There is no EU-wide tourist tax, and in most European countries there isn’t even a single national rate — the rate is set municipality by municipality, which is why “how much is tourist tax in France” or “in Germany” isn’t really answerable as a single number. France alone has roughly 34,900 communes with discretion to set their own rate; Germany has around 10,700 municipalities that can levy one; Czechia has about 6,250. The practical answer to “how much is tourist tax?” depends on which specific municipality a property is in, not which country.
Who actually sets tourist tax rates?
The pattern that repeats across most of Europe is: national law creates the framework (who can levy the tax, what the ceiling is, what exemptions must exist), and each municipality decides whether to levy it at all and picks the actual rate within that framework via a local ordinance. A handful of countries add a regional layer between the two.
How much is it, country by country?
| Country | Tax name | Who sets the rate | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Czechia | Poplatek z pobytu | Municipality (obec), via local ordinance | Up to 50 Kč/person/night (statutory ceiling) | Statutory exemptions include under-18s and disability-card holders |
| Slovakia | Daň za ubytovanie | Municipality (obec), via VZN (~2,900 municipalities) | Varies by VZN | Filed monthly or quarterly to the municipality |
| Austria | Ortstaxe / Nächtigungstaxe | Set separately under 9 different Länder laws | Varies by Land and municipality | ~2,090 municipalities can levy their own rate within their Land’s framework |
| Germany | Kurtaxe / City-Tax | Each Kommune (~10,700 municipalities) | Varies widely | Berlin charges 7.5% of the net accommodation price |
| Switzerland | Kurtaxe | Each of ~2,100 communes | CHF 1–7/night typically | Often bundled with a local guest card offering discounts |
| Italy | Imposta di soggiorno | Each of ~1,300 comuni, via its own delibera | Varies widely | Each comune typically runs its own filing portal, often via PagoPA |
| France | Taxe de séjour | Each commune (~34,900), réel or forfaitaire regime | Varies widely | Platforms collect and remit on behalf of non-professional hosts in many cases; rates published as open data by DGFiP |
| Netherlands | Toeristenbelasting | Each gemeente | Varies widely | Amsterdam charges 12.5% of turnover, among the highest in Europe |
| Hungary | Idegenforgalmi adó | Municipality | Varies | Budapest charges 4% |
| Greece | Climate Crisis Resilience Fee | National, with seasonal rates | €8/night standard season, €2 low season; €15/€4 for large detached houses | Replaced the earlier “overnight stay tax” |
| Romania | Local accommodation tax | Municipality | Varies | Bucharest introduced 10 RON/night from January 2026 |
| Bulgaria | Tourist tax | Municipality | 0.20–3 BGN/night | Rate depends on the accommodation category and municipality |
| Norway | Besøksbidrag (visitor levy) | Municipality, from 2026 | Up to roughly 3% | New national framework allowing municipalities to opt in |
Who collects and remits it?
The dominant model across Europe is: the accommodation provider collects the tax from the guest at check-in or as part of the booking, then remits it to the municipality on a set schedule — monthly, quarterly, or annually depending on the country and sometimes the size of the operator. France is the clearest exception at scale: for non-professional hosts, several major platforms collect and remit the taxe de séjour directly, removing the step from the host’s own workflow entirely.
Which countries have no tourist tax?
Denmark, Sweden, and Finland currently levy no tourist tax nationally, though the debate resurfaces periodically in Finnish and Swedish municipal politics. Ireland has discussed a Dublin-specific visitor levy without implementing one so far. Most of the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) also have no established regime, though this list shifts as municipalities and national governments revisit the question — Norway’s 2026 framework shows how quickly a “no tourist tax” country can change position.
Why do rates differ so much within one country?
Once a national framework only sets a ceiling and a mechanism, the actual rate becomes a genuinely local political decision — a small alpine village funding a single ski lift has very different revenue needs from a capital city funding a full tourism board. Austria’s nine separate Länder-level tourism-tax laws are the clearest example of this fragmentation being structural rather than accidental: even within one country, the legal basis itself is regional before it’s municipal.
How Best Guest helps
Best Guest maintains municipal tourist tax rates for Czechia and Slovakia as versioned, cited data — not a single flat number, but the actual per-municipality rate with its legal source — and calculates the correct fee for every stay automatically, then prepares the municipal filing. Other countries in the table above follow the same country-by-country roadmap as our guest-registration coverage; see the countries hub for what’s live today, and the per-country accommodation tax pages there for the depth this comparison doesn’t cover.
Frequently asked questions
Is tourist tax the same thing as VAT?
No. Tourist tax is a separate, usually per-night or percentage-of-price levy that funds local tourism infrastructure and services, collected on top of VAT rather than instead of it. The two have entirely different legal bases, rates, and collection mechanisms.
Do guests pay tourist tax, or does the accommodation provider?
In almost every country, the guest pays and the accommodation provider collects and remits it to the local authority — with a growing exception: several countries, including France for non-professional listings, now have booking platforms collect and remit the tax directly on the host's behalf.
Are children exempt from tourist tax?
Commonly yes, but the exact age threshold and whether it's automatic or requires proof varies by municipality and country. Czechia's law, for example, statutorily exempts guests under 18; other countries set the age or the exemption criteria locally rather than nationally.
Which European countries have no tourist tax at all?
Denmark, Sweden, and Finland currently have none nationally, though Nordic municipalities occasionally debate introducing one. Ireland has discussed a Dublin-specific levy without implementing it yet. Most of the Baltic states also have no established tourist tax regime.
Verified against
Informational only
This page is provided for general information and is not legal or tax advice. Rates, deadlines and exemptions are set by law and municipal ordinances and can change — always verify current requirements with your municipality or a qualified advisor.