Tourist tax in Morocco: who pays it, how much, and how to calculate it

Morocco's tourist tax (“taxe de séjour”) is a municipal tax charged per person per night. The guest pays it on top of the accommodation price; the operator collects it and pays it over to the commune. It is governed by articles 70 to 76 of law 47-06 on local authority taxation, as amended by law 07-20.

The law does not set a single amount: it gives a range for each category of accommodation, and each commune picks its rate within that range. Children under 12 are exempt. And in Morocco, Airbnb does not collect it for you.

One question the text does not settle: is a whole apartment rented by a private individual covered? Here is what is certain, what is not, and how to calculate the tax for a stay.

Information checked in October 2026 against the official texts: law 47-06 in its consolidated version, law 07-20 (dahir 1-20-91, Bulletin officiel no. 7014 of 19 August 2021) and decree 2-79-749 on the tourism promotion tax.

What law 47-06 provides

Since law 07-20, the chapter is titled “taxe de séjour aux établissements touristiques et autres formes d'hébergement touristique”. Its rules come down to six points:

• Who charges it: tourist establishments and the other forms of tourist accommodation governed by law 80-14, run by individuals or companies. It comes on top of the accommodation price (article 70).
• Who is exempt: children under twelve (article 71).
• The basis: per person and per night, according to the accommodation category (article 72).
• The rate: whatever the commune sets by order, within the ranges of article 73 (article 168).
• Who collects and pays: the operator. The tax must appear separately on the invoice and is paid quarterly, before the end of the month following each quarter, to the commune's revenue officer or the public accountant in charge of collection (article 76).
• What return: before 1 April each year, a return to the commune's assessment department stating the number of guests and nights for the previous year (article 74).

The consolidated text is available on the Ministry of Justice legal portal.

The legal ranges, category by category

Article 73 sets, in dirhams per person per night:

• guesthouses (maisons d'hôtes), congress centres or palaces and luxury hotels: 15 to 30 MAD;
• 5-star hotels: 10 to 25 MAD; 4-star: 5 to 10 MAD; 3-star: 3 to 7 MAD; 2- and 1-star: 2 to 5 MAD;
• hotel clubs: 10 to 25 MAD;
• riads and houses rented to tourists: 10 to 25 MAD;
• holiday villages: 5 to 10 MAD;
• tourist residences: 3 to 7 MAD;
• other establishments and forms of tourist accommodation: 2 to 5 MAD.

These are limits, not rates. The amount you must charge is the one in your commune's order. We deliberately publish no rate per city: we found no official, current municipal rate to cite, and some municipal web pages predate law 07-20 and use categories that no longer exist. The right contact is the assessment department or revenue officer of the commune where the property is located.

Who is covered: authorised establishments, Airbnb and the grey zone

For a guesthouse, an authorised riad or a homestay, the answer is clear: these are forms governed by law 80-14, so the tax applies. The same operators must also declare their guests, as our guide to the fiche de police in Morocco explains.

For a whole apartment rented by a private individual, it is less clear. Article 70 targets forms of accommodation governed by law 80-14, and an apartment that is not the owner's home does not clearly fit any of its categories. The “riads and houses rented to tourists” line of the rate table does not settle it, since article 70 defines the scope of the tax. So we can neither say that the tax applies to every unauthorised Airbnb rental nor rule it out. Ask your commune's assessment department, in writing if possible, and have your situation confirmed by an accountant or tax adviser.

Do not count on the platforms. Airbnb's help centre lists the places where it collects and remits occupancy taxes for hosts, and Morocco is not on it (Airbnb help article). For Booking.com, we found no indication that it pays the tax for you: check in your partner account.

If you are liable, tell guests about the tax before they arrive, in your listing or your messages, and give them an invoice showing it separately, as article 76 requires.

Calculating the tax for a stay: a worked example

The formula never changes: guests aged 12 and over × nights × commune rate.

Here is a purely hypothetical example. Suppose a commune rate of 20 MAD per person per night for a riad, an amount picked within its category's legal range of 10 to 25 MAD. A family books 4 nights: two parents, a 14-year-old and an 8-year-old.

1. Guests liable: 3, because the 8-year-old is exempt.
2. Nights: 4.
3. Tax for the stay: 3 × 4 × 20 = 240 MAD, charged on top of the price of the stay.

Over a quarter, you add up the tax for every stay and pay the total to the commune before the end of the following month. The annual return due before 1 April then reports the total number of guests and nights. Before any real calculation, replace the example's 20 MAD with your commune's rate.

The tourism promotion tax: a different tax, a different beneficiary

The tourist tax is often confused with the tourism promotion tax (“taxe de promotion touristique”, TPT). They are two separate levies. The TPT is collected for the Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT) under decree 2-79-749 as amended (Bulletin officiel no. 5487 of 1 January 2007), also per person per night:

• 15 MAD: luxury hotels;
• 11 MAD: 5-star hotels and 1st-category guesthouses;
• 8 MAD: 4-star hotels, 2nd-category guesthouses and holiday villages;
• 5 MAD: 3-star hotels, tourist residences and motels;
• 4 MAD: 2-star hotels; 2 MAD: 1-star hotels; 1 MAD: inns and pensions.

This table, from the 2007 consolidated text, was reported again by the press in April 2026. It targets categories of classified establishments, and we found no source extending it to private rentals. If you run a classified guesthouse, check your category and obligations with your accountant.

The records to keep, and the link with income tax

The tourist tax is calculated and checked from three pieces of data per booking: the dates, and therefore the nights; the number of guests; the children's ages, or at least who is under 12. Also keep, stay by stay, the amount charged and the invoice, then your quarterly and annual totals with the payment slips.

In RentDari, each booking keeps its dates, nights and number of guests, and online check-in collects the identity of every occupant. The analytics dashboards group nights and revenue by property and by period, and can be exported for your accountant. RentDari does not declare or pay the tax for you: it gives you clean figures to do it. These modules are included in every plan, including the Free plan.

The tourist tax has nothing to do with income tax, which you declare separately. Rental income is taxable in Morocco, including for non-residents (article 23 of the General Tax Code, CGI). When it counts as property income (“revenus fonciers”), the CGI provides a 40% deduction on the gross amount, the progressive scale and a return before 1 March. But the CGI does not say explicitly whether short-term furnished rentals are property income or professional income, and at least one consultancy classifies them as professional income. Have an accountant settle the question before your first return.

For a first estimate of what your property could earn, the revenue simulator gives an order of magnitude; your actual tax position still needs to be confirmed with a professional.

Frequently asked questions

Does Airbnb collect tourist tax in Morocco?

No. Morocco is not on the list of places where Airbnb collects and remits occupancy taxes. If you are liable, it is up to you to collect it.

Do children pay tourist tax?

Children under 12 are exempt (article 71 of law 47-06). Record their ages for every booking.

What is the rate in Marrakech, Tangier or Agadir?

The one set by the commune's order, within your category's range. Without a current official source, we do not publish rates per city: ask the commune's assessment department. Our Marrakech, Tangier and Agadir pages cover the rest of running a rental there.

Is my apartment rented on Airbnb covered?

The text targets forms of accommodation governed by law 80-14, and a whole apartment rented by a private individual does not clearly fit. Check with your commune and a tax adviser rather than guessing.

When do I have to pay?

Every quarter, before the end of the month following the quarter, plus an annual return of guests and nights before 1 April.

This article is general information, current at the date stated; it is not legal or tax advice. The applicable rate and your situation should be checked with your commune or a professional.