August 12, 2022
Renting out your property as an Airbnb can be a good way to secure residual income. While Airbnb may send you a tax form at the end of the year, it’s important to understand your tax responsibilities to check for errors and in the event you aren’t issued a form.
Reporting your Airbnb or vacation rental as income
The IRS requires that all payment processing companies (including Venmo, PayPal, and Airbnb) report gross earnings for all users within the US. If you earn $600 or more, and/or have 200 or more transactions for the year, Airbnb will issue Form 1099-K.
If you are not a US citizen but earned money from a vacation rental in the US, you will be provided Form W-8.
Withholding taxes from Airbnb payouts
You do have the option to withhold taxes from your Airbnb earnings, which is always recommended to avoid a large tax bill at the end of the year. You can also use a tax calculator to get an estimate of your earnings to save money for taxes.
Vacation home, rental, or personal use
To determine if your vacation property is a rental residence or being used for personal gain, you must identify how often the property is rented versus how often you reside there. Renting your property to someone that pays the fair market value while using the home as their primary residence would make it a rental property.
If you do not reside in the home and rent it frequently for short-term periods, it would be considered a vacation rental.
Should you find yourself residing in the home more frequently than you rent it, then you are using the home for personal use. The IRS requires that you still pay taxes on the money you earn from renting your property for 15 days or more out of the year.
Tax debt relief and filing assistance for Airbnb hosts
As a host, you may qualify for tax debt relief. Our tax professionals will review your case to determine the best course of action for your compliance. For a free consultation, you can call Optima at 800-536-0734.
Received a notice from the IRS? Try Optima’s Tax App to analyze your notice instantly!