In a major win for Chicago hoteliers, Airbnb will begin collecting and remitting full hotel taxes on behalf of its hosts in Chicago. In February, the short-term online rental company began adding Chicago’s 4.5 percent hotel tax to renters’ bills, but not the remaining 11.9 percent Illinois state tax that hotels are required to remit, according to Crain’s Chicago Business. The latest step by Airbnb brings the total hotel tax collected by its rental properties in Chicago to the full 16.4 percent that hotels collect. “We’re happy to be taking this important step that helps our host community and makes Illinois stronger,” the company wrote in a blog post announcing the new Illinois tax policy. Airbnb said it expects to contribute approximately $2.5 million in tax revenue to the City of Chicago by February 2016. For the full story, click here.
