Guest Card Oberlausitz Business Page

Guests staying overnight in the municipalities of Großschönau, Jonsdorf, Olbersdorf and the town of Zittau and its districts pay a guest tax.

Guest tax must also be paid: People who are being cared for for therapeutic and spa purposes, residents who maintain a second home and do not work or are in training in the municipality, as well as non-resident owners of vacation homes, bungalows or similar.

As the landlord, you are the link between the guest and the municipality. As this is a tax, every landlord is obliged to collect the guest tax and the corresponding data. Interfaces to numerous reservation systems can be used for this purpose. If such a system is not available, the data is entered via an input screen using a PC or cell phone.

We would be delighted if you, as a landlord in the participating municipalities, would advertise the Upper Lusatia Guest Card and inform your guests about its benefits. If you require information or advertising material, please contact gaestekarte@oberlausitz.com.

Please show the guest tax as a separate item on your invoice receipt for the overnight stay (e.g. guest tax for 2 nights á 2.90 EUR/night incl. 7% VAT). Only if you show the guest tax separately do you not have to pay VAT to the tax office. In addition, the guest tax is not taken into account when calculating the tax base for income tax. (see also implementation description p. 8, section 2.5)

Guest registration takes place via the AVS GmbH "Meldeschein" application, in which the guest data is entered. There is also the option of a pre-check-in, a digital data entry by the guest before arrival. Once the data has been entered, the guest receives the printed guest cards on arrival or, if an e-mail address and consent have been provided, they are automatically sent by system-generated e-mail.

The lessor does not have to pay any usage fee for the software.

As a landlord, you can obtain several online accesses (logins) to the AVS digital registration system if required. Simply contact Maik Sander at the Zittauer Gebirge Nature Park Tourist Office.

You are obliged to collect the guest data in such a way that the municipality can process it. If this is not possible digitally, it is still possible to collect this guest data manually and in analog form using a data entry form. The guest data must then be entered into the system in consultation with the respective municipality.

Guest data can also be collected manually. If you use the digital registration system in principle, manual registration forms can be used for short-term outages (e.g. power failure, no internet, ...). You can obtain the manual registration forms on request from Maik Sander, Tourismuszentrum Naturpark Zittauer Gebirge (TNPZG).
Please note that guests who are registered manually will only receive manual guest cards and cannot receive a DigiCard. Subsequent inclusion in the digital registration system is not permitted. The manual registration forms must be submitted to the TNPZG for settlement by the 10th of the following month.

As the guest tax is a levy, it cannot be waived unless there is an exemption. Guests who have already booked for the period from May 2025 must be informed of the charge in accordance with the municipality's decision and pay the tax on arrival.

If the group members meet the exemption criteria, no guest taxes are payable. Children up to the age of 6 are exempt, a reduction of 50% is granted to pupils up to the age of 15.

The guest tax is a levy, i.e. the overnight guest is obliged to pay this amount decided by the municipality. In doing so, they support the municipality and therefore the region in the financing and maintenance of tourist infrastructure, tourist events or the operation of tourist facilities. At the same time, it is possible to use separately designated services free of charge or at a discount according to the guest card. The tax amount is based on a calculation carried out by the municipality, which was calculated in accordance with Section 34 of the Saxon Municipal Tax Act.

Persons who need accommodation at short notice, either due to an emergency situation or because they may need shelter for a longer period of time, are not subject to the obligation to pay the tax.

As a partner of the Upper Lusatia Guest Card, you benefit from joint advertising and reach overnight guests in the region in a targeted manner. By offering discounts, you create an additional incentive for guests to visit your business and contribute significantly to a positive vacation experience.

As a partner business of the Oberlausitz Guest Card, you receive the following benefits:

• Free placement as a partner with a link to your own website at: gaestekarte-oberlausitz.com
• Free entry in the "Oberlausitz Guest Card" brochure
• Advertising material for your establishment (stickers, flyers, posters for the Upper Lusatia Guest Card)

There are no further costs for you. You grant the discount to the guest and benefit from the promotion of the partner businesses of the Oberlausitz Guest Card.

For the time being, there will be no digital usage recording. The acceptance points undertake to count usage independently for statistical purposes.

The services of the guest card are neither proportionately nor fully refundable, but only by the contractually agreed lump sum. Every overnight guest in the charging municipalities has the option of using the card. Every guest is free to use these included services.

Settlement with the acceptance points, which are levy partners, takes place at agreed intervals and is contractually regulated. The contribution towards expenses, which is paid by the marketing partner, is invoiced once a year.