Guanajuato

Running vacation rentals in Guanajuato, Mexico, from San Miguel to the state capital

If you manage vacation rentals in Guanajuato, the state has had a law on platform rentals since December 2020, but the host registry it calls for hangs on implementing rules that San Miguel de Allende's hoteliers say still didn't exist in July 2026. The 4% lodging tax is a different story, because that same July the state tax office started sending letters to about 5,000 owners who rent through platforms. Upbridge's AI operations assistant, Cleo, works over WhatsApp with vacation rental operators and cleaning companies and organizes the cleanings and the inventory for each place.

The rules here

We read the state law in the text the Guanajuato government publishes itself, and what we know about how the tax is being collected comes from what the newspaper AM reported in July 2026.

Topic	What it says	Status	Since	Source
Host registry	The Ley de Hospedaje a través de Plataformas Digitales covers houses and apartments rented through platforms, and says each host registers in a lodging-services registry under implementing rules. The governor had 120 days to issue them. In July 2026, the head of San Miguel de Allende's hotel association said the law "was born dead, because there are no rules".	In force, not enforced	December 2020	State gazette
Insurance and house rules	The same law asks for liability insurance whenever there's an active reservation, which the platform can provide, and written house rules posted on the platform or at a link. In a condo building, the building's own rules also have to be on display in the rooms.	In force, not enforced	December 2020	State gazette
Lodging tax	Platform rentals pay 4%. The tax was added to the state's tax law in 2021, when owners paid it themselves, and since an amendment published on December 30, 2022 the platform is the one that has to withhold it and pay it in.	In force	2021 and December 2022	AM
Collecting from owners	The state tax office (SATEG) sent invitation letters to about 5,000 owners, asking them to file and pay for what they rented before the December 2022 amendment. Its head said this first round carries no penalty, and that a second round could follow for anyone who doesn't come forward.	In force	July 2026	AM

As for the platforms, deputy finance secretary Edmundo Soto Torres told AM that Airbnb has gone three and a half years without meeting the 4% obligation, wants to hand over an amount it picked itself, and won't share owner data with the state. El Contribuyente's 2026 table also puts Guanajuato's rate at 4%.

The federal income tax and VAT that platforms hold back for the SAT sit on top of the state's 4%, and we walk through them on the page that covers all of Mexico.

This is not legal or tax advice, and Upbridge does not file anything for you: no registrations and no tax returns.

How it works on the ground

The law wants written house rules for every property, posted on the platform or somewhere the guest can look them up. Your rules, from noise to how many people can stay, have to reach the guest before they arrive, not on a sheet taped to the fridge.

In condo units, the building's rules have to be on display in the rooms. Someone has to check they're still there on every turnover, the same way they check the towels.

The liability insurance applies while there's an active reservation, and the law lets the platform provide it. It's worth knowing, for each house and each platform, who's actually covering you when a guest walks in.

The SATEG letters are about rentals from before 2023. If one lands on your desk, you'll have to declare what you rented back then, so it helps to have each property's stay history close at hand.

Where Upbridge fits

For condo rules that have to stay on display, you can add them as a required item for each room in our photo cleaning checklists. Your cleaner can't close the list without sending the photo, and you get a timestamped report at the end.

For house rules, we build a guest guide your guest can open on their phone, in English or Spanish, so they can read the house rules and the building's rules before they get there, along with how to get in and the WiFi.

If you manage houses or run a cleaning company in Guanajuato, we can help you run every checkout and every arrival the same way across all your properties, whether they're in the capital, in León or in San Miguel.

If you run a cleaning company in Guanajuato

In the state capital, the Festival Cervantino and Día de Muertos land one after the other between October and November, and in those weeks checkouts can stack up back to back. If you clean for several owners, the account for cleaning companies puts each owner's iCal or PMS into one calendar, so you can see at a glance which house frees up first. Your clients stay yours, and none of what they pay you for a clean comes to us.

Cities and areas

The state tourism ministry estimates 5,921 Airbnb properties across 15 of Guanajuato's municipalities as of June 2026, according to AM. It counted only Airbnb, because the other platforms don't publish their data.

San Miguel de Allende

The same ministry counts 1,843 Airbnb properties there. Its own page covers what the town itself charges and how demand moves through the year.

Guanajuato city

The state capital has its own page, where we go into how much the Festival Cervantino and Día de Muertos shape its year.

Questions about running rentals in Guanajuato

Is there an Airbnb law in Guanajuato?

There has been since December 9, 2020, when the Ley de Hospedaje a través de Plataformas Digitales del Estado de Guanajuato was published. The host registry it sets up depends on implementing rules that, according to San Miguel's hoteliers in July 2026, still don't exist.

What's Guanajuato's lodging tax on a platform rental?

It's 4%. Since the amendment to the state tax law published on December 30, 2022, the platform is the one that has to withhold it and pay it in.

Why is Guanajuato's SATEG sending letters to Airbnb owners?

In July 2026 it invited about 5,000 owners to file and pay the tax on what they rented before the December 2022 amendment, back when paying it was still their job. The first round carries no penalty.

Sources

Checked on September 25, 2026