helen and Cleveland regulate STRs and levy lodging taxes independently — their rates were NOT verified for this record and must not be inferred from the county's 8%.

Not legal advice. Last verified 2026-07-15 · sources linked below.

Requirements checklist

  • county Short-Term Rental Host License Required
    Fee: $125 / annual · Renewal: Annual. "A short-term rental host license shall expire December 31st of each year and must be renewed annually." New businesses commencing after January 1: license "shall be due and payable 30 days following the commencement of the business." Renewal instructions are emailed in October. Non-transferable; on sale/transfer the new owner has 60 days to apply under the prior owner's rights including grandfathered status. · Applies to: Every short-term rental location in unincorporated White County; "A short-term rental host license shall be required for each separate property." The STR definition excludes group living or group homes, campgrounds, RV parks, bed and breakfasts, motels, hotels or other lodging uses. Properties permitted as a vacation rental tourist cabin development under Article VII are licensed under this chapter. · official page ↗
  • county Occupational Tax Certificate (Business License) Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: Annual, administered by the White County Business Tax Office; renewal instructions issued in October. · Applies to: All STR operators in unincorporated White County, in addition to the STR Host License. Also required of group homes, campgrounds, RV parks, bed and breakfasts, motels and hotels (which are excluded from the STR Host License requirement but must still hold an occupational tax certificate and remit monthly lodging taxes). · official page ↗
  • county Short-Term Rental (STR) Eligibility Form / Planning Department verification Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: Obtained from the Planning Department (1241 Helen Hwy Suite 200, Cleveland, GA; 706-865-6768) as Step 1 of the host license application process, before the Business Tax Office package is submitted. · Applies to: All STR host license applicants. Planning staff determine whether the property sits in a platted subdivision on the adopted Official Subdivision Map, and either clear the applicant, route them to the covenants affidavit, or bar the STR outright. Required by ordinance Sec. 16-206(a)(1), in force with the ordinance effective January 31, 2024 (form filename is dated 01312024). · official page ↗
  • county Notarized Affidavit of Property Owner — subdivision covenants allow short-term rentals Conditional
    Fee: — · Renewal: Executed as part of the initial eligibility/host license application process. · Applies to: Only properties located within a platted subdivision as shown on the adopted Official Subdivision Map. Such properties cannot be licensed at all unless the subdivision/HOA covenants specifically allow short-term rentals, sworn to by notarized affidavit on the reverse of the STR Eligibility Form. · official page ↗
  • county Commercial or specific short-term rental insurance Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: Proof submitted with application/renewal package. · Applies to: All STR hosts; proof must accompany the application. · official page ↗
  • county 24/7 responsible party with two-hour complaint response Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: Ongoing operating condition. · Applies to: All STR hosts; contact must be given to the county and to guests, and updated immediately on change. · official page ↗
  • county Host license number displayed in all advertisements Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: Ongoing operating condition. · Applies to: All STR advertisements ("Any method of soliciting use of a lodging accommodation or any part thereof for short-term rental purposes"). A screenshot of the advertisement from every marketplace facilitator used must be submitted with the application. · official page ↗
  • county In-unit posting and display of license Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: Ongoing operating condition. · Applies to: All STRs; information posted "in a conspicuous place within the short-term rental," and the license/tax certificate prominently displayed. · official page ↗
  • county Building/fire/life-safety code attestation and possible inspection Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: At application and renewal. · Applies to: All STR hosts; attestation by owner or third-party inspector. CED may inspect on application or renewal. · official page ↗
  • county House rules filed with county; supporting documents Required
    Fee: — · Renewal: At application and renewal. · Applies to: All STR hosts. Application package also requires driver's license copy, Georgia Sales Tax Number, parcel number, 911 address, and 24/7 emergency contact. · official page ↗

Taxes

TaxRateAdministered byAirbnb remitsVrbo remits
White County Hotel/Motel (Lodging) Excise Tax — — — —
Georgia state and local sales tax on accommodations — — — —

Operating rules

Primary residence
No primary-residence or owner-occupancy requirement in the ordinance. The applicant must be the property OWNER (or an authorized agent of an owner entity), which is an ownership requirement, not a residency one. Confirmed by full-text review.
Min stay (nights)
0
Max nights / year
0
Max occupancy
—
Zoning-restricted
—
Cap on licenses
—

Get change alerts for White County

RuleGrid checks White 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 White County?
Short-term rentals in UNINCORPORATED White County, Georgia are legal but materially restricted under the Official Code of White County, Chapter 16, Article II, Short-Term Rental Host License, adopted by the Board of Commissioners as Resolution No. 2024-01 ("ADOPTED, this the 8th day of January, 2024") and effective January 31, 2024 (the resolution's effective-date blank is left unfilled in the signed PDF; the 01/31/2024 date is established by the County Clerk's date stamp on the executed resolution, the county's own document title "STR Host License Ordinance (Effective 01.31.2024)", and the Business Tax Office page stating the license is administered at its "lasted revision effective January 31, 2024"). This amended an earlier STR ordinance; no later amendment was found as of July 2026. An STR is "A lodging accommodation offered to transient guests for a period of time not to exceed 30 consecutive days," and the definition "shall exclude group living or group homes, campgrounds, RV parks, bed and breakfasts, motel, hotels or other lodging uses." Operating requires THREE separate county approvals: (1) a Short-Term Rental Host License ($125.00 per STR property, annual, expires December 31), (2) an Occupational Tax Certificate (business license; fee set by an employee-count schedule plus a one-time $25 admin fee), and (3) "the authority to collect and remit hotel/motel taxes" — the county lodging tax is 8% ("I certify that 8% lodging tax will be remitted to White County for this property"). Two hard restrictions drive the "restricted" status rather than mere registration: (a) a COUNTYWIDE NUMERIC CAP — "the governing authority has established the maximum number of host licenses to be issued and to be active at any time shall be 650"; and (b) a CATEGORICAL SUBDIVISION BAN — "A license will not be issued to any property located in a platted subdivision as depicted on the adopted map established for this purpose as referenced in Section 16-208 of this article, unless the subdivision has covenants which specifically allows for short-term rentals." The Official Subdivision Map (Sec. 16-208) exists "to identify platted subdivisions of common development, 4 or more lots, for the purposes of excepting those subdivisions from allowing short-term rentals in residential land use districts unless the covenants specifically allow it, as identified in Appendix C, Article VII, Section 702, Item B"; only the Board of Commissioners may approve map amendments/revisions, though CED staff may add new subdivisions after final plat approval. Applicants must first "Obtain an approved Short-Term Rental Eligibility Form from the White County Planning Office," on which planning staff answer "Is this property located in a subdivision based upon the adopted map?" and may bar operation outright: "Following review, property owner was advised they could not operate a STR on the property listed above based on White County Code Section 702 (b) or (c)." Properties inside a platted subdivision must swear a NOTARIZED affidavit that "the subdivision or homeowners' association covenants do allow short-term rentals," expressly subject to "O.C.G.A. § 16-10-71 governing false swearing (which has a penalty range of a fine of not more than $1,000.00 or by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years, or both)." Properties permitted as a vacation rental tourist cabin development under Article VII are issued a license under this chapter. Ongoing operating conditions include a 24/7 responsible party who must respond "within two hours" to complaints, proof of "commercial or specific short-term rental insurance," the host license number on every advertisement, in-unit posting of responsible-party contact/street address/floor plan with fire exits/max occupancy load/emergency and courtesy notices, parking confined to "the driveway and/or within the garage area," a copy of house rules filed with the Business Tax Office, and an advisory (not mandatory) hours provision: "Check-in/departure and other rental-related activities SHOULD occur between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m." There is NO minimum-stay requirement, NO annual night cap, and NO primary-residence requirement anywhere in Chapter 16, Article II. Grandfathered status exists and survives a sale if the new owner applies within 60 days; licenses are themselves non-transferable. Enforcement escalates warning → 30-day suspension (second same-nature violation in 12 months) → revocation (third) with a 12-month reapplication bar for the same property; operating more than 30 days without paying the license carries a warning plus "a penalty of three times the required short-term rental host license fee due," and a citation if unpaid within ten calendar days. Violations are misdemeanors "amenable to the process of the county magistrate court and upon conviction, shall be punished as provided in O.C.G.A 15-10-50." NOTE: this record covers unincorporated White County only ("County. Unincorporated White County."); the cities of Helen and Cleveland regulate STRs and levy lodging taxes independently — their rates were NOT verified for this record and must not be inferred from the county's 8%.
Do I need a license or registration for a short-term rental in White County?
Yes — White County requires: Short-Term Rental Host License; Occupational Tax Certificate (Business License); Short-Term Rental (STR) Eligibility Form / Planning Department verification. See the requirements checklist for fees, renewal, and official links.
What taxes apply to short-term rentals in White County?
White County Hotel/Motel (Lodging) Excise Tax, Georgia state and local sales tax on accommodations. Use the lodging-tax estimator on this page for a specific stay.

Official sources

Related coverage

In Georgia

Cities in this county Helen

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