LicensedRental

Pickens County, Georgia

Unincorporated Pickens County, GA vacation rental requirements

Pickens County has no separate short-term rental permit, but you register the rental as a business: a business personal property return, a $100 county business license with a fire safety inspection form, and a monthly 6% hotel-motel tax report unless your platform remits it.

Checked against official sources November 6, 2026

Download checklist (PDF)Free. A printable version of this guide to tick off, with the official sources.

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Business license
$100 a year
Runs July 1 to June 30.Source
Fire safety form
Required with the license
Taxes
7% sales tax + 6% hotel-motel tax + $5/night

We found no short-term rental rules in the county code. Big Canoe and other communities have their own covenants.

Your licensing checklist

In order: the state, the county, then the town.

State of Georgia

  1. Know what the platform collects

    Airbnb collects state and local sales tax, the $5-a-night state hotel-motel fee, and the local hotel-motel tax on its Georgia bookings. Ask any other platform what it collects, and keep records either way.Source

  2. Register for direct bookings

    If guests book and pay you directly, register for sales tax with the Georgia Tax Center and file the local hotel-motel tax with your city or county. If your city or county requires a business license or occupation tax for the rental, the DOR treats you as an innkeeper and you also owe the $5 state fee on direct bookings.Source

    Georgia Tax Center →

  3. Check your city or county

    Most of the rules are local: short-term rental permits, business licenses (occupation tax), zoning limits, and caps. Some cities ban rentals in residential zones. Pick your area.

Pickens County, Georgia

  1. Then your city or area

    Permits, zoning, and the hotel-motel tax depend on whether you’re inside a city. Pick your area.

Pickens County (unincorporated areas)

  1. Register with the Tax Assessor

    File a business personal property tax return at the Tax Assessor’s Office (1266 East Church Street, Suite 121, Jasper) with your ID. You need the “received” copy for the license.Source

    Pickens County STR business →

  2. Get the county business license

    At Planning and Development (Suite 136), bring the business license application (notaries are in the office), the fire safety inspection form, the assessor’s receipt, your ID, and $100.Source

  3. Taxes on each stay

    Stays here owe 7% sales tax, the local hotel-motel tax, and the $5-a-night state fee. Airbnb collects all three on its bookings. For direct bookings, file sales tax (and the $5 fee, if you need a local license) with the Georgia Tax Center. File the county’s 6% hotel-motel tax with the County Clerk (Suite 189) by the 20th, with a copy of your Georgia sales tax report, and file zero reports for months with no bookings. If Airbnb or a manager remits the tax for you, the county says you don’t need to file.Source

Sources

A plain-language summary to help you prepare, not legal advice. Rules and fees change; confirm with the office before you apply. Spot something out of date? Email hello@licensedrental.com.