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Edinburgh publishes calendar dates per quarter rather than a flat number of days after quarter end, and submitting early does not move the payment date. Here's the practical run-through for getting a quarter closed properly.
The timetable
- The first return covers 24 July to 30 September 2026. Submit during October 2026; payment must reach the Council by 13 November 2026.
- The following return covers October to December 2026. Submit during January 2027; payment due by 13 February 2027.
- Where a quarter isn't yet in the Council's published table, expect the same pattern — but treat the dates as provisional until confirmed.
Before you file
- Check every booking in the quarter is present, and that stays are placed by their dates rather than by payout date.
- Confirm extras — cleaning, meals, parking — are excluded from the accommodation figures.
- Review anything flagged: rate outliers, possible duplicates, and stays that straddle the scheme start.
- Check cancellations and no-shows are marked as such and excluded from the totals.
- Confirm any pre-scheme exemptions genuinely meet all three conditions, not just the booking date.
- Complete the availability declaration for the quarter.
- Save or export the working, then submit through the Council's own process and pay by the published date.
The availability declaration
Every quarterly return must state whether the property was available for paid overnight stays for the whole quarter, part of it, or not at all — including quarters where the total is nil. It's how the Council tells a genuinely closed property apart from a missed return. Where availability was partial, give a short explanation.
After you file
Keep your underlying booking records for the period the Council requires, generally five years. Marking a quarter as filed in Visitor Levy App locks the figures as your own reference record; it does not submit anything and does not replace your own record-keeping duty.
Visitor Levy App never files a return or moves money on your behalf. The property owner or operator remains legally responsible for accurate, on-time filing.
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.
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.
Edinburgh Visitor Levy exemptions: who qualifies and how refunds work
Exemption categories, pre-scheme bookings, and why refunds are claimed from the Council rather than from you.
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.