Cardiff's Visitor Levy Is Confirmed: What It Means for Short-Term Rental Owners
- Pedro Reis
- Mar 29
- 5 min read
Updated: Apr 13
By Pedro Reis · Founder & Managing Director, Guesture
Two days ago, Cardiff Council confirmed it. The visitor levy — Wales's version of a tourist tax — is coming to Cardiff, and short-term rental owners need to start preparing now.
This is not a rumour. It is not a pilot. On 26 March 2026, Cardiff Council passed a resolution to implement a visitor levy under the Tourism (Wales) Act 2023. Cardiff will be one of the first local authorities in Wales to charge overnight visitors, and your guests will be paying it from 28 September 2026.
Here is everything you need to know — what's been confirmed, what is still being worked out, and what you should do right now.
What's Just Happened
The Tourism (Wales) Act 2023 gave Welsh local authorities the power to introduce a visitor levy — a nightly charge paid by guests staying in paid accommodation. Importantly, the Act does not force councils to use this power. Each local authority must vote to opt in.
Cardiff Council voted to opt in on 26 March 2026.
This makes Cardiff one of the first movers in Wales, likely alongside other tourism-heavy areas such as Gwynedd and Pembrokeshire. For property owners in Cardiff, this is now a firm commitment, not a consultation.
Who Does the Levy Apply To?
The levy applies to all paid overnight accommodation in Cardiff. That includes:
Airbnb listings and other short-term rental platforms
Serviced apartments
Hotels, guesthouses, and B&Bs
Holiday cottages and self-catering lets
Hostels and campsites
If guests pay to sleep there, the levy applies. There is no exemption for small operators or private homeowners letting occasionally.
Welsh residents staying in Wales are exempt. Business travellers are not.
How Much Is It?
The Welsh Government has set the levy rate at £1.25 per person, per night.
For a typical two-guest stay of three nights in a Cardiff short-term rental, that is £7.50 added to the booking cost. For a group of four staying a week, it is £35.
On Airbnb, this will appear as a separate line item in the guest's booking breakdown. Guests pay it; you collect it and pass it on to Cardiff Council. The admin system for this is still being designed, but it is likely to follow the model trialled in Edinburgh, where hosts submit periodic returns.
£1.25 per person per night. Guests pay it. You collect it. Cardiff Council receives it.
When Does It Start?
A firm launch date is confirmed: 1 April 2027. Cardiff Council has committed to the levy but has not yet published the implementation timeline.
Based on the Act's framework and what we know from other Welsh councils, 1 April 2027 is the confirmed launch date. There will be a consultation period, a registration period for accommodation providers, and a grace window before enforcement begins.
We will update this post the moment Cardiff publishes its timeline.
How Does Collection and Payment Work?
This is the part that is still being worked out at a national level. The Welsh Government is designing a central registration and compliance system. Here is what we know so far:
Accommodation providers will register with the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA), collecting on behalf of Cardiff Council
Guests will be charged per person per night at the point of booking or check-in
Providers will collect the levy and remit it to the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA) on a regular schedule (likely quarterly)
Platforms like Airbnb are expected to integrate the levy into their booking flow, similar to how they handle council tax and tourist taxes in other countries
Enforcement details — including penalties for non-compliance — are still being developed
One important point: if Airbnb or Booking.com collect and remit the levy on your behalf (as they do with VAT in some markets), your administrative burden may be minimal. If they do not, you will need to track and remit it yourself. We do not yet know which model Wales will use.
What About Newport?
Newport has not voted to introduce a visitor levy. As of today, only Cardiff has confirmed it will implement the charge. Newport, Swansea, and other South Wales councils retain the power to opt in — but none have committed to doing so yet.
If you manage properties in Newport, no action is required on the visitor levy for now. We will watch closely and update you if Newport Council moves toward a vote.
That said, if you have Cardiff properties in your portfolio — even alongside Newport ones — you need to start preparing.
How Does This Affect My Airbnb Listing?
Once the levy launches, the guest experience on Airbnb will change. The platform will display the levy as a separate charge in the pricing breakdown — similar to how cleaning fees or service charges appear today. Guests will see it before they book.
This should not significantly affect conversion. Across Europe, city tourist taxes are now normalised in the booking journey. Guests in Amsterdam, Barcelona, and Paris all pay them without issue.
What it may affect:
Your nightly rate psychology — a £50/night listing effectively becomes £52.50/night for two guests, which changes how competitive it looks against hotels
Your pricing strategy if you've been competing on low price points
Your property description — some hosts choose to acknowledge the levy in their listing to set expectations
None of these require immediate action. But it is worth factoring into your 2027 pricing review.
What Do I Need to Do Right Now?
Honestly? Not much yet — but you do need to be aware.
Note that Cardiff has confirmed the levy. This is now certain, not speculative.
Watch for Cardiff Council's implementation timeline. We will publish updates here as soon as they are available.
If you manage Cardiff properties through Guesture, we will handle registration and compliance on your behalf once the system launches.
If you manage your own Cardiff property independently, start thinking about bookkeeping for levy collection — you will need to track it separately from your rental income.
Do not adjust your pricing or listing descriptions yet. Wait until Cardiff publishes its launch date and registration requirements.
The levy is confirmed. The launch date is not. The right move now is to stay informed and prepare — not to panic or act prematurely.
What you can do right now
The WRA is running free online registration workshops via Microsoft Teams ahead of the October 2026 launch — and you can register your property on the spot during the session, with WRA staff available to help throughout. Sessions run from October 2026 through to March 2027.
The WRA is also recruiting 100 accommodation providers from across Wales to test the registration service before it opens publicly. They want a range of property types, sizes and locations. If you’d like to take part, register your interest at gov.wales/registeryourplace.
Missed the March 2026 webinars? Recordings are available on the WRA’s YouTube channel.
Updates still to come
Detailed WRA guidance on exactly how the Visitor Levy will be collected — including rates (75p per person per night for campsites and hostels; £1.30 for all other accommodation including self-catering) — was confirmed in legislation but operational guidance specific to Cardiff is expected from the WRA in April 2026. Levy-specific webinar dates will follow in their June 2026 update. We’ll update this post as each of those lands.
Guesture manages short-term rental properties across Cardiff and Newport. If you have questions about how the visitor levy will affect your portfolio, or you'd like us to take the compliance burden off your plate, get in touch.
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