Permitted, with conditions
| Application fee | not verified |
| STR permit / registration annual | $125.00 |
| Business licence | not verified |
| Inspection | not verified |
| First-year total | $125.00 |
| Permit renewal annual | $125.00 |
| Business licence | not verified |
| Recurring annual | $125.00 |
Combined lodging tax: 17.0% of revenue. Charged on what you earn, so it is not in the totals above.
3 figures are not yet verified against the city (Application fee, Business licence, Inspection). They are left out of the total rather than counted as zero, so the real first-year cost is higher than shown.
Conditions attached
- Every short-term rental unit (stays under 30 consecutive days) needs a city STR license, renewed annually, with the license number in every advertisement. Hotel occupancy tax is filed monthly before the 15th through the city's Deckard portal; the 0.5% county venue tax goes to Cameron County and the 6% state tax to the Texas Comptroller. A local emergency contact must respond in person within one hour. Fines up to $500 per offense per day; a revocation process can start after 3 convictions in 12 months.
Source: https://www.myspi.org/hottax/
Checked 2026-11-01 · City of South Padre Island Code of Ordinances Chapter 11, Article VII (Short Term Rentals); Ordinance 25-04