Why should accommodation providers have to pay to take money for the council? Surely a centralised council website (that customers can be directed to on making a booking) that handles all levy fees would cut out additional costs and time for accommodation owners and allow for the council to deal with exemptions directly.
Accommodation providers are required by national legislation to collect the visitor levy from guests and remit it to the council if there is a scheme, as they are best placed to do so during the booking and check鈥恑n process. This system is intended to ensure that funds would be efficiently gathered and then reinvested in local tourism infrastructure and services.
Our ongoing consultation includes asking businesses about support (such as financial or training) they would expect to need if a visitor levy was introduced.
Additionally, there would be an implementation period of at least 18 months following any decision to introduce a visitor levy to allow for arrangements to be made. The earliest a visitor levy could be introduced in 撸sir视频 and Bute is early 2027.
Has 撸sir视频 and Bute Council calculated how much private investment will be lost in the tourism sector due to this proposal?
It is acknowledged that businesses have many things to consider before they make investment decisions. At this time, we are not aware of any evidence or direct feedback from private investors indicating that the levy would deter investment in the tourism sector.
In the consultation we have asked for any thoughts on alternative funding sources for investment in our visitor economy infrastructure and services. New ideas are welcome.
Is there any possibility that the council will agree to send the proposed levy legislation back to the Scottish Government for amendment?
This may be possible, but it would be a political decision for the Council.
In its current form, the visitor levy legislation is, in my view, not suitable for a rural area. It should not be a percentage rate. It should not expect accommodation providers to act as unpaid tax collectors.
As a member of the HIREP (Highlands and Islands Regional Economic Partnership), the Council agreed to a collective response to the Scottish Government consultation on the bill where HIREP sought that councils would have full discretion to implement a percentage rate or a flat rate in relation to a Visitor Levy. However, the legislation is based on a percentage rate.
Guests who are not tourists should not be expected to pay, for example, making a hospital visit, waiting for a ferry, nhs staff covering hospital shortages, workers and contractors coming from outside 撸sir视频.
As part of the consultation we are asking people to tell us about any exemptions from paying that they think should apply if a visitor levy is introduced.
Do you agree that a flat rate per room would be fairer and easier to collect?
The legislation does not give scope for a flat room rate and requires a visitor levy to come via accommodation providers to the council for investment in the visitor economy.
What work is being done during the consultation process to ensure councillors are well informed on the potential impact of a visitor levy in this area, including the disadvantages for islanders in particular that it poses?
Decisions are not being made during the consultation process 鈥揷ouncillors already have the full report and draft impact assessments, which cover island and mainland areas that went to them in December, and a key part of the consultation is asking everyone to tell us what a visitor levy would mean for you. That feedback will help us update the draft impact assessments, and those updated impact assessments, along with the findings from the consultation, will go to councillors for consideration once the consultation is complete.
Why is the council so reluctant to send this back to Holyrood considering the huge number of issues with the legislation and the genuine concerns being put forward by local businesses?
The council is not reluctant to address the issues; rather, we are working within the framework provided by Holyrood. We encourage stakeholders to continue sharing their feedback through the consultation process so that their concerns are fully considered by the national government who will see these through the publication of our consultation report.
If it is a Visitor Levy, why are day visitors not being charged like they are in Venice and other cities (payable by the visitor directly on the website- this would cost no more to implement).
The national legislation allows for a levy charged on overnight stays only.
Why will this levy be the highest levy in the whole of Europe...higher than cities when we are a rural area (with evidence showing that accommodation bookings are going down)?
The rate a visitor levy would be set at if introduced has not been decided 鈥 one of the questions in our ongoing consultation asks about views on what would be an appropriate rate for a visitor levy, and we are encouraging responses to that question.
Views are also welcome on exemptions from paying it, and the number of nights a visitor levy should apply for if one is introduced.
Why is only the accommodation sector being targeted and why are the figures the council thinks it will earn incorrect (they include day visitors)?
This is because the Scottish Government has clearly defined a role for Accommodation Providers in the national legislation.
It should be noted that the income projected from a Visitor Levy is based on estimated overnight stays and does not include day visitors as suggested in the question.
Motor homes not staying on official sites have not been included in the national Government legislation; however, the government is looking at this issue together with Cruise Ship visitors.
What guarantee is there that all monies raised will be ringfenced and spent on visitor facilities? (2) Will there be public consultation on the priority given to each project?
If the visitor levy is introduced, the council is legally required to ensure that the funds are used exclusively for enhancing visitor facilities and an annual report has to be provided to the Scottish Government to evidence this.
A visitor levy forum, including community and business reps, would be established to provide advice on how visitor levy income would be used, if a levy comes into being.
What are you planning to use the money for?
As part of the consultation, we are asking people to tell us what you would like income spent on if a visitor levy was introduced.
The funds raised through this levy would have to be reinvested into local services, infrastructure, and initiatives for the visitor economy, helping to offset the costs of maintaining and improving areas that attract visitors.
Is the levy not going to deter visitors? Isn't that a bad idea, given how hospitality is struggling already? Tourism is vital to Scotland's future.
The national visitor levy legislation gives an option for raising investment specifically in the visitor economy and could assist 撸sir视频 and Bute鈥檚 future as a competitive visitor destination. It is recognised that there is risk that some visitors could be put off if they need to pay a levy; on the other hand, visitors may go elsewhere with better services and infrastructure funded through a visitor levy in an area that adopts a visitor levy scheme. A balance needs to be struck and this is why we are consulting businesses, visitors and residents on the levy.
We don鈥檛 live locally but have a seasonal caravan pitch in Oban how will we be impacted as we use it most weekends? Do we have to pay a % based on the number of nights we stay?
If you are renting the pitch from the owner, you would have to pay an additional percentage on top of your normal accommodation charge to cover the visitor levy contribution. However, there is a question in the survey which asks about your thoughts about capping the number of nights that the visitor levy would be charged on.
How would this levy be collected and how would accommodation providers pay it? Would accommodation providers need to keep separate records?
A national platform is being developed and we would look at options for using this platform if the council decided to implement a levy. Details are still being finalised but accommodation providers would submit their data on overnight accommodation stays and the levy amount collected would be calculated based on the information returned.
Accommodation providers would need to maintain records of the accommodation charges relevant to the levy return. The system is being designed to integrate with existing accounting processes as much as possible, but some additional record-keeping may be necessary.
If a decision is taken to introduce a visitor levy, there would be an implementation period of at least 18 months. As part of the consultation, we are asking businesses to tell us what support they would need if a levy was introduced.
What impact will this have on accommodation providers with regards to tax?
In the UK, VAT is charged at 20% on the price paid for the supply of taxable goods or services, including other taxes, levies and charges. In the case of the visitor levy, when an accommodation provider includes a visitor levy in the cost of the overnight accommodation, this forms part of what is paid under a contract for the supply of the accommodation. This portion of the visitor levy would be subject to the same VAT liability as the accommodation.
Along with strategic partners on the Highlands and Islands Regional Economic Partnership, 撸sir视频 and Bute Council contest this point as in effect the accommodation provider is a conduit to collect the visitor levy for the local authority. Representation will be made to the HMRC on this issue.
What strategies are in place should a visitor levy result in a fall in tourist numbers?
The scheme has been aligned to the 撸sir视频 and the Islands Strategic Tourism Partnership Strategy, and the associated action plan would continue to be monitored along with tourism data. Actions would be taken to address any trends in tourism numbers.
What support will be in place for accommodation providers during the implementation phase?
To help mitigate the requirements and demands a visitor levy would place on businesses, we are asking businesses to tell us about help or support they would expect to need to offset any setup costs and any additional administrative costs related to a visitor levy.
There would be an implementation period of at least 18 months following any decision being made to introduce a levy. Support available for businesses would depend on what businesses tell us they need, so we would welcome as much feedback as possible on that question during the consultation.
Why is this called a Visitor Levy? It's an accommodation tax, not a visitor levy.
The term "Visitor Levy" is used because that is what is in the national visitor levy legislation and the fee is specifically designed to benefit the visitor economy, rather than simply being a tax on accommodation. Although it is collected through accommodation providers, its primary purpose is to reinvest in visitor economy infrastructure and services that enhance the overall visitor experience.
Interested to know how the value of levy projected has been calculated, and how charging people more to stay in 撸sir视频 will encourage more to come, in view of the current rate of falling visitor numbers.
The projected levy value has been calculated by data analysts at the University of Edinburgh Business School who reviewed historical trends, seasonal variations, from Co-Star data and STEAM data sources. This data was fed into a seasonal ARMIA model which is a popular statistical model used for analysing and forecasting time series data.
The same process was undertaken by the City of Edinburgh Council in projecting their potential level of income from the Visitor Levy.
The council mentions 2.7 million visitors but 2.7m visitors isn鈥檛 2.7m overnight stays. What figures do you have for this?
You are correct. 2.7 million visitors comes from STEAM data, we have 1.78 million overnight stays from Visit Scotland data.
It should be noted the income projected from a Visitor Levy is based on estimated overnight stays and does not include day visitors.
What exemptions for local people does the Council intend for the visitor levy?
This is one of the things we are asking for views on in the consultation. Please tell us about anyone you think should be exempt if a visitor levy is introduced.
How are you advertising the consultation? Why not on all community pages on social media?
We want to hear from as many people as possible so we are taking different steps to promote the consultation.
We are issuing information through different contact networks that services across the council have, and drawing on established email subscriptions to reach people, including our weekly news round up for example, which alone has nearly 4,000 subscribers. We have also set up an email subscription specifically about the visitor levy and issue updates through that.
We update our website regularly, based on questions that come to us, and provide links through our social media channels, and where resources allow, on additional social media accounts. To help reach people in non-digital ways, we have made posters available in our customer service points, and in libraries and leisure centres; and the council is holding a series of online and face-to-face information events.
We continue to look at how we can build on this work and will be taking further action throughout the consultation period. Thank you to everyone who has already responded to the consultation.
We (business) do not produce bills for most visitors these are produced by booking.com, have you consulted booking.com?
The council has not consulted Booking.com directly however we are aware that City of Edinburgh Council and the Improvement Service are working with Booking.com and other online travel agencies to discuss the National Visitor Levy Platform that is being developed. If the council decide to implement a Visitor Levy, we would start that engagement at a suitable time.