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.
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 should contribute to managing the impact of a successful tourism economy.
The Act 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 Act 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.