Tourists and travelers who come soon to the popular Edinburgh destination

A “tourist tax” for hotels starting next year will be implemented in Edinburgh, Scotland – the first in the UK.

At the end of January, the Edinburgh City Council decided to move forward with a 5% fee for the night in overnight accommodation in the city. The tax shall enter into force on July 24, 2026.

The new tax is “is a 5% payment at the cost of paid accommodation, overnight. The tax will be charged before VAT and will not be charged with additions such as parking, food, drink or transportation,” the website said for the City Council of Edinburgh.

This fee will not only apply to hotels, the website said.

It will also be placed in “self-fructing apartments, apoteles, beds and breakfast, guest houses, guesthouses, students [rentals] – only when [rented] For visitors and non-edinburgh students, vehicles or ships (ships), which mainly stay in one place, holiday/short-term [rentals]and caravan/camp sites, ”the city’s website said.

The tax will be caught after the first five nights in a row, the city’s website said.

While referring as a “tourist tax”, anyone who pays for Edinburgh accommodation will have to pay for some reason.

“Anyone who stands in paid shelter, overnight in Edinburgh needs[s] To pay the tax, ”the council website said.

“This includes tourists, people who stay for work or visit the city for other reasons. This includes the inhabitants of the United Kingdom and the Scots.”

The Edinburgh City Council believes the new tax will raise about £ 50m (about $ 63 million in US dollars) a year.

Advisor Jane Meagher, the leader of the City Council, called the new tax a “historic moment for Edinburgh”.

It continued, “presenting this tax on the field means realizing an opportunity once in a lifetime to invest tens of millions of pounds towards improving and maintaining things that make our city such a great place to visit and live In- and live inside and live inside and live inside and live inside and live throughout the year. “

Meagher praised the tax and said there is a “large amount of support, not just from local residents”.

Not everyone, however, are excited about the changes.

Leon Thompson, Executive Director of UK hospitality Scotland, expressed his disapproval of the new tax, saying he would make the city less competitive as a tourist destination.

“Our fundamental concern has always been that this level will only serve to make visitors to Edinburgh more expenses, eventually reducing their expenses in the wider economy of visitors and determining future visits,” he said in a state.

“It is now the task of the Council to use these funds wisely to improve the attraction of the capital as a visit of visitors and to mitigate the impact of tax on businesses.”