Puerto Rico House of Representatives Speaker Carlos 'Johnny' Méndez and Tourism Committee Chair Axel 'Chino' Roque announced the filing of House Bill 1518, which creates the 'Uniform and Mandatory Registry Act for Short-Term Supplementary Lodgings in Puerto Rico.' The stated aim is to open up more resources for the island’s towns by making it easier to collect the occupancy fee from hosts.
The measure also enables development of the short-term rental sector by clarifying hosts’ responsibilities, both to the government and to the community. In the bill’s Statement of Motives, Méndez cited Puerto Rico Tourism Company (CTPR) figures. Of $142.5 million in tax collections in 2024, 27 percent ($38.5 million) came from short-term rentals.
Of that amount, 85 percent ($32.8 million) was remitted through platforms that have collection agreements with the CTPR. Only $5.8 million, or 15 percent of short-term rental collections, came directly from hosts who register with the Tourism Company. CTPR data updated as of June 30, 2024 show that short-term rentals account for $9.3 million of the $27 million total debt in the occupancy tax paid by guests.
The $9.3 million comes from hosts registered directly with Tourism. That debt does not include tax remitted through platforms with collection agreements.