Last updated
Exemptions fall into two very different groups: things you handle when you calculate the return, and things the guest deals with directly with the Council. Mixing the two up is the most common source of confusion — and the one most likely to leave you holding personal data you should never have collected.
What you handle
- Nights beyond the five-night cap — not exempt as such, simply not chargeable.
- Nights before 24 July 2026 on a stay that straddles the scheme start.
- Non-accommodation charges: meals, cleaning fees, parking, transport and other extras come out before the 5% is applied.
- Cancellations and no-shows — the levy is only due on accommodation actually provided, so these are excluded from your totals entirely.
- Qualifying pre-scheme bookings, described below.
Pre-scheme bookings
A booking made before 1 October 2025 is exempt only where it fixed the exact dates and the specific accommodation, set a fixed price per night, and took a non-refundable payment. An early booking date on its own is not enough. Keep your own record of the booking terms — the date in your platform export doesn't prove the other three conditions.
What the guest handles
Personal exemptions — for example those relating to disability, homelessness support or age — are claimed by the guest directly with the Council, after the stay. You charge the levy as normal, and the guest applies for a refund themselves.
You never need to collect, hold or verify evidence for a personal exemption, and Visitor Levy App deliberately gives you no way to upload it. That evidence is special-category personal data, and holding it would create a data-protection obligation you have no reason to take on. You can flag a booking locally as 'guest claimed exempt' purely for your own reference.
Charitable and discretionary cases
The Council can also treat certain sites, such as some charitable accommodation, differently. If you believe your site falls into that category, confirm it with the Council in writing and keep the response with your records rather than assuming it applies.
Run an individual stay through the free calculator to see exactly which parts of a charge are being levied, or create a free account to keep the reasoning attached to your quarterly figures.
Official guidance
This page is a plain-English explanation of the Council's own published guidance, not a replacement for it. Always check your figures against the primary sources below.
Try it on your own numbers
Check a single booking with the free calculator, or create a free account and run a whole quarter. One property is free forever.
More guides
What happens if you calculate the Edinburgh Visitor Levy wrong
Penalties, interest and enforcement, set out factually — including what the Council's guidance leaves unconfirmed.
Edinburgh Visitor Levy quarterly filing checklist
Submission windows, payment dates, the availability declaration, and what to check before you file.
VAT and the Edinburgh Visitor Levy: the correct calculation order
The levy is worked out before VAT, then VAT applies to accommodation and levy together. Worked through.
Visitor Levy App helps you calculate, check and record your visitor levy. It does not file on your behalf. The property owner or operator remains legally responsible for the accuracy of the figures and for submitting the return on time. Always check the figures against your own records before you file.