Collecting and investing a Visitor Levy for Edinburgh
If a Visitor Levy for Edinburgh is approved, accommodation providers will be responsible for collecting the levy from overnight visitors. We will set up a process to collect the visitor levies from these providers.
Calculation of the levy
The levy must be a percentage of the pre-VAT cost of the overnight accommodation.
The cost of add-ons are not part of a levy. This includes things like
- food
- drink
- parking
- entertainment
- leisure passes.
Exemptions
We are still exploring whether any overnight visitors should be exempt from paying the levy. We will share information on proposed exemptions when we have more detail.
The wording of the Bill excludes the following groups from the scope of a Visitor Levy, as it only applies on overnight accommodation where the person does not otherwise have an ordinary place of residence:
- People who are homeless or at risk of homelessness
- People whose main residence is unfit for habitation
- Asylum seekers and refugees
- Individuals who have arrived in the UK through other Home Office schemes.
The Bill also states that people in receipt of UK disability benefits will not be liable to pay the levy. This includes people who receive benefits:
- under section 71 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 (disability living allowance)
- specifically for working age people given in accordance with regulations made under section 31 of the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 (disability assistance)
- under section 64 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 (attendance allowance)
- specifically for older people given in accordance with regulations made under section 31 of the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 (pension age disability benefit) or
- under Part 4 of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 (personal independence payment).
The Council is exploring options for reimbursement of the levy for those who are not liable.
Spending funds raised by Visitor Levy for Edinburgh
The underlying rationale for introducing a visitor levy is that visitors who pay to stay in the city use public spaces and services, and should contribute to managing the impact of a successful tourism economy.
The Bill says that funds raised must be reinvested in local facilities and services substantially used by business and leisure visitors. By investing the income back into our city, we would be able to
- sustain Edinburgh’s status as one of the world’s top UK cities to visit
- develop Edinburgh’s
- culture
- heritage
- art
- sport experiences
- enhance the appeal and experience for residents and visitors
- support public services with the contributions from visitors so that both they and residents will benefit.
By doing this, we would help to manage the impacts a successful visitor economy has on a city by making sure Edinburgh continues to be attractive. It will also keep the city a desirable place to
- visit
- live
- work
- invest
- study.
Deciding on where the levy funds are invested
The Bill stipulates that a Visitor Levy Forum should be set up. This group must include a balance of:
- tourist organisations
- businesses engaged in tourism
- representatives of communities.
This is to help inform and shape how the levy will be invested.
Reporting on how we invest the levy
If we introduce a visitor levy, we will need to report to Scottish Government
- on the amount we collect
- how we will use the net proceeds, that is the amount collected minus costs or expenses of operating the levy
- demonstrate that we are delivering on how we said we would invest proceeds from the levy.