Tourist Rooming House (TRH) License

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What is a Tourist Rooming House (TRH)?

A tourist rooming house is defined as all lodging places and tourist cabins and cottages, other than hotels and motels, in which sleeping accommodations are offered for payment to tourists or transient occupants. It does not include private boarding or rooming houses not accommodating tourists or transients, or bed and breakfast establishments.

In general, tourist rooming house establishments are vacation homes, cabins, and cottages that are rented out to tourists and transients for a short period of time (under 60 days per individual renter).

Under a tourist rooming house license, an operator may rent as many as four units (e.g., rooms, cottages, cabins). You will need a hotel license if you rent five or more units.

Applying for a Tourist Rooming House (TRH) License

Follow the steps below to start obtaining your license:

1. CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL MUNICIPALITY
Contact your local municipality or zoning to check to see if there are any requirements that you will need to meet.

2. SAFE WATER SOURCE
If you are on a private well, you will need to have a bacteria water sample taken by an approved lab to show that your water is safe.

Approved water testing labs: WI DNR Private Well Test

3. FILL OUT APPLICATION
Click on the link below to obtain the license application. Fill out recreational license applications. Select the Tourist Rooming House. Please note that one house is one unit if the whole house is rented at a time. If each individual room is rented separately then each room would be considered a separate unit.

Sheboygan County Public Recreational License Application

4. SUBMIT APPLICATION
Application can be submitted to environmental.health@sheboygancounty.com, brought into the Sheboygan County Health and Human Services office, or mailed to our office at 1011 N 8th Street, Sheboygan, WI 5308.

5. PAY FOR LICENSE
See payment options available here.

6. SETTING UP PRE-INSPECTION
Once we receive this information and payment you will be assigned a sanitarian. Your assigned sanitarian will reach out to you to go through all of your information that you have submitted and then schedule the pre-inspection.

7. GETTING YOUR LICENSE
If during your pre-inspection, your establishment meets all code requirements you will be issued a license.

Preparing for Operation and Inspection

Each year our department will complete a routine inspection of your licensed establishment. All tourist rooming houses will be scheduled for inspection.

Below are links for your reference to help get yourself ready for the pre-inspection and continuing operations:

Questions and Resources

Do you have questions about lodging establishments in Sheboygan County? Contact us at (920) 459-3207 or email at environmental.health@sheboygancounty.com.

4/2/2025

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