Soltau’s tax is not a fixed per-person nightly charge. From 1 January 2026 it is 1.75% of the gross accommodation price (excluding separately identifiable ancillary services such as meals, minibar items, wellness services and pet charges). Thus, the nominal equivalent is EUR 1.75 per EUR 100 of taxable accommodation price; the actual amount varies with the price and is not dependent on the number of guests. It applies to private and business stays, including day rooms where separately paid, and is payable for short-term accommodation of less than six months. The tax applies to bookings made from 1 January 2026, subject to the transitional exemption for qualifying 2026 bookings contracted by 31 December 2025.
Exemptions include accommodation in hospitals, preventive/rehabilitation clinics, hospices, residential and nursing homes, women’s shelters, children’s homes and similar facilities; compulsory school trips accompanied by teachers; group trips for children and young people under 18 and their group leaders, including school groups; stays exceeding six months; guests registered at the accommodation address as their sole, main or secondary residence; trainees staying in Soltau in connection with their vocational training; disaster-protection personnel and registered helpers during an officially declared disaster; stays required for prescribed outpatient medical treatment or rehabilitation; and accommodation required for a disabled person’s necessary accompanying person, when evidenced by the relevant disability-pass markers. A documented application may exempt 2026 stays contracted by 31 December 2025. Business travellers are not generally exempt.
The rules cover any person, business or facility providing paid accommodation for less than six months, including hotels, guesthouses, private rooms, holiday apartments and houses, hostels, boarding houses, campsites, motorhome/caravan pitches, tents, furnished rooms and individual rooms. The operator must notify the city before opening, ending, changing operator or relocating the accommodation; submit a separate electronic tax return for each establishment by the 30th day after each calendar quarter; report taxable accommodation revenue and relevant establishment details; pay the assessed tax; document exemptions; provide records on request; and retain invoices, receipts and monthly statements for four years. The official Soltau material does not identify a registration-number, Wohnraumschutz or Zweckentfremdungsverbot requirement.