City Watch
Short-term rental rules in Orcas Island, WA
How Orcas Island regulates short-term rentals: the rules that apply, their sources, and pending changes.
Rules here limit which homes may operate as short-term rentals, how many, where, or for how many nights a year.
- hard per-island vacation-rental permit cap (Orcas Island = 211) set at existing compliant-supply level
- cap reached — no new VR applications currently accepted
- new permits only via attrition (abandonment/revocation/voluntary) then a future lottery
- outer islands Shaw & Waldron prohibit VR outright
Based on: SJCC 18.40.275 (Vacation rental of residences or ADUs); cap set by Ord. 05-2022 (adopted May 17, 2022, eff. June 2
Summary of the rule
Island permit caps — San Juan Island 337; Orcas Island 211; Lopez Island 135; Outer islands 10 (except Shaw and Waldron, which prohibit short-term rentals).
View the ordinance source ↗✓ Verified
Last reviewed Sep 15, 2026 · Sources · Report an error
Pending legislation
Monitoring Orcas Island · system last checked Oct 25, 2026
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City Watch tracks changes from public sources — council agendas, state bills, local news — not a complete legal compendium.
A city permit is not the whole picture — HOA, condominium, deed, or lease rules may be stricter.
City Watch provides good-faith summaries of publicly available information as of the review date shown. Rules, enforcement, and permit availability can change, and summaries may contain errors or omissions. Ratings describe the general regulatory environment; they do not establish whether a particular property or stay is permitted. This is general information, not legal advice. Before buying, listing, or hosting, verify applicable requirements with the responsible authorities and review any HOA, condominium, deed, or lease restrictions.