Consultation launched on a draft Visitor Levy for East Lothian
The consultation on a draft Visitor Levy Scheme for East Lothian is now underway, after councillors unanimously gave the go ahead at the Council meeting on Tuesday 23 June.
The draft scheme has been prepared following a process of evidence gathering, stakeholder engagement and financial analysis. A 12-week statutory consultation has now been launched, including an online survey open to everyone alongside direct engagement with accommodation providers, businesses, community representatives and others with an interest in East Lothian's visitor economy.
The consultation invites views on all aspects of the Draft Visitor Levy Scheme, including its purpose and objectives, levy design, exemptions, governance arrangements and the proposed use of net proceeds. Alongside the consultation, we will continue to refine our evidence base, including further economic modelling and appraisal, before a final report is presented to Council later this year.
A visitor levy is a charge applied to overnight stays in paid accommodation, paid by visitors and collected by accommodation providers, with proceeds ring fenced for tourism related purposes.
The draft East Lothian levy currently proposes a five per cent charge on top of accommodation costs, which would be collected by accommodation providers via a nationally managed digital portal. This means that a one-night stay costing £100 would incur a Visitor Levy of £5 or a one-night stay costing £60 would incur a Visitor Levy of £3. The levy would apply to the accommodation charge only and would not apply to charges for meals, drinks, parking or other services.
The charge would apply to hotels, guest houses, B&Bs, self-catering accommodation (including short term lets), hostels and paid camping and caravanning accommodation located within East Lothian. The current proposal is that accommodation providers would retain two per cent of the levy collected to contribute towards their administration costs. It is estimated that the scheme would generate approximately £1.2 million per year to be spent on facilities mainly used by visitors.
National legislation requires a minimum implementation period of 18 months before a scheme could be introduced, meaning any levy would not commence before spring 2028, if approved by Council at a meeting later this year.
The survey is now open on the East Lothian Consultation Hub with direct engagement work with stakeholders to follow.