Two UK cities are already implementing tourism taxes on visitors, and more may follow in the coming years as local councils try to strengthen their revenues. Tourists are by no means a new concept, and popular European destinations such as Barcelona and Venice have already introduced them.
The purpose of the tourism tax is to generate revenue for destinations, mitigate the potential negative impact of the General Assembly, and to encourage investment in local services. Edinburgh made the headline last month when the city council decided to implement a 5% visitor tax on overnight stays. This is the largest tax ever introduced in the UK.
Rates apply per person and per night for the first 5 nights of your stay. It is estimated to bring £50 million each year and will be used to improve the city, including strengthening lighting and pedestrian schemes.
However, the Tourism Director has raised concerns that the financially strained council could use taxes to plug in tax deficits rather than strengthening amenities across Edinburgh. The new claim follows the law passed by the SNP-led Scottish government, which allows visitors taxation to help the council acquire and reinvest funds from tourism growth.
The Scottish tenant association, Living Rent, is urging Edinburgh Council and other local governments to allocate tourism tax revenues to affordable housing, reported Mirror. Union Chairman Adity Jehangir said the funds should be used to “improve the lives of those who live and work in our cities,” and invested in councils and social housing. Advocate for money.
In response, Edinburgh Council has pledged £5 million in annual revenues from taxes to housing and “tourism easing”. Meanwhile, Glasgow has launched consultations on the proposed 5% tourism tax. If approved, the fee applies to overnight stays.
Over the next 12 weeks, the city will gather feedback from residents on how its revenue can be used to strengthen its tourism sector. Under the current proposal, the city retained 3.5% of the collection, with the remaining 1.5% returning to operators to offset administrative costs.
Other Scotland regions, including Aberdeen, Falkirk, Highlands, Sterling, Argyle and Butte, are also considering introducing tourism taxes. In the UK, Liverpool is considering carrying out a collection of £2 per night for visitors staying in town.
Liverpool's Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID) is encouraging property providers who provide member hotels and services to adopt visitor rates for the new city. The initiative, which aims to support the city's growth and development, was introduced as early as June 2025 and is projected to generate around £6 million.
Meanwhile, in London, Mayor Sadiq Khan has expressed his willingness to consider tourism tax. Although no formal proposals have been made, Khan said he will monitor the impact of a similar scheme to Manchester tourism tax in other European cities.
According to the BBC, Khan said: The UK similarly states that “In Bristol, Liberal Democrat groups proposed collecting visitors despite not in power. They described it as “an innovative source of revenue.” We offer a £2 night accommodation rate.
The proposal is part of the amendment to the city council's annual budget set for today's discussion on February 25th.
Manchester already implemented a £1 per night scheme for visitors, generating £2.8 million in its first year. The city introduced a tourism tax in April 2023, becoming the first British city to do so.
Funds collected from this tax are used for street cleaning and marketing initiatives. Manchester Accommodation Bid, an organization representing 74 hotels and serviced apartment providers in the city, was established in 2023 to manage funds raised from taxation.
This is part of a strategy to maintain a high visitor occupancy as more hotels and tourist apartments were built in the city amid concerns that the number of visitors is not consistent with the pace of development. It was.
