Oggy Bloggy Ogwr

Senedd Home

Thursday, October 15, 2026

No Result

View All Result

No Result

View All Result

Overnight Visitor Levy (aka. “Tourist Tax”)

by Owen Donovan

September 3, 2026

in Finance & Tax, Issues

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit Share on Bluesky Share by email

Image Source: pexels.com, copyright free

Disclaimer Senedd Home is an independent website and isn't affiliated or associated with Senedd Cymru/Welsh Parliament.

This site is best when in landscape or desktop mode on smartphones.

Senedd Home was mothballed for five long years because of a lack of support. Don’t let it happen again. This site doesn’t receive any public funding or subsidy. If you believe I’m trying something new here or like what’s being done, consider a donation. One-off or monthly; as little or as much as you want.
Click the links below, or full details are available here.

Overnight Visitor Levy (aka. "Tourist Tax")

Is this devolved to Wales?

Where is this happening?

What's happening?

Why is this happening?

Who has been affected?

What's happening?

Why is this happening?

Who has been affected?

Charts (if needed)

Example Title

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Mauris tempus nisl vitae magna pulvinar laoreet. Nullam erat ipsum, mattis nec mollis ac, accumsan a enim. Nunc at euismod arcu. Aliquam ullamcorper eros justo, vel mollis neque facilisis vel.

Souce text, source text, source text.

£ 00 million Total

Cheese
Explanation
Etc

Who has raised this at the Senedd?

Elin Jones MS

Finance Minister

Adam Price MS

Enterprise & Energy Minister

Anna Nicholl MS

Backbencher

Elwyn Vaughan MS

Chair: Economy & Energy

Louise Emery MS

Shadow Culture Minister

John Clark MS

Backbencher

Sarah Edwards MS

Backbencher

Steven Senior MS

Shadow Education Minister

Huw Thomas MS

Backbencher

Shav Taj MS

Backbencher

Paul Davies MS

Conservative Whip

Elin Jones MS

Finance Minister

Adam Price MS

Enterprise & Energy Minister

Anna Nicholl MS

Backbencher

Elwyn Vaughan MS

Chair: Economy & Energy

Louise Emery MS

Shadow Culture Minister

John Clark MS

Backbencher

Sarah Edwards MS

Backbencher

Steven Senior MS

Shadow Education Minister

Huw Thomas MS

Backbencher

Shav Taj MS

Backbencher

Paul Davies MS

Conservative Whip

What are the party positions on this?

Plaid Cymru backbenchers support the levy, pointing to its introduction in parts of England and Scotland.

The truth is that tourism taxes are common worldwide, including in Amsterdam, Venice, Barcelona and Paris, some of the cities with the greatest influx of tourists in the world. And of course, by now, there are great parts of England that have this tax—and in Scotland as well—including Liverpool and Manchester. The tax does not penalise the tourism sector, rather it boosts income for local government to improve our areas, to reinvest, to improve visitor amenities in the area, improving the feel of our tourism destinations and therefore facilitating sustainable tourism.

I fully support the Government taking steps to enable sustainable tourism that secures jobs and income into local economies and which benefits our communities, environment, language and culture. And I support measures that prevent harm. That's why I support the visitor levy as a choice for local authorities to ensure that local communities reap the rewards of tourism. Funds raised through the visitor levy enable investment in the local environment, the Welsh language and culture, and local infrastructure, which also supports tourism.

Reform UK oppose the levy and believe it places an unnecessary burden on the tourism industry, negatively affecting cross-border tourism with England.

A tax on visitors is a tax on the jobs that serve them, a blunt instrument that hits small, rural and coastal operators hardest....Layer a visitor levy on top of (VAT) and we're pricing Wales out of the market when we're trying to grow the sector. It's not even been implemented yet, but the perception of Wales taxing visitors, especially from England, has already had a negative impact on visitor numbers.

A £1.30 charge on a £50 room represents a far higher percentage increase than the same charge on a £200 room. It hits cheaper accommodation hardest, precisely the kind used by families, younger visitors and domestic tourists, the people who keep our smaller businesses alive....This levy imposes more paperwork, administration costs and responsibility. It is not progressive; it is a tax on aspiration.

Given that the Government has stated that the visitor levy is designed to create sustainable tourism in Wales, could you quantify exactly what sustainable tourism entails, and how much is it going to cost to achieve this, as the feedback from my constituents suggests that we need an impact study on the negative effects of this tax on visitor numbers?

Labour introduced the law in the last term whilst in government. MSs believe the levy will help cover the cost of hosting major events.

Here's the mad thing, for all the visitors that come to Cardiff....for all the money they spend in local bars, restaurants, hotels, for all the overnight clean-up operations required after 70,000 people have partied in the Principality, the council receives not one penny of income, thanks to the completely centralised taxation system we have in this country. A visitor levy, estimated to raise about £3.5 million a year for Cardiff, starts to change that calculation so that the council raises revenue...to fund a better experience for visitors and residents alike.

In Cardiff, we have chosen to introduce the levy, and it will come into effect next April. Anglesey, Conwy and Gwynedd councils are currently consulting, and they will make their decisions later this year. The challenges and the opportunities around the visitor economy will ebb and flow, and all councils are free to make their decisions in the future. And that's exactly the point here: this is a great example of devolving power beyond the Senedd, taking decisions closer to the people who live there.

The Conservatives voted in favour of Reform UK’s motion calling for the levy to be scrapped. They believe it adds extra burdens onto a sector that’s come under increasing pressure.

This levy does not support business owners and it does not maintain affordability for visitors. It's also highly likely to be applied inconsistently across local authority areas, pitting one county against another and risks worsening an already fragile tourism market. And this will not just only tax tourists, it will apply to everyone who stays overnight in Wales, including people within Wales.

Llywydd, the tourism sector has been overwhelmed with additional financial pressures, and rather than pause and consider the cumulative impact of all of these policies, the previous Government added more burdens on business owners, and so the new Welsh Government has an opportunity here to reset the balance.

Green MSs haven’t said anything on this specifically, but voted against the Reform UK motion to scrap the levy.

Test Test Test

Jane Dodds hasn’t said anything on this specifically, but voted against the Reform UK motion to scrap the visitor levy.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

Who is responsible?

Elin Jones MS

Finance Minister

What have ministers said?

This policy is now passed over to local authorities. They have the discretion to introduce or not the visitor levy in their areas, and there are requirements of any local authority that's interested in introducing a visitor levy to undertake assessments (of sustainable tourism).

Where tourism happens, there are impacts on the local area. That's not a criticism of the sector, it's a facet of success. Visitor levies are neither unusual nor untested. They operate successfully in destinations across Europe and the world, providing resources for the very infrastructure and services that make places worth visiting in the first place. It's, rightly, for each local authority to consult and decide, but, where a levy is introduced, it's an opportunity to make the visitor economy work both for the sector and for the communities that host it, and this Government supports that model.

What's being done about this?

What do the Welsh Government want to do?

Does this need a new law or regulations?

How long will this take?

What do the Welsh Government want to do?

Does this need a new law or regulations?

How long will this take?

What have the Senedd's Committees said?

Nothing has been discussed yet.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit.
Quisque faucibus ex sapien vitae pellentesque sem placerat.
In id cursus mi pretium tellus duis convallis.
Tempus leo eu aenean sed diam urna tempor.
Pulvinar vivamus fringilla lacus nec metus bibendum egestas. Iaculis massa nisl malesuada lacinia integer nunc posuere. Ut hendrerit semper vel class aptent taciti sociosqu.
Ad litora torquent per conubia nostra inceptos himenaeos.Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit. Quisque faucibus ex sapien vitae pellentesque sem placerat. In id cursus mi pretium tellus duis convallis.

Relevant Votes

Date	Motion Number	Subject	Tabled As	Binding Vote?	Votes For	Abstentions	Votes Against	Absent/No Vote	Outcome
08/07/26	NDM9284	Amendment – Support tourist levy; keep 182-rule under review		No	51	0	38	5	AGREED
08/07/26	NDM9284	Scrap the tourist levy and review 182-day holiday let rule		No	38	0	51	5	REJECTED

Further Reading

Welsh Government. “Visitor levy in Wales“

Related Issues

182-Day Occupancy Rule for Holiday Lets

Housing & Communities

182-Day Occupancy Rule for Holiday Lets

by Owen Donovan

September 3, 2026

Tags: CON-02 FIN 01 National PC-04-M PC-08 PC-30 PC-35 RF-02 RF-03 RF-11 RF-17 RF-31 RF-34