Have Your Say on Potential Visitor Levy for Fife

Fife Council has launched a consultation inviting local businesses, residents, and community groups to share their views on a potential visitor levy for the Kingdom.

The consultation over the next few weeks is designed to help the council understand:

• Levels of support or concern about introducing a levy in Fife
• How a levy might best be structured – for example, the percentage rate, number of nights, seasonal considerations or exemptions
• Priorities for how revenue should be spent, such as infrastructure, events, community projects or sustainability initiatives
• Any potential impacts on businesses, communities and visitors

The consultation runs from 3 November to 19 December 2025.

👉 Have your say at www.fife.gov.uk/visitorlevy

Fiona Campbell MBE, CEO of the Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers, said:

“Fife’s proposal comes as a growing number of councils across Scotland are reconsidering their tourist tax plans, recognising the practical and economic challenges the percentage-based model presents. We strongly urge Fife Council to closely monitor the rollout of the scheme in Edinburgh and await potential changes from the Scottish Government which could introduce greater flexibility and allow for a more effective and proportionate approach for small businesses like self-catering. 

It is important to recognise that any Fife tourist tax would not just apply to those travelling from overseas, it would be paid by ordinary Scots choosing to holiday within their own country. That fact is too often overlooked, especially at a time when many households are grappling with the cost of living, an additional tax on short breaks and staycations risks being counterproductive. A VAT-attributed charge of up to 7% would be economic madness. As well as being clear about who would pay this tax, we must be clear regarding what it can be spent on: it is for tourism-related infrastructure only, as per the statutory direction set out in national legislation, and cannot be used for general services.

The ASSC will engage constructively in the engagement process and we encourage all those with an interest in retaining the vibrancy and success of Fife’s tourism offering to respond. Fife’s self-catering sector supports over 2,700 jobs and generates £80m every year, underlining the critical importance of taking the right decision at the right time. We sincerely hope that the Council follows the six other Scottish councils who have taken the sensible and pragmatic step to postpone their work on this issue.”