Wales: visitor accommodation register and visitor levy

Status: NOT YET IN FORCE — register opens October 2026, registration deadline 31 March 2027 Last checked: 28 July 2026 Primary source: GOV.WALES — Registering visitor accommodation: overview (last updated 14 July 2026), under the Visitor Accommodation (Register and Levy) Etc. (Wales) Act 2025

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These are two obligations, not one. Registration is mandatory everywhere in Wales. The levy is optional for each council. You can be required to register and never charge a penny of levy.

The Act

The Visitor Accommodation (Register and Levy) Etc. (Wales) Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 18 September 2025. Part 2 of the Act creates the register of visitor accommodation providers; Part 3 creates the visitor levy. Both are administered by the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA).

Registration — mandatory, free, deadline 31 March 2027

When: GOV.WALES states "Visitor accommodation registration opens from October 2026." The government's own preparation page puts it as: "From October 2026, anyone who takes bookings for overnight stays in Wales must register."

The deadline is the number to diarise: "You must register by 31 March 2027, even if your local council does not introduce Visitor Levy."

Who must register. You must register if you "take bookings for overnight stays in visitor accommodation in Wales (for one night, seasonally or year-round)", you are responsible for the accommodation, and "any bookings you take are for 31 nights or less." GOV.WALES lists covered types as self-catering lets, main homes, hotels, bed and breakfasts, camping pitches, glamping, static caravans, hostels and bunkhouses. It applies "to all providers, from informal hosts to professional operators."

Who does not. "You do not have to register if: you do not take bookings for the accommodation (such as friends or family staying for free) or you're no longer taking bookings for overnight stays."

Cost and effort. "Registration is free and takes most people under 15 minutes." You sign in with GOV.UK One Login, which can be created before registration opens.

What you will need. Contact details (name, address, phone, email), date of birth, company or charity number if applicable, trading name if applicable, accommodation types, premises location, the periods bookings are available, the number of bookable units and maximum occupancy.

Your registration number. "After completing your registration, you'll get a unique registration number." GOV.WALES says you can use it to "show your accommodation is registered" and to "contact the WRA to discuss your registration". Not verified: we have found no published requirement that the number must be displayed on OTA listings or advertising. Do not assume a display duty until the WRA publishes one.

Keeping it current. Changes — including ceasing to take bookings — must be reported to the WRA within 30 days.

Penalties. "The first penalty is £100 per premises. If you still do not register after the WRA contacts you, penalties can increase to a total of £1,400 per premises." Note "per premises" — a portfolio multiplies the exposure.

The visitor levy — discretionary, earliest April 2027

The levy is not national. Each of the 22 Welsh councils decides for itself, after consulting its community.

Rates. GOV.WALES states "75 pence per person per night is paid for shared rooms in hostels, bunkhouses, bothies or dormitories" and "£1.30 per person per night is paid for all other types of accommodation". Under the technical guidance, a person aged under 18 on the first night is disregarded where the lower rate applies; the lower rate also covers tent pitches for camping but not pitches for caravans or campervans. Rates are set by Welsh Government and any change requires Senedd agreement.

Notice period. The local-authority guidance (published 12 March 2026) states: "The required notice period to introduce the levy in a local authority area under section 48(3) of the 2025 Act is 12 months", with a shorter period possible "by agreement between LA & WRA." A levy takes effect on 1 April or 1 October.

Who pays and who accounts. The accommodation provider accounts for the levy to the WRA and in practice passes it to guests. Per the GOV.WALES quick guide (last updated 9 June 2026), providers expecting to owe £1,000 or less file yearly by 31 May; providers expecting to owe more than £1,000 file quarterly, within 60 days of each quarter end.

Which councils — position at 28 July 2026

Verified from GOV.WALES — Check if a local council charges Visitor Levy:

No other Welsh council had a confirmed or consulting status on that page when we checked. This table changes; we re-check it monthly.

Note the Cardiff trap: the 28 September 2026 accounting date falls six months before the levy itself starts, and before the 31 March 2027 registration deadline. Cardiff providers taking 2027 bookings need their levy handling working in September 2026, not April 2027.

Coming later: statutory licensing

Separately again, the Development of Tourism and Regulation of Visitor Accommodation (Wales) Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 27 April 2026. GOV.WALES (page last updated 8 May 2026) states: "The legal default is that the licensing scheme will come into force in March 2030." The scheme is expected to begin with self-catering accommodation and to build on the register. Further consultation on regulations and guidance is to follow. Nothing is required of operators under that Act today.

What to do now

• Create a GOV.UK One Login before October 2026.
• Assemble the registration data per premises — unit counts, maximum occupancy, booking availability periods.
• If you let in Cardiff, work backwards from 28 September 2026, not from 1 April 2027.
• If you let in Anglesey, Conwy or Gwynedd, watch for decisions after 24 September 2026.
• Register by 31 March 2027 regardless of your council's levy decision.

Software that helps

Directory categories relevant to these obligations:

• Compliance & licensing tools — for storing a WRA registration number per property and tracking the 30-day change-notification duty.
• Property management systems — for per-guest, per-night occupancy data, since the levy is charged per person per night and the under-18 disregard applies only at the lower rate.
• Accounting, tax & Making Tax Digital — for levy liability records and the yearly-or-quarterly WRA return cycle.
• Channel managers & distribution — relevant only if a listing-side registration-number requirement is later confirmed; none is confirmed today.

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This page is a general guide based on published government sources, last checked 28 July 2026. It is not legal or tax advice. Registration and levy duties are enforced by the Welsh Revenue Authority and levy decisions are made by individual councils; check your own position with them or with a qualified adviser.