Vacation rental invoice template
Vacation rental invoice template: nights at high and low season rates, cleaning fee, extra guests and tourist tax on its own line, deposit in the notes.
Templates by industry
- Nightly rate, high season
- Nightly rate, low season
- Cleaning fee per stay
- Extra guest, per night
- Local visitor levy, per guest per night
Preparation guide
Example workflow
Confirm scope and quantities
Example: reconcile the approval and work record for "Nightly rate, high season" to establish the quantity for this invoice.
Record delivery and acceptance
Check completion for every line, including "Local visitor levy, per guest per night". Confirm actual use, supplied extras and the return or service-completion record.
Send the billing record
Send the final charges, delivery reference and due date to the customer, then reconcile payment against the invoice number.
Guests who book a holiday home directly rather than through a platform expect an invoice that reads like a booking confirmation: dates, number of guests, the nightly rates that applied, cleaning and any local tourist tax. A stay that crosses from high to low season needs two rates, and the security deposit is not income at all. This template separates nights by season, adds cleaning and extra guests, and keeps tourist tax apart so guests see what is collected for the local authority.
Fields to prepare
- Deliverables and line items
- Nightly rate, high season, Nightly rate, low season, Cleaning fee per stay, Extra guest, per night, Local visitor levy, per guest per night: record the quantities actually supplied and the service period.
- Nightly rate, high season
- Give the check-in and check-out dates and count the nights charged at the high-season rate.
- Nightly rate, low season
- Count the remaining nights at the low-season rate; a stay across the change of season uses both lines.
- Cleaning fee per stay
- Charge cleaning once per stay, as published, and say what it covers, such as bed linen and towels.
- Extra guest, per night
- Bill each guest beyond the number included in the rate, per night of their stay.
- Local visitor levy, per guest per night
- Enter the local tourist tax or levy per guest and night, note any age exemptions, and keep it out of your rent lines.
- Booking and period
- Identify the venue, equipment or service, quantity, and the start and end of use.
- Included services and extras
- Agree the included use, transport or staff, and units and charges for extra use.
- Scope to agree
- Split the nights by seasonal rate, keep cleaning and extra guests apart, and show any local tourist tax on its own line, separate from your rent.
Before sending
- Does “Nightly rate, high season” show the quantity actually supplied, not the quantity first quoted?
- Is “Nightly rate, low season” charged at the rate the customer agreed to, with any change approved?
- Is “Cleaning fee per stay” finished and accepted, or does it belong on a later invoice?
Show 5 more
- Does “Extra guest, per night” show the quantity actually supplied, not the quantity first quoted?
- Is “Local visitor levy, per guest per night” charged at the rate the customer agreed to, with any change approved?
- Check booking-change and cancellation terms and amounts already paid.
- Name the person who confirms the return or completion time and condition.
- Match completed work to the order or approval record, and confirm the payment due date and amounts already received.
Worked example: a week across the change of season
The figures are an example in dollars, with an example tax rate of 8%. A group of four stays seven nights, three at the high-season rate and four at the low-season rate. The rate includes three guests, so the fourth is billed as an extra guest, and tourist tax is due for all four.
| Item | Quantity × unit price | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Nightly rate, high season | 3 × $180.00 | $540.00 |
| Nightly rate, low season | 4 × $120.00 | $480.00 |
| Cleaning fee per stay | 1 × $95.00 | $95.00 |
| Extra guest, per night | 7 × $20.00 | $140.00 |
| Local visitor levy, per guest per night | 28 × $2.50 | $70.00 |
| Subtotal | $1,325.00 | |
| Sales tax (8%) | $106.00 | |
| Total | $1,431.00 | |
The lines come to $1,325.00; tax at 8% is $106.00, and the invoice totals $1,431.00. Where tourist tax must stay outside the taxable amount, present it that way before you send the invoice.
Mistakes on a holiday home invoice
- Charging every night at the high-season rate when the stay crossed into low season.
- Listing the security deposit as income.
- Hiding tourist tax inside the nightly rate, so the guest cannot see it.
- Leaving out the check-in and check-out dates.
- Adding a cleaning fee that was not shown when the guest booked.
What the document must show
These details make an invoice easier to approve and to file.
- Your business name, address and registration or tax number
- The customer's name and address
- Issue date and a document number you do not reuse
- Each line item with quantity, unit price and amount
- Tax shown separately from the net amount, and the total payable
- Payment terms: due date, bank details or accepted payment methods
The sales tax depends on where the work is supplied, so set the rate that applies to your customer before sending.
Official rate reference: US government: state and local taxes
Frequently asked questions
Where does the security deposit go?
Not among the lines, because it is paid back. Give the amount, how it was paid and when it will be returned in the notes; if damage is later deducted, bill that separately with a description of the damage.
Is tourist tax part of my taxable total?
Local rules decide. Hosts often collect it for the municipality and show it apart from their rent; check how your authority treats it before you send the invoice, and present it the way that rule requires.
How do I invoice a cancellation under my policy?
Invoice the share your published cancellation policy lets you keep, with the original dates and the cancellation date in the notes. Refund the rest and keep both documents together.
Should the invoice go out before arrival or after departure?
A common pattern is a booking deposit, the balance invoiced before arrival, and a short final invoice only for extras such as late check-out. Pick one approach and state it in your booking terms.
How is tax calculated on this template?
The sales tax depends on where the work is supplied, so set the rate that applies to your customer before sending. The editor keeps the net amount, the tax and the total apart, and recalculates all three when you change a quantity, a unit price or the country setting.
Is this template free?
Yes. You can fill in this template and print it or save it as a PDF without an account, and there is no payment step and no watermark on the document. Saving it to your account and downloading Excel or Word files need a free account.
Read next
Reading for the Vacation rental invoice template: How to write an invoice: a step-by-step example and Invoice numbering: sequences and corrections. The VAT and GST calculator works out the tax line for you.