Wales Holiday Accommodation Licensing

What’s happening?

This week (9^th January 2024) the Welsh Government announced plans for Licensing of all visitor accommodation in Wales.

Legislation will be introduced in the Senedd in 2024. Initial registration will be in early 2025 with a Licensing scheme introduced sometime after. 

But what will this mean for Holiday Let owners and what’s the purpose?

Welsh Government has had concerns over the impact of Holiday Lets on local housing availability for some time. The rise of platforms such as AirBnB and Booking.Com has only added to the perception that there is an “issue”. They promised in their manifesto to introduce licensing and with the backing of Plaid Cymru, they are now enacting on that.

What been said?

Details are thin, but Tourism Minister Dawn Bowden has said the Statutory (i.e. compulsory) registration will be first, followed by a licensing scheme. The stated aims of licensing are to initially confirm that safety requirements are being met, with “quality standards” being covered at a later date.

What happens elsewhere?

Northern Ireland has had a scheme for a number of years. Licensing covers every type of accommodation and costs range from £40 – £300. A licence last 4 years and the property is subject to a physical inspection.

What can we expect in Wales?

It’s likely that compulsory licensing will begin in 2025 with the model closely following that of Northern Ireland.

Whilst quality operators will have nothing to fear from compliance checks, nobody welcomes additional admin burden and costs. Although not stated, it’s very likely the data will be shared with other agencies such as councils and HMRC. 

Verdict

Whilst a lot of Holiday Let owners will welcome the additional compliance (and a possible reduction of competition!), others may have to think about getting their house in order well before registration is compulsory.