Rhode Island General Laws chapter 44-72

Rhode Island non-owner occupied tax exemption for rental homes

Rhode Island non-owner occupied tax exemption for rental homes: 183 days or more under a written lease or as a taxed short-term rental, plus proof needed.

Updated 4 September 2026 · 8 min read · Written from the public text of the law; sources at the end.

A Rhode Island home assessed above $1,000,000 escapes the non-owner occupied tax if it was rented for 183 days or more during the privilege year (1 July to 30 June before the tax year), either to tenants under a written lease covered by the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, or as a short-term rental on which Rhode Island sales, hotel or whole-home short-term rental tax was due. The two kinds of rental days add together. Days you or your family spent in the house do not count as rental days, and owner days cannot be combined with rental days to reach 183.

What the statute says

This chapter does not supersede any applicable exemption in the general or public laws. In no case shall this chapter apply to, or any tax therefrom be assessed against, any properties or buildings that are rented or were rented for a period of more than one hundred eighty-three (183) days during the prior taxable year and subject to the provisions of chapter 18 of title 34 or any properties or buildings that are rented or were rented and are subject to tax pursuant to chapter 18 of this title. (RIGL 44-72-5)

Two limbs: rentals under the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (RIGL chapter 34-18) for "more than" 183 days, and rentals "subject to tax" under the sales tax chapter (RIGL chapter 44-18), which is where short stays fall.

The Division's regulation restates both limbs with two differences you should know about. It applies "183 days or more" rather than "more than 183 days", which is one day more generous than the statute. And it attaches a 183-day requirement to the short-term rental limb, which the statute's text does not contain. A commenter objected to that during rulemaking; the Division answered that reading the statute without a day count "would be unreasonable and render the statute and, therefore, the regulation meaningless". As of September 2026 the regulation is what the Division applies, so plan on 183 days for both.

Exemption 1: long-term rental under a written lease

The regulation's wording:

A property or building that is rented for one hundred eighty-three (183) days or more during the privilege year, whether continuous or not, and is subject to the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 34-18-1 et seq.) under a written lease or rental agreement. (280-RICR-20-75-1.10(A)(1))

The Division's example is a beach house rented to college students under a written agreement from 1 September to 1 June: exempt. Points to note:

Written lease required. In the June 2026 explanatory statement the Division rejected verbal and month-to-month arrangements: "to meet this exemption, a written lease must be provided". It also confirmed it can collect the lease itself under its rulemaking authority (RIGL 44-72-14).
"Whether continuous or not." Two separate tenancies of 100 days each in the same privilege year add up.
The days must be days rented, not days available. A house offered for 183 days but rented for 100 does not qualify (FAQ Q17).
Family living rent-free. The Division declined to answer in the rulemaking whether a relative living in the house rent-free for 183 days or more qualifies, and said to ask it directly. If that is your situation, ask in writing before you rely on it.

Exemption 2: short-term rentals subject to sales tax

A short-term rental rented for one hundred eighty-three (183) days or more during the privilege year that is subject to sales tax, hotel tax, and/or whole home short-term rental tax under R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 44-18-1 et seq. (280-RICR-20-75-1.10(A)(2))

The example: a Newport house rented by the week for weddings, 200 days in the privilege year: exempt.

Which stays are "subject to" those taxes is governed by chapter 44-18 and the Division's hotels and accommodations regulation (280-RICR-20-70-51): rentals of living quarters, including residential dwellings, for periods of 30 days or less are taxable; a stay longer than 30 consecutive days is not, and a break in occupancy starts a new rental. So a summer of one- and two-week bookings counts under this limb; a five-month winter tenant does not, and belongs under exemption 1 with a written lease.

Being "subject to" the tax means the tax applied to the stay, whether you remitted it yourself or a platform collected it for you. Either way, keep proof that it was paid. An owner who took cash bookings and remitted nothing has a harder argument, since the exemption is written around taxed rentals.

Mixed use: adding the exemptions together

A property that combines the above exemptions and is rented for a total of one hundred eighty-three (183) days or more during the privilege year would qualify for an exemption to the tax. (280-RICR-20-75-1.10(B))

Scenario in the privilege year	Result	Source
Short-term rental 60 days plus written-lease tenants 123 days (183 total)	Exempt	280-RICR-20-75-1.10(B), FAQ Q20
Owner lives there 160 days, short-term rental 20 days, tenant 60 days	Taxed: owner days and rental days cannot be combined	FAQ Q21
Listed 183 days or more, actually rented 100 days	Taxed	FAQ Q17
Seasonal cottage with no heat or water, rented half the summer	Taxed: seasonal homes need 183 rented days like any other	FAQ Q18
Multi-family building, one unit owner occupied or exempt, others sometimes empty	Not taxed	FAQ Q19
Rented 183 days or more under written leases, owner never present	Exempt	280-RICR-20-75-1.10(A)(1)

The Division put the combination rule in one sentence in FAQ Q21: "The property either has to be owner-occupied for 183 days or more or it has to be rented for 183 days or more in order to be exempt from the tax." There is no proration for 120 days of rental and 120 days of owner use: the full tax applies.

Which year counts

The exemption is tested in the privilege year and applied to the following tax year (FAQ Q16).

Rentals during	Decide the bill for the tax year	First installment
1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026	1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027	15 September 2026
1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027	1 July 2027 to 30 June 2028	15 September 2027

The first privilege year is over. If the house did not reach 183 rented days between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026, the 2026 bill stands even if it has been rented full-time since. The lever you still have is the 2027 bill: 183 rented days between 1 July 2026 and 30 June 2027. On a summer-only rental that usually means adding a winter tenant under a written lease.

What proof supports each exemption

The statute lists the records for both exemptions: "rental agreements, payments for rent, bank statements for payment of residential expenses, utility bills, and any other records establishing residency or non-residency" (RIGL 44-72-13). The regulation adds that records must be kept for three years after the end of the tax year, in electronic form, and produced on demand (280-RICR-20-75-1.14). In the explanatory statement the Division said what it will and will not accept:

A written lease or rental agreement showing the property rented for 183 days or more in the privilege year.
For short-term rentals, "a report from a third-party realtor, landlord, or hosting platform demonstrating that the property is rented for 183 days or more during a privilege year".
Not a screenshot from the hosting platform: "not precise enough to prove the 183-day requirement and is not administrable".
Not an affidavit: "an affidavit will not be sufficient to prove that a property meets either exemption criteria".

Anything you send is confidential and will not be disclosed to third parties (280-RICR-20-75-1.11(B)(3)); tenants' names and rent amounts will be seen by the Division only.

Long-term rental file

[ ] Signed written lease or rental agreement for each tenancy, with start and end dates.
[ ] Rent receipts or bank statements showing the rent arriving each month.
[ ] Any renewal, extension or holdover paperwork that carries the tenancy across the privilege year boundary.
[ ] Utility bills in the tenant's name, or in yours if utilities are included, for the same period.
[ ] A day count showing rented days per tenancy and the total for the privilege year.

Short-term rental file

[ ] Annual booking report from each platform or manager, exported as a document, showing every stay with check-in and check-out dates.
[ ] Your Rhode Island sales tax and hotel tax registration and returns, or the platform's statements showing the tax collected and remitted on each stay.
[ ] Payout statements or bank deposits matching the bookings.
[ ] Any local short-term rental registration or license.
[ ] A day count: booked nights per month and the privilege-year total, reconciled to the report.

How the exemption is claimed

There is no exemption form to file in advance and no return. If the Division cannot see from its records that the house is exempt, it sends a questionnaire; return it with the documents above. If a notice of tax due arrives anyway, send the proof with a written hearing request within 30 days of the notice date, because documents sent after the notice are considered only with a timely hearing request (280-RICR-20-75-1.11(B)(2), 1.13). The full process, including questionnaires and hearings, is in how to prove 183 days and bills, due dates and how to pay.

If you sell, the exemption evidence is also what gets you the Certificate of No Tax Due the seller must request at least 10 business days before transfer; see the tax certificate before closing. For the threshold, the rate and the assessment date, start with who pays, how much, from when.

Next steps

[ ] Count rented days for 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026 from leases and booking reports; if under 183, budget for the 2026 bill.
[ ] Plan the current privilege year (to 30 June 2027): decide now how the house reaches 183 rented days, and put any tenancy in writing.
[ ] Export platform reports at least once a quarter; do not rely on being able to pull them years later.
[ ] Confirm sales and hotel tax is being collected and remitted on every short stay, and keep the statements.
[ ] Keep the whole file, electronically, for three years after the end of each tax year.

Frequently asked questions

Is a rented home exempt from the Rhode Island non-owner occupied tax?

Yes, if it was rented for 183 days or more during the privilege year (1 July to 30 June) either under a written lease covered by the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, or as a short-term rental subject to Rhode Island sales tax, hotel tax or the whole-home short-term rental tax. The two kinds of rental days can be added together.

Does an Airbnb or other short-term rental qualify for the Rhode Island non-owner occupied tax exemption?

Only if the home was actually rented for 183 days or more in the privilege year and those stays were subject to Rhode Island sales, hotel or whole-home short-term rental tax under chapter 44-18. Nights the home was listed but not booked do not count, and the Division has said a screenshot from the platform is not enough proof.

Can I combine my own days and rental days to reach 183?

No. The Division's rule is that a property must either be owner occupied for 183 days or more or rented for 183 days or more. A home the owner lived in for 160 days and rented for 80 days is taxed.

Do long-term and short-term rental days add together?

Yes. The regulation's example is a home rented as a short-term rental for 60 days and to tenants under a written agreement for 123 days in the same privilege year, a total of 183 days, which is exempt.

Does a verbal month-to-month tenancy qualify for the exemption?

No. The Division stated in June 2026 that to meet the long-term rental exemption a written lease must be provided, and that an affidavit is not sufficient proof of either exemption.

Which year of rentals decides the 2026 tax bill?

The privilege year 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026. Rentals from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027 decide the bill for the tax year beginning 1 July 2027.

Template kit · PDF + CSV

RI Non-Owner Occupied Tax Record Kit

For owners of Rhode Island homes assessed above $1 million that are not their main residence. Day-by-day occupancy tracker, evidence checklist, payment calendar and the steps for the certificate you need before a sale.

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Blank templates built from the public law. Not legal advice, and not a filled-in document.

Sources

This guide is general information written from public statutes and agency materials as of 4 September 2026. Laws and agency rules change, and agencies sometimes read a statute differently from its text. It is not legal, tax or customs advice for your situation. Check the sources above or ask a licensed professional before you rely on it.