Visitor Levy on Paid Overnight Accommodation: Motion
Seanad Éireann — 2026-06-24
============================================================

Mary Fitzpatrick (FF), Industrial and Commercial Panel

I move that:
“That Seanad Éireann:
agrees that:
- strong, empowered local government is a cornerstone of balanced regional development and effective public service delivery;
- local authorities play a critical role in maintaining the public realm, delivering essential services and supporting vibrant communities, yet continue to operate with limited independent revenue-raising powers;
- empowering local authorities with appropriate revenue-raising tools will:
- support well-maintained, vibrant communities;
- enhance Ireland’s appeal as a high-quality tourism destination;
- ensure that economic growth is shared fairly between visitors and residents;
- contribute to sustainable, balanced development across the country;
acknowledges that:
- in areas of high tourism and visitor activity, particularly in urban centres, coastal regions and heritage destinations, local residents experience significant additional pressures;
- these impacts place disproportionate costs on local communities and local authorities, while visitors benefit from local amenities and services;
- tourism is a vital part of Ireland’s economy and must continue to be supported in a sustainable and balanced manner that benefits both visitors and host communities;
- there is a need for sustainable tourism that enhances Ireland’s reputation while protecting the quality of life of local communities;
recognises that:
- many European countries have successfully introduced visitor levies, empowering municipalities to raise funding locally and reinvest it in infrastructure, tourism facilities and public services;
- models in countries such as Italy, the Netherlands, Latvia and Scotland demonstrate that locally determined, ring-fenced levies can enhance the public realm while maintaining strong tourism performance;
- policy discussions at Dublin City Council, and in Ireland more generally, have identified the need for innovative and locally controlled funding mechanisms, including visitor levies;
- a carefully designed visitor levy represents a fair and proportionate application of the ‘user pays’ principle, ensuring visitors contribute to the upkeep of the places they enjoy;
- local authorities, guided by their elected members, are best placed to determine whether and how such a levy should be applied in their areas;
- any such measure must be introduced in a way that protects Ireland’s tourism competitiveness, avoids undue administrative burdens, and reflects local economic conditions and tourism profiles;
calls on the Government to:
- advance enabling legislation to empower local authorities, at their discretion, to introduce a visitor levy on paid overnight accommodation within their areas;
- ensure that such legislation provides maximum local flexibility, allowing elected members to determine:
- whether to introduce a levy;
- the rate and structure of such a levy;
- the geographic scope of its application;
- provide that all revenues raised are ring-fenced exclusively for investment in the public realm and local services;
- require local authorities to undertake robust consultation with residents, local businesses and tourism stakeholders prior to introduction;
- ensure transparency and accountability, including annual public reporting on revenue raised and how it is spent; and
- bring forward a broader programme of reform to strengthen the financial autonomy of local government, consistent with a commitment to balanced regional development and strong local democracy.”

---

Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-06-24/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:55:06+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-24