Düsseldorf levies a fixed accommodation tax of EUR 3 per person per paid overnight stay. It applies regardless of whether the stay is for tourism or business and also covers paid accommodation opportunities that are not actually used, such as day rooms. The tax applies to hotels, guesthouses, pensions, private rooms or apartments, holiday apartments, youth hostels, motels, campsites, ships and similar establishments. It is collected from the guest by the accommodation operator. The tax is charged for a maximum of 21 consecutive days in the same establishment.
Exempt: guests under 18; stays for class trips, school trips, vocational-college trips and youth trips, including accompanying persons; and paid overnight stays from the 22nd day onward when the stay is uninterrupted in the same establishment. Stays for business purposes are not exempt. The official information does not state a separate disability-based exemption. Accommodation needed to meet the basic need for housing (for example because of homelessness, fire damage or an uninhabitable home) is outside the taxable scope if appropriately documented.
Paid holiday apartments and private apartments are accommodation establishments subject to the EUR 3 tax. The operator must notify the Düsseldorf tax office before starting or ending operations, on an operator change or relocation; collect the tax from guests; retain exemption declarations and supporting documents; and file a tax return for each calendar quarter by the 15th day after quarter-end, paying the amount by the 30th day. Separately, Düsseldorf's housing-protection rules generally prohibit using housing for non-residential purposes without approval. Short-term letting of housing is permit-free up to 90 days per calendar year (180 days for housing rented by students). Providers must obtain and display a Wohnraum-ID in platform listings, keep an occupancy calendar, and enter each letting within 10 days after it begins. Lettings beyond the permit-free period require an approved change-of-use permit. From 1 July 2026, Düsseldorf uses the Wohnraum-ID format DEU-05111000-...; existing listings must be updated.