Visitor Levy for visitor accommodation providers: overview

Visitor Levy is a self-assessed tax on booked overnight stays in visitor accommodation. It applies to the areas where a local council has started it.

In Wales, local councils have a power to start Visitor Levy from 1 April 2027. After that, they can start the levy on 1 April or 1 October each year.

The levy applies (to visitor accommodation providers):

• only to areas where the local council introduces it
• if you take bookings for overnight stays in visitor accommodation
• to bookings for visitors from anywhere in the world, including Wales

Local councils must consult with local people before starting the levy. They must announce the levy start date 12 months in advance if they decide to start it. Local councils must spend Visitor Levy on improving local tourism.

The Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA) will collect and manage the levy for local councils.

You can check if a local council charges Visitor Levy in Wales.

As a visitor accommodation provider, you will be responsible for paying Visitor Levy.

You will be responsible for paying the levy even if you choose to pass the cost of the levy onto visitors.

If you use an agent 

You will be able to use an agent to file your levy return and pay the levy. But you will be responsible for making sure that they do it right and on time.

There are two rates of Visitor Levy. They apply to overnight stays in visitor accommodation.

Lower levy rate

75 pence per person per night for:

• shared rooms in hostels, bunkhouses, bothies or dormitories
• pitches for tents (including the temporary ones for events and festivals)

Higher levy rate

£1.30 per person per night for all other types of accommodation, such as:

• hotels, bed and breakfasts, and guesthouses
• self-catering lets, including:
• lodges
• chalets
• cottages
• holiday lets
• caravan parks
• shepherd’s huts
• glamping sites
• homestays (like Airbnb)
• pitches for caravans, motorhomes or campervans
• temporary accommodation for events (such as glamping pods for festivals)

The levy rates will be fixed for at least the first 12 months after the levy starts.

What if you are a VAT-registered business

Value Added Tax (VAT) applies to the levy. If you are a VAT-registered business, you will need to account for VAT on the levy and pay it to HMRC.

What if you are not a VAT-registered business

VAT will not apply on the levy if you are not a VAT-registered business. But the levy counts towards your taxable turnover for VAT purposes.

You may need to register for VAT if your taxable turnover goes above the VAT threshold. You can get advice on VAT from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) or your accountant.

You do not pay Visitor Levy for:

• stays of 32 nights or more from a one single booking
• someone under 18 years of age who is staying in a lower rate accommodation, such as on a campsite pitch or in a shared room in a hostel, bunkhouse, bothy or dormitory
• accommodation provided as temporary housing by a local council
• cancelled bookings or stays where visitors do not show up

Overnight stays of employees, contractors or apprentices

You do not need to pay the levy on the overnight stays of your employees, contractors or apprentices. But only if they are staying in your accommodation as part of their job. For example, your staff servicing your visitor accommodation at the time of the stay. Or your employees staying overnight to attend business meetings or evening events.

A local council will publish a notice on the levy start date for their area. After 6 months from this notice, overnight stays will count towards the levy. But only on bookings made for stays that begin on or after the levy start date, including:

• all new bookings
• changes to existing bookings

Changes to existing bookings mean:

• more visitors added
• more nights added

For changes to bookings, you will only pay Visitor Levy on the added visitors and nights.

Example of how you would pay the levy on new bookings

On 31 March 2026, a local council publishes a notice that they will start the levy on 1 April 2027. Your visitor accommodation is in that council’s area. This means that you will need to account for the levy on any stays that start on or after 1 April 2027. But only if they were booked on or after 1 October 2026.

This means that on a stay in May 2027:

• you will not pay the levy if this stay is booked in September 2026 or earlier, but
• you must pay the levy if this stay is booked in October 2026 or later

Examples of how you will pay the levy on changes to bookings

On 31 March 2026, a local council publishes a notice that they will start the levy on 1 April 2027. You have a cottage in that area. This means you will need to start accounting for the levy from 1 October 2026.

Mary and John book your cottage for September 2027. They make their booking in February 2026. So, you do not have to pay the levy on their stay. Later, Mary and John decide to invite their daughter, Alison, to stay with them. They add her to their booking on 1 December 2026. Since they added Alison to the booking after 1 October 2026, you now must pay the levy on Alison’s part of the stay.

In the same area, Clyde books a stay in your hotel for August 2027. He books in May 2026, so you do not need to pay the levy on his stay. In March 2027 Clyde adds 3 more nights to his booking. You will now have to pay the levy on the 3 nights Clyde has added to his stay.

You'll need to keep records to be able to count how much levy you owe when you file your Visitor Levy returns.

The records for each booking must include:

• how many visitors were booked to stay
• how many nights they were booked to stay

You also need to keep records on the stays that you do not pay the levy for, including:

• number of stays that are 32 nights or more from one single booking
• number of children under 18 years of age staying in a lower rate accommodation (you do not need to record any personal details, such as date of birth or name)
• stays provided as temporary housing by a local council

What if your visitor numbers change

You will pay the levy based on the number of the people a booking is made for. You will not need to track daily changes in visitor numbers during their stay.

You must calculate the levy amounts for each booking.

To count how much levy you must pay per booking:

• take the number of guests on the booking
• multiply it by the number of nights they were booked for, then
• multiply it by the levy rate

For example, say you had 4 visitors staying for 7 nights in your cottage:

1. Work out the number of overnight stays for this booking by multiplying 4 visitors × 7 nights = 28 overnight stays.
2. Multiply these overnight stays by your levy rate: 28 × £1.30 = £36.40.
3. You must pay the levy of £36.40 for that booking.

How to calculate your levy amount for lower rate stays

Remove the number of children under 18 years of age when calculating the levy you owe on lower rate stays.

For example

• You had a family of 5 camping in a tent for 3 nights on your campsite pitch. All 3 of the children were under 18 years of age.
• You need to subtract the 3 children from your total 5 visitors. This amounts to 2 visitors staying for 3 nights you must pay the levy on.
• The levy rate of 75 pence per person per night applies to pitches for tents. This means you need to multiply 2 visitors × 3 nights × £0.75 = £4.50. You must pay the levy of £4.50 for that booking.

You will file levy returns only if your visitor accommodation is in an area where a local council has started the levy.

You will file your levy returns based on how much levy you think you will be owing. If you think you will owe:

• £1,000 or less of levy in that year, you can file your levy return once a year or choose to do it quarterly (every 3 months)
• more than £1000 of the levy per year, you must file your returns quarterly (every 3 months)

Yearly filing of your levy returns

The accounting period for the yearly filing runs until 31 March.

You must file and pay your levy by 31 May of that year.

For example, you must file and pay by 31 May 2028 for the accounting period of 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2028.

Quarterly filing of your levy returns (every 3 months)

When filing every 3 months, you must file your levy returns for each of these periods:

• 1 April to 30 June
• 1 July to 30 September
• 1 October to 31 December
• 1 January to 31 March

You will have 60 days after the end of each filing period to file and pay your levy return. Which means you must file and pay your levy by:

• 29 August for the period of 1 April to 30 June
• 29 November for the period of 1 July to 30 September 
• 1 March (or 29 February in a leap year) for the period of 1 October to 31 December
• 30 May for the period of 1 January to 31 March

The Welsh Revenue Authority will provide the services to file and pay your Visitor Levy.

You will be able to use the services to:

• file your levy return
• pay your levy
• check your levy records

You will also need to have your visitor accommodation registered before you can file and pay your Visitor Levy.

You must file and pay your VL return on time. If you do not, you may receive a penalty.

If you receive a penalty, you will be able to ask for a review or appeal.

Further guidance on penalties is being prepared.

If you have questions about the levy start in your area

Ask the local council of your visitor accommodation if you want to:

• know what their plans for Visitor Levy are
• get involved in the planning and consultations
• learn how they plan to use the levy money

You can also check if a local council charges Visitor Levy in Wales.

If you have questions about filing and paying the levy

To get more information about filing and paying Visitor Levy, you can:

• sign up for updates about Visitor Levy from the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA)
• you can also contact the WRA for help with filing and paying the levy