A Bill to enable Scottish councils to invest more in local
tourism facilities and services through a levy on overnight stays
has been published.
If passed by the Scottish Parliament, the Visitor Levy (Scotland)
Bill will give councils the power to apply a levy on stays in
overnight accommodation based on a percentage of the
accommodation cost.
All money raised would have to be reinvested locally on
facilities and services substantially for or used by visitors,
enhancing the tourist experience and benefitting local
communities and their economies.
Under the plans, councils would be required to consult
communities, businesses and tourism organisations before putting
a visitor levy in place. They would also have to consult on how
any revenue raised should be spent.
The proposals follow public consultation and form part of the New
Deal for Local Government which gives councils greater financial
flexibility and strengthens local democracy.
The Scottish Government has also invited representatives from the
tourism industry, COSLA and other partners to join an expert
group to consider how it could best be implemented if passed.
Public Finance Minister said:
“Scotland is already a very popular tourist destination and the
domestic and international visitors we welcome every year have a
significant and positive impact on the Scottish economy. Giving
councils the power to introduce a visitor levy is one tool that
will provide additional resources to continue to attract visitors
to Scotland.
“Levies on visitors staying in paid-for accommodation are already
used around the world and it is reasonable for local areas to
want a small contribution from tourists to help support and
sustain visitor economies.
“There have been significant contributions to the Bill so far
from the tourism industry, COSLA and other partners and I look
forward to continuing to work with them as it progresses through
Parliament.”
COSLA Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann said:
“COSLA welcomes the Scottish Government’s move to give councils
the power to apply a visitor levy. This represents a key step
towards reaching COSLA’s long-standing goal of a
more empowered Scottish local government.
“COSLA has consistently called for the ability of councils to set
and raise taxes based on what is needed and decided locally. By
providing each local authority with the power to set a rate
charged to visitors, and to do so independently of the Scottish
Government, the Local Visitor Levy empowers local
decision-making, with councils able to respond to the needs of
their area and the people who live there.
“COSLA is well aware that Scotland’s councils and communities
have a great diversity of needs - what works for one council will
not necessarily be suitable for another. We welcome the
flexibility offered by this legislation, and will consider if
there are opportunities for it to go further. We are looking
forward to seeing further investment both in tourism and our
communities in the future.”
Background
The Visitor Levy
(Scotland) Bill
The Bill, if passed, will give a local authority the power to
introduce a visitor levy in its area, if it wished to do so. The
levy would be a percentage of the overnight accommodation cost
with the rate set by the local council. Councils would be able to
apply a visitor levy in all or parts of their area. The levy
would be collected by the accommodation providers and remitted to
the relevant local authority on a regular basis (the default
being quarterly). It applies to almost all types of overnight
accommodation within the area where a visitor levy is being
applied, including hotels, self-catering accommodation, and
campsites.
Taxes on overnight tourist stays are common across Europe and in
other locations around the world. As of 2023, 21 out of the 27 EU
member states charge occupancy taxes. Some cities and regions
(such as Berlin) use the levy as a way to increase general
revenues while others (such as Nice and the Balearic Islands)
ring-fence all or part of the revenues to fund specific projects.
Analysis of responses to
the Scottish Government’s consultation on the principles of a
local visitor levy.
The expert advisory group, facilitated by VisitScotland, will
bring together tourism industry bodes and local government to
discuss how best any visitor levy can be implemented and to
develop national guidance for local authorities.
