Vacation rental rules in Nayarit, Mexico, from the lodging tax to the clock
If you manage vacation rentals in Nayarit, we found no state law written specifically for nightly rentals, unlike Jalisco next door, where a 180-day bill has already cleared a committee. What does apply is the lodging tax, which the state government's 2026 revenue bill sets at 5%. On the coast the clock matters too, because Bahía de Banderas has run on Central time since April 2010, the same as Puerto Vallarta, while the rest of the state is an hour behind. 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
This is where Nayarit stood on September 25, 2026, the day we checked every row.
| Topic | What it says | Status | Since | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short-term rental law | We found no state law and no bill in the state congress that deals with short-stay rentals on their own, and no state host registry. | No specific law | Checked on September 25, 2026 | Upbridge search |
| Night cap | Nayarit has no cap on nights per year. The 180-day cap being debated belongs to Jalisco, is covered on the Jalisco page, and wouldn't apply in Nayarit. | No specific law | Checked on September 25, 2026 | Jalisco |
| Lodging tax | The rate is 5%. That's what the governor's 2026 revenue bill sets, and El Contribuyente says it's filed by the 10th of the following month. Some host tax guides still say 3%, but the government's own document says 5%. | In force | In force in 2025 and 2026 | Government of Nayarit |
| Time zone | The municipality of Bahía de Banderas switched to Central time in April 2010 to match Puerto Vallarta. The rest of Nayarit stays on Pacific time. | In force | April 2010 | puertovallarta.net |
The one piece that doesn't depend on the state is what the platforms withhold from hosts for the SAT, and we cover it on the general page for 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
According to puertovallarta.net, Bahía de Banderas changed its clock in 2010 to spare tourists and locals the confusion, since so many people arrive through the Puerto Vallarta airport, which is in Jalisco. If your place is in Bahía de Banderas, a guest driving up from Vallarta doesn't have to change the time. If it's in another Nayarit municipality, the house runs an hour behind, so a 3 p.m. check-in, house time, is 4 p.m. in Vallarta. That's why it's safest to always write the check-in time with its time zone.
The 56.57-peso-per-night charge that started in 2026 comes from Puerto Vallarta's revenue law, and Puerto Vallarta is a Jalisco municipality, so it doesn't apply in Nayarit. If you have homes on both sides of the bay, the same night costs you differently depending on the state, and it's worth keeping each side's books apart.
Having no state short-term rental law doesn't mean there's nothing to report, because the 5% lodging tax is owed either way. If nobody on your team keeps that tally every month, honestly, it's worth sorting out with your accountant before high season.
Where Upbridge fits
Since the time changes from one municipality to the next, each home's guide should say what time the guest can get in. We build that guide, and your guest opens it on their phone, in English or Spanish, with directions, how to get in and what time they can do it. If they want to arrive early or leave late, they pay for it on Upbridge's payment page and the task gets created and assigned. It's on the guest guide page.
If you have homes on both sides of the bay, we connect your Guesty, Hostaway, Lodgify or Uplisting calendar, or bring it in by iCal, and every checkout creates its cleaning task no matter which state the home is in. We explain it on our photo checklists page.
If you manage vacation rentals or clean homes in Nayarit, on the coast or inland, Upbridge can help make sure every guest knows when and how to get in, and every home is ready before they do.
If you run a cleaning company in Nayarit
What changes your day here is where your crew travels. Inside Bahía de Banderas and in Puerto Vallarta the time is the same, but if your team also works in another Nayarit municipality, it's an hour earlier there, and that shows up in check-in and checkout times. With the account for cleaning companies you put every owner's iCal or PMS into one calendar, whichever side of the bay the home is on. The client stays yours, and we take nothing from what you charge per clean.
Cities and areas
Riviera Nayarit
According to puertovallarta.net, Nuevo Vallarta, Mezcales, Bucerías, La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, Punta Mita, Sayulita, San Pancho and Lo de Marcos all sit inside Bahía de Banderas, and so all run on Vallarta time. Its page covers how many listings Sayulita has, where the guests come from and what sets each town apart.
Sayulita
It has its own page, with what happened to its beach and its sewage in April 2025 and the Day of the Dead festival the town hosts from October 29 to November 2, 2026.
Bucerías
With 1,727 listings it is the largest market AirROI tracks in Nayarit, and in January and February 2026 guests stayed about twelve nights.
Questions about running rentals in Nayarit
Is there a vacation rental law in Nayarit?
We found no state law and no specific bill for nightly rentals as of September 25, 2026. The 180-day cap people talk about is Jalisco's.
What percentage is the lodging tax in Nayarit?
It's 5%, according to the Nayarit government's 2026 revenue bill, and it's filed by the 10th of the following month, according to El Contribuyente.
Is Nuevo Vallarta on the same time as Puerto Vallarta?
Yes. Bahía de Banderas, where Nuevo Vallarta is, switched to Central time in April 2010, while the rest of Nayarit stays on Pacific time.
Sources
Checked on September 25, 2026
- Government of the State of Nayarit, 2026 fiscal package: revenue bill and budget proposal, article 4 (in Spanish), 2025.
- El Contribuyente, “Impuesto Sobre Hospedaje: ISH por estado y obligaciones” (in Spanish), April 21, 2025.
- puertovallarta.net, “¿Qué hora es en Puerto Vallarta?” (in Spanish), February 29, 2024, updated June 15, 2025.