Holiday properties 'could avoid tax hike by giving stays to charities'

PROPOSAL IS ONE OF THREE MOOTED BY WELSH GOVT TO EASE PAIN ON SECTOR

- By ANDREW FORGRAVE Countryside and Tourism Editor andrew [e-mail]

WALES’ holiday homes sector could be allowed to let out rooms to charities so they can avoid punitive taxes.

However, accommodation providers will be prevented from ‘exploiting’ the concession by ‘donating’ stays to friends and family.

It’s one of three measures being considered by the Welsh Government to help the self-catering sector ease the pain of stiff annual occupancy targets. In 2023 these were more than doubled in an effort to curb the growth of holiday lets and second homes in Wales.

Holiday properties must now be let for at least 182 days each year - up from the previous threshold of 72 days. Failure to hit this target leaves holiday lets vulnerable to more costly council taxes, often increasing bills several-fold in counties where premiums are applied.

Accommodation providers complain the 182-day target is difficult to reach in parts of the country and is vulnerable to bad weather, late cancellations and accounting processes. Despite the warmest spring on record, 47 per cent of self-catering businesses in Wales had fewer customers in the first half of 2025.

According to July’s Tourism Barometer, many blamed this downturn on ‘people lacking in disposable income’ in the cost-of-living crisis.

The Welsh Government said 60 per cent of self-catering properties have met the new letting criteria, saying this demonstrates the target is ‘achievable where supply does not exceed demand’