Since January 2016, visitors to the Portuguese capital have to pay a municipal tourist tax of €1 per person per night. Children under 13 and those seeking medical treatment are exempt. The levy only applies to the first seven nights. Scattered municipalities, such as Porto and Cascais, are also considering a tourist tax on a similar basis to Lisbon.
Based on information from the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA), we will look at what tourist taxes are charged at popular holiday destinations around Europe beyond Portugal.
Austria
Tourists pay an overnight accommodation tax (including in caravans and campsites), which is charged according to each province. Called Tourismusgesetz and Beherbergungsbeiträge, the tourist levy ranges from €0.15 to €2.18 per person per night. Children under 15 are exempt.
Belgium
There are a range of tourism taxes varying by city. In Antwerp there is a fixed rate of €2.39 per person, per night for stays in hotels or €0.53 for campsites and camper van sites. Children under 12 are exempt. Bruges has a tourist tax of €2 per person, per night. In Ghent, the city tax is €2.50 per person, per night. Brussels charges a city tax per room, per year according to the borough, hotel size and hotel classification. For example, the levy is €7.50 per room, per night at the Brussels Novotel.
France
France has the ‘Taxe de Sejour’ which is charged per person, per night and varies according to the quality and standard of the accommodation. The rates range from €0.20 to €4 per person, per night. Children under 18 are exempt.
Germany
Kulturförderabgabe (culture tax) or Bettensteuer (bed tax) are charges in Germany. The taxes range from €0.25 to €5 per person, per night or 5% of the room bill depending on the type of accommodation, room rate and location. In Berlin, the charge is 5% of the room rate, capped at 21 successive days. However, business travellers are exempt from the tax.
Italy
Tourists pay a tax called “Tassa di soggiorno”. The charge varies from city to city, depending on a hotel’s rating, levied on a set number of nights. Children are usually exempt. In Rome, the tax ranges from €3 to €7 per person per day for up to 10 days. Children under 10 are exempt.
Netherlands
In Holland, the tourist accommodation tax is called “Toeristenbelasting”. It is charged in nearly all the 421 municipalities per person, per night, but can vary according to hotel classification and type of accommodation. For example, Amsterdam has a 5% city tax based on the room price.
Spain
Apart from the planned tourist tax for the Balearic Islands, Spain also charges visitors the “tasa turistica” in the Catalonia region. The levy is €0.45 and €2.25 per person, per night, for the first seven nights, depending on hotel category. Children under 16 are exempt. The tax is subject to VAT.
Switzerland
The tourist tax is charged per person, per night and varies by canton and, in some cases, by type of accommodation. It is made up of two elements, the Beherbergungsabgabe (BA tax) and Kurtaxe. The BA tax goes towards paying for tourism advertising and maintaining infrastructure in regions. The Kurtaxe is used to improve the tourism experience for visitors. As each canton in Switzerland determines how to set the taxes, there can be further variations. Generally, the tax is around 2.5CHF (€2.3) per person per night.
By Dennis Swing Greene
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Dennis Swing Greene is Chairman and International Tax Consultant for euroFINESCO s.a.
www.eurofinesco.com
