Tourist tax in Scotland

Scotland has no national tourist tax. Instead the Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act 2024 lets each council add a percentage of the room price, and five have agreed one. Edinburgh has charged 5% on the first 5 nights since 24 July 2026; Glasgow, Aberdeen, Stirling and West Dunbartonshire start during 2027.

Updated 10 October 2026

Every council's levy

Agreed visitor levies in Scotland
Council	Rate	Stays from	Nights charged	Bookings caught from	A week at £120 a night
Edinburgh	5%	24 July 2026 (charging now)	First 5 nights	1 October 2025	£25
Glasgow	5%	25 January 2027	Every night	1 April 2026	£35
Aberdeen	7%	1 April 2027	Every night	1 October 2026	£49
Stirling	3%	14 June 2027	First 7 nights	1 January 2027	£21
West Dunbartonshire	5%	1 July 2027	Every night	1 October 2026	£35

Every rate is a percentage of the accommodation price before VAT. The last column is our calculator's answer for 7 nights in one room at £120 a night, VAT included.

How the Scottish levies work

The levy is charged on paid overnight stays: hotels, B&Bs, guest houses, hostels, self-catering and short lets such as Airbnb, and pitches on caravan and camp sites. It's a share of the accommodation part of the price, so meals, parking and other extras priced separately are left out, and small hosts below the VAT threshold charge it too. Your host adds it to the bill and pays the council through the national visitorlevy.scot platform.

The levy is worked out on the price before VAT, but at a VAT-registered hotel or host 20% VAT is added to the levy too, so a £5 levy shows as £6 on the bill. VisitScotland's guidance for councils (August 2026) works every example this way, Glasgow City Council's user guide for accommodation providers (October 2025) shows the £5 plus £1, and the City of Edinburgh Council's guide for accommodation providers (version 2.1, September 2026) says VAT-registered hosts owe VAT on it. Small hosts not registered for VAT add none.

Each council chooses its rate, whether to cap the nights and the date bookings start to carry it, and has to give at least 18 months' notice. That's why Edinburgh stops after 5 nights while Glasgow and Aberdeen charge every night, and why a room booked today for next summer can already include a levy.

Who doesn't pay

Anyone for whom the place is their only or usual home: people who are homeless, fleeing domestic abuse, or asylum seekers and refugees in temporary accommodation.
Gypsy and Traveller sites.
Guests on disability benefits, who pay at the time and claim the levy back from the council after the stay.

Councils still deciding

Highland is consulting on a flat £5 per room per night for hotels, B&Bs and holiday lets and £2 for hostels and campsites, with a decision due in December 2026. Argyll and Bute consulted until 5 October 2026, and Perth and Kinross is consulting until 11 November 2026. VisitScotland also lists Dundee and Falkirk as at the consultation stage. With 18 months' notice needed, a Highland levy couldn't start before mid-2028.

Checked 10 October 2026
Council	What it proposes	Where it stands
Highland	£5 per room per night in hotels, B&Bs and holiday lets, £2 in hostels and campsites, not charged December to February	Consultation 7 September to 30 November 2026; councillors decide in December 2026
Dundee	Two options: 5% of the room price, or £5 per room per night	Consultation 31 August to 27 November 2026; 2028/29 at the earliest
Perth and Kinross	A fixed amount per room or unit per night	Consultation 19 August to 11 November 2026; a report back to the council in December 2026
Falkirk	No rate published yet	Consultation open until 25 November 2026
Argyll and Bute	A flat amount per room per night	Consultation closed on 5 October 2026

In early talks, with no draft scheme yet: Aberdeenshire, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (the Western Isles), Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire, Fife, Moray, Orkney and South Ayrshire. Every one of Scotland's 32 councils has the power to charge.

Questions people ask about Scotland

Is there a tourist tax in Scotland?

Yes, but only where a council has chosen one. Edinburgh has charged a 5% visitor levy since 24 July 2026, and Glasgow (5% from 25 January 2027), Aberdeen (7% from 1 April 2027), Stirling (3% from 14 June 2027) and West Dunbartonshire (5% from 1 July 2027) have agreed theirs. Everywhere else in Scotland charges nothing for now.

How much is the tourist tax in Scotland?

Each council sets its own percentage of the accommodation price before VAT: 5% in Edinburgh, 5% in Glasgow, 7% in Aberdeen, 3% in Stirling, 5% in West Dunbartonshire. A week at £120 a night costs £25 in Edinburgh, which charges only the first 5 nights, and £49 in Aberdeen, the most so far.

Do children pay the Scottish visitor levy?

There is no separate rate for children. The levy is a share of the room price, so it only changes if adding a child changes the price.

Who gets the levy back?

In every scheme, people who get a disability benefit such as PIP, Adult Disability Payment or Attendance Allowance pay it and then claim it back from the council. Nobody pays where the accommodation is their only home, for example people who are homeless or in refuges. Stirling also refunds carers and its own residents.

Can Scottish councils charge a flat amount instead?

Since the Visitor Levy (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2026 they can: a fixed amount per room or per night, or tiered amounts, up to limits Scottish Ministers set. Every scheme agreed so far uses a percentage; Highland is consulting on a flat rate.

Sources

Checked on 10 October 2026. Each council's own page is listed on its page here.