Home

Visitor Levy Member Information Page

This page is our member resource for all the latest news, updates, and key information about the introduction of the visitor levy. We are actively collaborating with industry partners, associations, and BIDs, and participating in all relevant industry meetings and forums to stay informed about the process. This will enable us to keep you informed about the ongoing process, important developments, and upcoming events related to the scheme.

What You’ll Find Here:

Key Updates: Regular announcements and progress reports.
Event Calendar: Details of workshops, consultations, and other opportunities to get involved.
Documents & Resources: Access to guides, FAQs, and policy information.
Contact & Feedback: Where to submit your feedback about the levy

We’re committed to maintaining clear and open communication as this process unfolds. Please check back regularly to stay informed and ensure your voice is heard and shapes this important initiative.

Highland Visitor Levy: A 12-Week Industry Programme

As Highland Council moves into its 12-week statutory consultation on the proposed Visitor Levy, Visit Inverness Loch Ness is coordinating a programme of industry engagement to ensure Highland’s tourism businesses have a strong, informed and evidence-led voice.

We are working with a growing group of partners including the Scottish Tourism Alliance, Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers, Highland Hotels Association, Highland Caravan & Camping Parks Association, Inverness City Centre BID, Nairn BID and Dornoch BID, alongside other BIDs and sector representatives.

Over the coming weeks, we will bring businesses together through a series of sector and geographic discussions, looking at the proposed levy from different perspectives. This will include its potential impact on businesses and visitors, administration and collection, different accommodation models, seasonality and the significant differences between tourism markets across Highland.

We will also consider how any income raised could deliver genuine additional benefit through investment in visitor infrastructure, communities, culture, the environment, skills and destination development.

The aim is not simply to campaign for or against the proposal. We want to understand the evidence, hear directly from businesses and visitors, and identify what a fair, proportionate and workable approach could look like for Highland.

The evidence gathered through the programme will help inform individual consultation responses and contribute towards a joint Highland industry evidence report ahead of the Council’s December decision.

This is an important opportunity for the Highland tourism industry to come together, be ambitious and make the strongest possible case for the future of our visitor economy.

The first of our roundtable discussions will be set for the 21 September from 1-3PM. Bookings will open early next week and will focus on engaging with those involved in the Hotels and Serviced Accommodation Sectors.

Previous updates

August 2026

On Tuesday 25 August, Highland Council agreed to proceed with a 12-week statutory consultation on a proposed tiered fixed-amount Visitor Levy. The current proposal is £5 per room/area per night for hotels, guest houses, B&Bs, short-term lets and similar accommodation, and £2 for hostels, campsites and caravan parks. The proposed levy would apply for nine months of the year, excluding December, January and February, with accommodation providers retaining 5% towards administration. No decision has yet been made to introduce the levy.

The Council expects the consultation to begin in early September, with the findings and a finalised proposal due to return to Full Council on 10 December 2026.

So, what is VILN doing?

We recognise that this is an important and highly contested issue for our members. Our role is not simply to say yes or no. It is to make sure that the experiences, concerns and ideas of Inverness and Loch Ness businesses are properly represented in the decisions that follow.

Over the summer, VILN has been actively involved in discussions with Highland Council and industry partners, including raising concerns around the economic impact of a flat-rate model, administration for businesses, the fairness of different accommodation tiers, how revenue should be invested and the need for meaningful industry involvement in future decisions.

We have also been gathering direct evidence from our members through our own consultation. This has already provided us with valuable insight into the issues businesses are concerned about and, importantly, the changes and safeguards they would want to see if a levy progresses.

It is clear that there is still much work for us to do for the Councillors to fully understand the potential impacts of a Visitor Levy on our sector.

We are now taking this work further

VILN is working with the Highland Hotels Association, Highland BIDs and other representative organisations across the Highlands to develop a coordinated 12-week programme alongside the Council's statutory consultation.

This will include targeted sector and geographic discussions, bringing businesses together to provide detailed evidence and practical solutions. We are also seeking further engagement with Highland Council and elected members so that councillors can hear directly from the businesses that could be affected.

Our intention is to ensure that this is a constructive, evidence-led process, giving businesses the opportunity to explain what the proposed levy could mean in practice and what would need to change to make any future scheme fair, proportionate and workable.

We will be looking particularly at:

The economic impact of the proposed rates on different businesses.
Whether the proposed £5 and £2 tiers are genuinely proportionate.
The impact on lower-priced accommodation and longer stays.
Administration, collection and compliance costs.
The proposed 5% allowance for accommodation providers.
Seasonality and whether the proposed nine-month operating period is appropriate.
Exemptions and the treatment of different types of visitors and accommodation.
How levy revenue should be invested and how additionality can be demonstrated.
The role of destination marketing, responsible tourism and visitor management.
How businesses should be involved in decisions about future expenditure.
How investment can support infrastructure, communities and the wider visitor economy.

We need your continued input

The Council's decision this week means that the next 12 weeks are particularly important. The Council has confirmed that the draft scheme can be further developed and refined in response to consultation feedback before it returns to councillors in December.

This is not the end of the conversation. It is the point at which detailed business evidence matters most.

We will shortly publish further information about our programme of engagement and how you can take part. We will also continue to communicate opportunities for members to share their views directly with us.

If you have specific evidence about how the proposed levy could affect your business, please get in touch with Ellen at ellen@visitiln.com. Real examples from businesses will be particularly important in helping us demonstrate the practical implications of the proposal.

Our commitment remains clear: to make sure the voice of Inverness and Loch Ness businesses is heard, respected and properly considered throughout this process.

We appreciate that there are strong views on all sides. Our focus over the coming weeks will be on bringing those views together, strengthening the evidence and working collectively to secure the best possible outcome for our businesses, communities and visitors.

June 2026

Highland Council has now agreed the next steps in developing a potential Visitor Levy Scheme for the Highlands. At its meeting on 25 June, Members agreed that officers should continue developing a draft scheme for further consideration later this year.

Importantly, no final decision has been made to introduce a Visitor Levy. Before any scheme could be implemented, Highland Council must publish detailed proposals and undertake a formal statutory consultation, providing businesses, communities and visitors with the opportunity to comment on the draft scheme.

This next stage is particularly important, as it will provide much greater detail on how any proposed levy could operate, including the charging model, governance arrangements, proposed investment priorities and how funds would be reinvested to support the visitor economy and local communities.

Visit Inverness Loch Ness will be launching its own member consultation alongside Highland Council's formal consultation to ensure the views of businesses across Inverness Loch Ness are fully represented. We will share further information, consultation dates and opportunities to participate through our newsletters and member communications as soon as the draft scheme and consultation timetable are confirmed.

In the meantime, if you have views on the Visitor Levy, whether supportive, opposed or somewhere in between, we would welcome the opportunity to hear directly from you. This is an important opportunity for businesses to help shape the conversation and ensure that decisions are informed by the realities of operating tourism businesses and living within our communities.

If you would like to arrange a conversation to discuss the proposals and what they could mean for your business, please get in touch directly to our CEO, Ellen, and we can arrange a time to meet.

Your feedback will play a vital role in helping Visit Inverness Loch Ness develop an evidence-based position and ensure that the collective voice of our members is heard throughout the consultation process.

What Happens Next?

The indicative timetable is now expected to be:

Summer 2026 Highland Council officers continue developing a draft Visitor Levy Scheme.
Autumn 2026 Draft scheme presented to Members for approval to begin formal consultation.
Late 2026 Statutory public consultation, during which Visit Inverness Loch Ness will undertake its own parallel member consultation and engagement programme.
Following consultation Highland Council will consider responses before making any final decision on whether to introduce a Visitor Levy.
If approved, legislation requires a minimum 18-month implementation period, meaning any Visitor Levy in Highland is unlikely to come into effect before 2028.

March 2026 Update

The Visitor Levy (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill has now been passed by the Scottish Parliament on 24 March 2026, introducing significant new flexibility to the existing Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act 2024 framework. Local authorities, including Highland Council, can now implement either a percentage-based levy or a flat-rate charge on overnight accommodation, with additional scope to vary rates by location, season, or accommodation type.

Highland Council had previously paused development of its Visitor Levy scheme pending this legislative change. With the amendment now approved, the Council is expected to resume work on a revised proposal. This is likely to include consideration of a flat-rate model, reflecting stakeholder feedback gathered during the 2024–2025 consultation process.

The next steps are anticipated to include publication of an updated scheme, a further period of public consultation (approximately 12 weeks), and a formal Council decision. Based on standard implementation timelines, any Visitor Levy in the Highland area is unlikely to be introduced before late 2027 at the earliest.

In summary, while no levy is currently in place, the removal of the legislative constraint represents a key milestone. Progress toward implementation is now expected to accelerate, with increased likelihood of a more flexible and locally tailored levy structure.

Visitor Levy Amendment Bill

2025 previous news on the levy

The Highland council are proposing a levy of 5% on overnight accommodation with the following three objectives:

Sustain public services and infrastructure used by businesses, communities, and visitors to ensure the impacts of visitors are strategically and sustainably managed
Support the delivery of a thriving tourism sector that can offer a wide range of visitor experiences by working together in partnership with businesses, visitors, and communities
Develop innovative approaches to balance strategic demands and opportunities, ensuring the council achieves its full potential as a highly positioned destination for visitors

Industry Statements and Positions

Highland BIDs Collective

Highland BIDs—representing VILN, Inverness City BID, Nairn BID, Dornoch BID, and BID Fort William—speak for over 2,000 businesses across the Highlands.

Collectively gathered up to date member input to gain further insights on the proposed Visitor Levy for Highland. The feedback was presented to the Highland Council in joint response and you can view it below alongside the survey responses.

Scottish Tourism Alliance

View the updated Visitor Levy Policy Position here.
- The STA has updated its official Visitor Levy Policy Position, in light of the difficult economic climate and the emerging complexity of the current percentage charging model.
- It states that looking to adopt a levy scheme at this time would be damaging to the essential tourism and hospitality businesses that local economies rely on to support jobs and attract visitors, along with overall competitiveness.

Joint Highland Chambers

View the position statement here.
- Headline: Collectively we believe that implementing a visitor levy at this time would have significant negative consequences for tourism in the Highlands, which is already facing numerous challenges.

•    Highland Council Consultation Portal
•    Highland Council Visitor Levy FAQs
•    Visit Scotland’s Overview

Visit Inverness Loch Ness Levy Event

On Wednesday 15th January 2025, we held an information forum event at Eden Court, Inverness.

The Highland Council, Inverness Chamber and Highland Hotels Association all spoke and a statement was read from the Scottish Tourism Alliance. A Q&A followed the speakers.

The event was recorded and you can watch it in full on our YouTube page.

Contact Your Councillors / MP & MSP's About The Proposed Levy

During the Visit Inverness Loch Ness information event, attending councillors encouraged businesses to share how the proposed levy, in its current form, will impact them.

These councillors will play a crucial role in shaping the final decision, which will be made at a full council meeting in June.

To help, we've provided a useful list of councillor contacts below. If you're unsure of your ward, you can check which ward you're in HERE.

Regional MSPs for Highlands & Islands

Victor Currie	MSP	Reform UK	Highlands and Islands	Email
Max Bannerman	MSP	Reform UK	Highlands and Islands	Email
Ariane Burgess	MSP	Scottish Green Party	Highlands and Islands	Email
Kristopher Leask	MSP	Scottish Green Party	Highlands and Islands	Email
Morven-May MacCallum	MSP	Scottish Liberal Democrats	Highlands and Islands	Email
Maree Todd	MSP	Scottish National Partty	Highlands and Islands	Email
Tim Eagle	MSP	Scottish Conservative & Unionist	Highlands and Islands	Email

Visitor Levy Member Information Page

Highland Visitor Levy: A 12-Week Industry Programme

Previous updates

August 2026

June 2026

March 2026 Update

2025 previous news on the levy

Industry Statements and Positions

Visit Inverness Loch Ness Levy Event

Contact Your Councillors / MP & MSP's About The Proposed Levy

Inverness Ness-side

Inverness Millburn

Culloden & Ardersier

Inverness South

Black Isle

Aird & Loch Ness

Nairn & Cawdor

Regional MSPs for Highlands & Islands