Overnight Visitor Levy (OVL)
What is the Overnight Visitor Levy (OVL)?
The Overnight Visitor Levy (OVL) is a small charge paid by people staying overnight in commercial accommodation, such as hotels, bed and breakfasts, self-catering accommodation, hostels, campsites and short-term holiday lets.
The levy is paid by visitors, not accommodation businesses.
How will it benefit our region?
It would provide a dedicated source of funding to help grow the visitor economy by at least £1 billion, creating jobs, attracting more visitors and supporting local businesses and communities.
FAQs
The levy will fund projects that attract more leisure and business visitors to the East Midlands and help manage the impact of tourism in popular destinations.
This could include major events, conferences, culture and heritage projects, destination marketing, better signs and visitor information, improvements to public spaces and transport, visitor management, skills development, business support, and tourism research.
We would work with partners, businesses, local authorities, stakeholders and the Visit East Midlands Advisory Board to help shape the scheme.
Any decisions on how the levy operates and how the money is invested would be made by EMCCA’s Board, which would provide regular updates on how funding is being used.
Evidence from other parts of the country, where similar visitor levies are already in place, shows that visitors are more supportive when they can see how the money is being invested locally.
EMCCA is working closely with mayors across the country to ensure visitors understand why the is being introduced and how it will benefit local areas.
Businesses would benefit from more visitors spending money in the region, helping local businesses grow and create jobs. Funding could also support skills and training opportunities, as well as improvements to destinations and visitor attractions.
The system for collecting the levy would be designed to keep extra administration for accommodation providers to a minimum.
There has not been a date announced for an Overnight Visitor Levy to be introduced to the East Midlands. Any introduction would depend upon:
- Government legislation being enacted.
- Detailed local consultation.
- Formal decision-making by EMCCA.
- Practical arrangements being established with accommodation providers.
We are prepared to commit that if Overnight Visitor Levies are introduced in our areas, we will not set the rate higher than than 5% of the accommodation cost.
We will provide updates through our website as and when we receive further details from Government.
Local partners, businesses and communities will have opportunities to provide feedback on any future proposals affecting the East Midlands visitor economy.