In 2025, “tourist tax UK” is no longer just a rumour. Scotland and Wales have already passed visitor levy laws, and the UK government has confirmed plans to give mayors in England new powers to introduce an overnight visitor levy on hotels, guesthouses and holiday lets.
However, there is no single nationwide tourist tax in force across the whole UK, and many details for England are still being designed.
This article gives holiday let operators in the UK a clear, up-to-date view of:
- What is confirmed today
- How rules differ between England, Scotland and Wales
- What this means for pricing, guest communication and compliance
- How Chekin can help automate tourist tax calculation and collection
Tourist tax UK: current status in 2025
Is there a UK-wide tourist tax already?
No. There is no single, unified tourist tax that applies everywhere in the UK.
Instead, the situation is:
- Scotland – A Visitor Levy Act is already in place. Councils can choose to introduce a levy on overnight stays in paid accommodation, including hotels and holiday cottages. Edinburgh will be the first city to apply it, with implementation phased in from 2025–2026.
- Wales – Visitor levy legislation has become law. Councils will be able to charge a per-person, per-night levy on visitor accommodation, with the earliest start date from April 2027. Proposed rates are around £1.30 per person per night for most accommodation and £0.75 for campsites and hostels.
- England – The UK government has confirmed it will give Mayoral Strategic Authorities the power to create local overnight visitor levies, but this is currently under consultation and no start dates or exact rates have been set yet.
So when people search for “tourist tax UK”, they are really looking at a patchwork of local visitor levies, some already agreed (Scotland, Wales), others still in design (England).
What has actually been decided for England?
For England, the key development is the Overnight Visitor Levy consultation, published in November 2025. It confirms that:
- The government is giving Mayoral Strategic Authorities the power to create local overnight visitor levies on short-term accommodation.
- The consultation runs until 18 February 2026 and asks for views on:
- Which types of accommodation should be included
- Whether the levy should be a flat amount per night or a percentage of the room price
- How exemptions should work
- How revenue should be used locally.
The power is confirmed, but each mayor will decide:
- Whether to introduce a tourist tax at all
- The precise rate and model for their city or region
- The timeline for implementation
This means that a holiday let in London may face tourist tax rules in the future, while another property in a rural English area without a mayor could remain outside the scheme.
How tourist tax works across the UK nations
Scotland: visitor levy framework already in law
Scotland’s Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act 2024 gives councils the legal power to charge a levy on overnight stays. Key points:
- Councils decide whether to introduce a levy.
- The levy is applied to paid overnight accommodation, including hotels, B&Bs and holiday cottages.
- Edinburgh is moving ahead first, with a percentage levy on the accommodation cost and an agreed go-live schedule.
For self-catered accommodation and holiday lets in Scotland, this means:
- You will need to register and comply once your council launches a scheme.
- You will need clear records of nights, rates and guests to calculate and report the levy correctly.
Wales: visitor levy law with earliest start in 2027
In Wales, visitor levy legislation is now law. Councils will be able to introduce a local levy, collected by the Welsh Revenue Authority, with:
- A per-person, per-night charge
- Indicative rates around £1.30 for most accommodation and £0.75 for campsites/hostels
- A proposed earliest start date of April 2027
For Welsh holiday let operators, the levy is not live yet, but planning has started. Systems, pricing and guest messaging will need to adapt before 2027 in areas where councils choose to opt in.
England: confirmed powers, but design still open
In England, tourist tax is moving from idea to reality through the overnight visitor levy power for mayors. The direction is clear:
- Mayors in areas like London, Greater Manchester and other combined authorities will be allowed to introduce a levy on overnight stays in hotels, B&Bs, guesthouses and holiday lets.
- The government expects the levy to be “modest” and locally designed, with funds reinvested in infrastructure, transport and tourism services.
But:
- No national rate has been set.
- No English mayor has yet launched a formal scheme under the new power, because the consultation is still running.
For now, this is a confirmed direction of travel, not yet a daily operational reality for most English holiday lets.
What tourist tax UK means for holiday let operators
1. Pricing and profitability
As visitor levies roll out, you will face an extra cost on bookings in some locations. You will need to decide:
- Do you pass the levy directly to guests as a visible line on the bill?
- Do you absorb part of it in your nightly rate to stay price-competitive?
- Do you adjust minimum stay lengths or cleaning fees to protect your margin?
A small per-night charge may feel minor, but if you operate in high-volume city destinations like London, Edinburgh or Cardiff, the cumulative effect on occupancy and guest perception can be significant.
2. Compliance and record keeping
Across Scotland, Wales and future English schemes, the pattern is similar:
- The accommodation provider is responsible for:
- Registering with the relevant authority or scheme
- Calculating the correct levy
- Keeping detailed records of stays, guests and amounts charged
- Filing returns and paying the levy on time
Manual spreadsheets across multiple properties, channels and cities quickly become unmanageable and risky once visitor levies are live.
3. Guest communication and transparency
From the guest side, tourist tax is not new. Many visitors already pay it in European cities and beyond. Friction arises when:
- The levy is not clearly mentioned during booking.
- The amount appears as a surprise on arrival or at check-out.
- Different messages appear on OTAs, your website and your emails.
Best practice for UK holiday lets:
- Mention tourist tax (or “visitor levy”) consistently in listing descriptions once it applies to your area.
- Show it in pre-arrival communication and in any digital guide.
- Explain briefly that it is set by the local authority and used to fund local services.
How Chekin helps automate tourist tax UK
As visitor levies spread across the UK, digital automation becomes essential. Chekin is designed to help holiday let operators handle these new obligations with minimal extra workload.
Automatic calculation using guest and stay data
Through Chekin’s online check-in, you collect:
- Number of guests and their ages
- Arrival and departure dates
- Property and location details
- Booking channel and rate information
With these data points, you can configure rules for each city or council (per-night, per-person, percentage of room price, caps, exemptions). Chekin can then automatically calculate the correct tourist tax per stay based on the local scheme.
Seamless collection during online check-in
Instead of collecting the levy in cash or manually sending payment links, you can:
- Display the visitor levy clearly in the online check-in flow
- Ask guests to accept and pay the amount before arrival
- Combine tourist tax with other add-ons (parking, late check-out, experiences) when relevant
This avoids misunderstandings at the door, speeds up arrival and ensures every booking has the correct levy attached.
Centralised records for reporting and audits
Chekin keeps a structured record of:
- Stays and guest details
- Levy amounts calculated and collected
- Properties and destinations involved
You can generate exports or reports by property, council or country, simplifying your work with accountants and local authorities, and reducing the risk of errors when new schemes go live.
Checklist: how to prepare now, even before levies start
For a UK holiday let portfolio that may span England, Scotland and Wales, you can start preparing today:
- Map your properties by jurisdiction
- Note which are in Scottish councils, Welsh authorities, or English mayoral areas.
- Follow local decisions
- Check your council or mayoral combined authority website for visitor levy consultation and draft schemes.
- Standardise your data collection
- Use Chekin to ensure each booking has complete guest details and stay data, which you will need for tourist tax calculations.
- Plan your pricing strategy
- Model how different levy levels (e.g. 3–5% or £1–£2 per night) affect profit, and decide your approach to passing on or absorbing costs.
- Draft clear guest messaging
- Prepare standard text explaining the levy for listings, emails and your digital guide, ready to switch on per property when a scheme goes live.
- Digitise calculation and collection
- Configure tourist tax rules in Chekin as each local scheme is defined, so the process runs automatically rather than manually.
FAQ: quick answers about tourist tax UK in 2025
Is tourist tax already active everywhere in the UK?
No. Visitor levy powers are in place or being finalised, but implementation is local:
- Scotland: law in force, councils like Edinburgh moving ahead.
- Wales: law passed, earliest start 2027.
- England: mayoral powers confirmed but still under consultation; no schemes live under the new power yet.
Will tourist tax UK apply to holiday lets on OTAs like Airbnb?
Yes, where a local scheme is in place, it typically covers all paid visitor accommodation, including self-catered holiday lets and serviced apartments, regardless of whether bookings come from OTAs or direct. Details depend on each local authority’s rules.
Who is responsible for paying and reporting the levy?
The accommodation provider (you) is usually legally responsible for:
- Registering with the scheme
- Calculating the levy
- Collecting it from guests
- Reporting and paying it to the authority
Not doing so correctly can lead to penalties, even if guests stayed via an OTA.
How can I simplify tourist tax management across different areas?
Use a centralised digital solution like Chekin to:
- Collect complete guest and stay data through online check-in
- Apply the right rules per city or council
- Calculate and collect the levy automatically
- Keep audit-ready records for all your UK properties
Conclusion: tourist tax UK is coming, but you can be ready
The headline for 2025 is clear: tourist tax UK is becoming a local reality, not a distant idea.
- Scotland has visitor levy powers in law and is rolling them out.
- Wales has a visitor levy law with schemes expected from 2027.
- England is consulting on overnight visitor levies for mayoral areas, with powers confirmed but schemes still in design.
For holiday let operators, the best response is not to wait. By standardising your guest data, planning your pricing and using tools like Chekin to automate calculation, collection and reporting, you can turn tourist tax from a regulatory headache into a manageable, digital process that fits smoothly into your existing guest journey.
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