Holiday let law: what's changed and what's coming
A dated log of every change to UK holiday let and short-term let rules, with the official source for each, and the dates already set for 2027 and beyond. We update it as soon as something is announced or comes into force.
Coming up
- Welsh visitor accommodation register opensWales
Registration with the Welsh Revenue Authority opens on 1 October 2026. It is free, applies to anyone taking bookings for stays of 31 nights or less, including occasional spare-room hosts, and the deadline is 31 March 2027. Penalties start at £100 per property and can reach £1,400.
- Airbnb: software-connected hosts move to the 15.5% host feeUK-wide
Airbnb is moving UK hosts to a single 15.5% service fee paid by the host, replacing the split host and guest fees. Hosts who use property management or channel software must switch by 13 October 2026, or their nightly payouts fall. Other hosts have been moved in phases through 2025 and 2026. VAT is charged on the fee.
- Consultation closes on the Welsh 182-day testWales
The Welsh Government is consulting until 23 October 2026 on a modest reduction to the 182-night letting threshold and five new exemptions, including lets within the grounds of the owner's home or on their farm. Any change would take effect on 1 April 2027.
Read the guidegov.wales: written statement on the consultation
- Glasgow visitor levy: 5% from 25 January 2027Scotland
Glasgow's 5% levy on overnight accommodation starts on 25 January 2027. Aberdeen follows at 7% from 1 April 2027, Stirling at 3% from 14 June 2027 and West Dunbartonshire at 5% from 1 July 2027, and more councils are consulting.
- England's national short-term let registerEngland
The Culture Secretary told Parliament on 3 September 2026 that the register will be "up and running in full by March" 2027. Hosts are expected to register each property, show a number on listings and confirm it meets safety rules. The fee, evidence and renewal period have not been published; GOV.UK's guidance was last updated on 16 September 2026 without them.
Read the guideHansard: short-term lets regulation, 3 September 2026
- Deadline to register Welsh visitor accommodationWales
Every provider of visitor accommodation in Wales must be registered with the Welsh Revenue Authority by 31 March 2027, whether or not their council brings in a levy.
Read the guidegov.wales: get ready to register your visitor accommodation
- Cardiff visitor levyWales
Cardiff Council approved the levy on 26 March 2026 and it starts on 1 April 2027: £1.30 per person per night, 75p for hostels and campsites. Other Welsh councils can start a levy on 1 April or 1 October of any year from 2027; Pembrokeshire has said it will not during its current administration.
- Making Tax Digital threshold drops to £30,000UK-wide
From 6 April 2027 anyone with qualifying property and self-employment income over £30,000 in 2025/26 joins Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. The £20,000 threshold follows in April 2028.
- Wales visitor accommodation licensingWales
The 2026 Act's licensing scheme is expected to start around 2029, beginning with self-catering, with a legal default of March 2030. Licence conditions and fees will follow further consultation and regulations.
Read the guidegov.wales: Development of Tourism and Regulation of Visitor Accommodation (Wales) Act 2026
- EPC C for private rented homes (holiday lets excluded for now)England
Private landlords must meet the higher energy standard by 1 October 2030. Short-term lets are excluded "at this time" but the position stays under review, and a separate requirement for every short-term let to hold a valid EPC when let is planned.
Read the guideGOV.UK: energy performance of privately rented homes, government response
Already in force
- 2026
- Edinburgh visitor levy startsScotland
A 5% charge on the cost of paid overnight accommodation in Edinburgh, capped at 5 consecutive nights, applies to stays from 24 July 2026. It applied to bookings made from 1 October 2025 for those dates. Hosts add it to the price and pay it to the council.
Read the guideCity of Edinburgh Council: visitor levy comes into effect
- Renters' Rights Act 2025: main tenancy reforms beginEngland
The Act's reform of assured tenancies came into force on 1 May 2026. It does not apply to genuine holiday lettings, which stay outside the assured tenancy rules. It matters if you also let a property long-term, or let a "holiday" property to someone who is really living there.
legislation.gov.uk: Renters' Rights Act 2025 (Commencement No. 2) Regulations 2026
- Wales passes its visitor accommodation licensing lawWales
The Development of Tourism and Regulation of Visitor Accommodation (Wales) Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 27 April 2026. It creates the legal framework for licensing visitor accommodation, starting with self-catering. The scheme itself is expected around 2029, with a legal backstop of March 2030.
- Making Tax Digital for Income Tax beginsUK-wide
Landlords and sole traders with qualifying income over £50,000 in 2024/25 must keep digital records and send quarterly updates to HMRC from 6 April 2026. The threshold drops to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028. Holiday let income counts.
GOV.UK: find out if and when you need to use Making Tax Digital
- Scotland removes the cap on second homes council taxScotland
From 1 April 2026 Scottish councils can set any premium on second homes, not just up to 100%. Glasgow and Highland, for example, charge 200%. A property on non-domestic rates as a self-catering let is not charged it.
Read the guidegov.scot: council tax on second and long-term empty homes guidance (circular 6/2026)
- Short-term lets left out of the EPC C rule, for nowEngland
The government confirmed that private rented homes must reach EPC C by 1 October 2030, and that short-term lets will not have to comply "at this time", though the position is under review. Separately, it plans to require every short-term let to have a valid EPC when let, whoever pays the bills, with regulations due in 2026.
Read the guideGOV.UK: improving the energy performance of privately rented homes, government response
- 2025
- Wales passes the register and visitor levy lawWales
The Visitor Accommodation (Register and Levy) Etc. (Wales) Act 2025 became law on 18 September 2025. It creates a national register of visitor accommodation, run by the Welsh Revenue Authority, and lets councils charge a levy of £1.30 per person per night (75p for hostels and campsites) from April 2027.
Read the guidelegislation.gov.uk: Visitor Accommodation (Register and Levy) Etc. (Wales) Act 2025
- Furnished holiday lettings tax rules abolishedUK-wide
From 6 April 2025 (1 April for companies) holiday let income is taxed like other property income. Mortgage interest is a 20% tax credit rather than a deduction, there are no new capital allowances, and Business Asset Disposal Relief and rollover relief no longer apply to future sales. Profits also stop counting as earnings for pension contributions.
GOV.UK: abolition of the furnished holiday lettings tax regime
- English councils start charging double council tax on second homesEngland
The Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 let councils charge a premium of up to 100% on furnished second homes from 1 April 2025, after giving a year's notice. Most councils in holiday areas adopted it. A holiday let that meets the 140/70 test is on business rates and is not charged it; one that does not is a second home for council tax purposes.
Read the guideGOV.UK: guidance on council tax premiums on second homes
- Airbnb and other platforms report your income to HMRCUK-wide
Under the OECD platform rules, booking platforms have collected hosts' details and income since 1 January 2024, and the first reports covering 2024 went to HMRC by 31 January 2025. HMRC now matches platform income against tax returns.
- Fire safety guide for small paying guest accommodation updatedEngland
GOV.UK's guide for small holiday lets, B&Bs and similar (first published March 2023) was updated on 20 January 2025. It is the document fire services expect you to have followed: a written fire risk assessment, interlinked alarms, escape routes and guest information.
Read the guideGOV.UK: making your small paying guest accommodation safe from fire
- 2024
- Scotland: the last licensing grace period endsScotland
Existing Scottish hosts had to apply for a short-term let licence by 1 October 2023 and could keep trading while councils decided, which they had 12 months to do. From October 2024 every short-term let in Scotland needs a licence, with fines of up to £2,500 for letting without one.
- Scottish councils can double council tax on second homesScotland
From 1 April 2024 councils in Scotland could charge up to 100% extra council tax on second homes, matching the long-standing empty homes premium. The cap was removed in 2026.
- 2023
- Every fire risk assessment must be written down in fullEngland, Wales
Section 156 of the Building Safety Act 2022 came into force on 1 October 2023. The responsible person must now record the whole fire risk assessment and the fire safety arrangements, whatever the size of the premises. The old exemption for small premises has gone.
Read the guideGOV.UK: fire safety responsibilities under section 156
- Wales raises the business rates test to 182 nightsWales
From 1 April 2023 a Welsh self-catering property must be available for 252 nights and actually let for 182 nights a year to stay on business rates, up from 140 and 70. Councils were also allowed to charge a second homes premium of up to 300%.
Read the guidegov.wales: classification of self-catering properties for local tax purposes
- 2022
- Wales creates planning use classes for second homes and short-term letsWales
From 20 October 2022 Wales has separate use classes for main homes (C3), second homes (C5) and short-term lets (C6). Moving between them is allowed unless a council makes an Article 4 direction for its area, in which case planning permission is needed.
gov.wales: changes to planning legislation on second homes and short-term lets
- Scotland's short-term let licensing scheme opensScotland
From 1 October 2022 new hosts in Scotland needed a licence before taking bookings. Licences carry mandatory safety conditions: gas, electrical and PAT checks, interlinked alarms, a legionella assessment, fire-safe furniture, an EPC, insurance and a maximum occupancy.
- 2015
- The London 90-night ruleEngland
Section 44 of the Deregulation Act 2015 let Londoners let their homes short-term for up to 90 nights a calendar year without planning permission, provided the property is liable for council tax. Beyond 90 nights is a change of use needing permission. It only applies in Greater London.
Read the guidelegislation.gov.uk: Deregulation Act 2015, section 44
Proposed, but not in force
People still search for these, so it is worth being clear about them.
A planning use class (C5) for short-term lets in England
Consulted on in 2023 and announced in February 2024, a separate use class for short-term lets, with permitted development rights and councils able to require planning permission, has never been brought in. There has been no update in 2026. There is no C5 use class in England today.
A visitor levy in England
England has no visitor levy law. Some councils, including Brighton and Hove, have debated a tourist tax, and Manchester and Liverpool run voluntary hotel-only schemes through business improvement districts. Nothing applies to holiday lets.
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This is general information, not legal advice. Dates are taken from the sources linked; where a scheme has been announced without a firm date we say so. Last checked 28 Sept 2026.