Overnight Visitor Levy (OVL)
What is the Overnight Visitor Levy (OVL)?
The Overnight Visitor Levy (OVL) is a small charge on overnight stays in commercial accommodation, such as hotels, bed and breakfasts, self-catering accommodation, hostels, campsites and short-term holiday lets.
How will it benefit our region?
It could 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.
What could an Overnight Visitor Levy mean for our region?
We’re inviting businesses, partners, and stakeholders to share their views on the potential opportunities and impacts.
Your insights will help us understand what it could mean in practice for businesses and the wider visitor economy.
Have your say: Survey – Overnight Visitor Levy Survey
FAQs
The levy could 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.
Any decision to introduce an Overnight Visitor Levy would be subject to EMCCA’s formal decision-making processes and based on public consultation, publication of a draft levy prospectus and impact assessments. We will work with partners, businesses, local authorities, stakeholders, and the Visit East Midlands Advisory Board to inform our thinking.
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.
The levy will apply to all short-term, visitor accommodation, bar certain national exemptions and discretionary local exemptions. Accommodation or land uses not provided on a commercial basis will not be in scope; this could include, for example, registered gypsy and traveller sites, temporary accommodation, and charitable accommodation for shelter or refuge will be exempt nationally. Strategic authorities will have the power to exempt a small number of further accommodation types; this could include tent pitches, touring caravan pitches and dormitory-style accommodation like hostels in their areas, subject to local consultation. This approach balances respondents’ support for a broad, consistent approach alongside 10 calls for further exemptions for low-cost accommodation that offer social or educational benefits, such as camp sites.
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.
Visit East Midlands
Our Visit East Midlands website is now live! Take a look for more information.
