Edinburgh stay crosses launch day
A four-night stay from 22 to 26 July 2026 only counts the nights from 24 July onward, so the calculator uses the eligible portion of the accommodation charge.
Read the practical guideFree Tool
Work out visitor levy with clearer council-aware guidance.
Estimate levy, provider retention, and amount due using the council scheme, stay dates, and booking timing that match the scenario you need to check.
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Council schemes surfaced
Built in
Booking cutoff awareness
Pence-accurate
Money handling
What this helps with
Better answers before you touch the admin.
Use the calculator to test realistic booking scenarios, understand where the levy applies, and get a clearer view of the practical details that usually create confusion.
Designed for the real awkward bits
The difficult part is rarely the percentage. It is the booking date, the scheme start date, the long-stay rule, and what the council expects you to keep straight.
See whether a stay falls before a council scheme starts.
Sense-check booking cutoffs before you rely on assumptions.
Separate levy amount, provider retention, and council amount due.
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When it is useful
Use it before the admin gets messy.
Check an individual booking
Useful when a guest asks how the levy affects their stay or when you want to test a booking before recording it.
Compare council rules quickly
Switch between Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Stirling, and West Dunbartonshire without rebuilding the scenario from scratch.
Sanity-check the operational detail
Booking cutoffs, long stays, exemptions, and VAT effects are often where real-world admin gets messy.
Next steps
Move from estimate to action.
Move from estimate to full tracking
Once you are happy with the result, LevyTrack can help you record stays and roll them into return-ready quarterly summaries.
Start free trialRead the local guidance
Use the council guides below when you want a plain-English explanation of dates, rates, caps, and local differences.
Browse council guidesExample scenarios
Common cases worth checking twice.
These are the kinds of booking details that can change the answer even when the headline levy rate looks simple.
Booking made before the cutoff
If an Edinburgh stay after launch was booked and paid in part or full before 1 October 2025, the calculator shows why the levy would not apply.
Read Edinburgh rulesFull-stay council schemes
For councils such as Glasgow and West Dunbartonshire, the calculator applies the levy across the full eligible stay rather than stopping after five nights.
Read West Dunbartonshire guideCalculator FAQs
Quick answers before you calculate.
Does the Scotland visitor levy calculator include meals, parking or extras?
No. The calculator is designed for the accommodation charge only. Meals, parking, transport and other non-accommodation extras should be kept separate before entering the figure.
Why does the booking date matter?
Some councils have advance booking cutoff rules. For example, Edinburgh uses 1 October 2025 and West Dunbartonshire uses 1 October 2026, so the booking date can change whether a future stay is in scope.
What happens if a stay crosses the scheme start date?
The calculator only applies levy to nights from the council scheme start date onward. Nights before the scheme starts are not counted in the levyable charge.
Can I use the calculator for my official visitor levy return?
Use it as a sense-check, not as legal or tax advice. Final returns should always be checked against current council guidance and the official visitor levy reporting process.
Further reading
Go deeper on the admin behind the number.
Visitor levy VAT in Scotland
A plain-English look at VAT treatment, taxable turnover, accommodation-only charges, platform bookings, and the records hosts should keep.
Read articleQuarterly visitor levy return prep
A practical quarter-end checklist for stay records, exemptions, accommodation totals, platform evidence, and council-specific return logic.
Read articleCouncil guides
Read the local detail behind the numbers.
Use the council-specific guides when you want a clearer explanation of scheme timing, rates, booking cutoffs, and practical tracking considerations.
Edinburgh Visitor Levy Guide for STL Operators
Understand Edinburgh visitor levy timelines, rates, caps, booking cutoffs, and practical tracking steps for short-term let operators.
Read guideGlasgow Visitor Levy Guide for STL Operators
Understand Glasgow visitor levy rates, start dates, booking cutoffs, and what accommodation providers should track each quarter.
Read guideAberdeen Visitor Levy Guide for STL Operators
Understand Aberdeen visitor levy rules, rate and cap details, booking cutoffs, and recordkeeping essentials for STL providers.
Read guideStirling Visitor Levy Guide for STL Operators
Understand Stirling visitor levy timelines, rates, and operator obligations for short-term let accommodation businesses.
Read guideWest Dunbartonshire Visitor Levy Guide for STL Operators
Understand West Dunbartonshire visitor levy dates, booking cutoffs, full-stay rules, and tracking steps for accommodation providers.
Read guide