Visitor Levy for visitor accommodation providers: technical guidance - Meaning of visitor accommodation provider

Visitor Levy is a self-assessed tax. It is the responsibility of the visitor accommodation provider to account for and comply with the levy.

A person will be a visitor accommodation provider, if in the course of trade or business that person:

• provides, or offers to provide, visitor accommodation at premises in Wales, and
• occupies the premises where visitor accommodation is provided

A person provides visitor accommodation if they enter into a contract under which, or in consequence of which, one or more people are allowed to stay in the visitor accommodation at premises in Wales for at least one night.

The contract between the visitor accommodation provider and the visitor or visitors is key in Visitor Levy and determining how much levy is payable on a stay.

Example

Joan runs a bed and breakfast and owns the premises she runs her business from. She enters into contracts with guests for them to stay overnight at her bed and breakfast, which is classed as visitor accommodation. Joan is a visitor accommodation provider.

A person offers to provide visitor accommodation if they are willing to enter into agreements with someone and allow them to stay at least one night in their premises in Wales and includes making others aware that their accommodation is available for stays. Agreements would include those made through online marketplaces, verbal agreements and bookings through other channels.

If a person is marketing or advertising their premises, whether it is on a website, social media, other online platform, in brochures, on shop noticeboards or elsewhere, and willing to enter into agreements for stays at their premises then they will be offering to provide visitor accommodation.

If a person is willing to accept future bookings, they too are offering to provide visitor accommodation.

Example

Liam offers his spare room out on social media over busy holiday periods. As he markets his spare room on the internet, he meets test of offering to provide visitor accommodation.  

An occupier of the premises will normally be a person who has control over the premises and how they are used, such as the running of the visitor accommodation business. They may also be responsible for complying with legal requirements relating to the premises and keeping it in good condition. It’s likely that an occupier will also receive profits from providing visitor accommodation at the premises.

An occupier might be, for example, a legal owner of the premises, a tenant under a lease, or a person with a right to occupy the premises under a licence to occupy.

An agent or management company who act on behalf of the visitor accommodation provider is unlikely to be an occupier of the premises.

Example 1

Mr Jones owns a Bed and Breakfast in South Wales and regularly has guests staying at his premises; his income comes from this business. He is the occupier of the bed and breakfast, enters into contracts with visitors allowing them to stay overnight and therefore he is a visitor accommodation provider.

Example 2

Margaret rents a flat in Cardiff. With permission from her landlord, she advertises her spare room for overnight stays for the purpose of leisure travel most weekends. She does this to add to her income. Margaret is the occupier of the flat and is offering to provide visitor accommodation, so she is a visitor accommodation provider.