Running short-term lets in Edinburgh under Scotland's licence and the city's control area
If you manage or clean short-term lets in Edinburgh, you follow Scotland's rules for short-term lets. A host needs a licence from the council before taking a booking, the whole city has been a short-term let control area since 5 September 2022, which means a whole flat that isn't anyone's main home needs planning permission as well, and since 24 July 2026 guests pay a 5% visitor levy on their first five nights. Upbridge's AI operations assistant, Cleo, works over WhatsApp with vacation rental operators and cleaning companies and organizes the cleanings and the inventory for each place.
The rules here
Edinburgh sits under the Scottish scheme, so every row below comes from Scottish sources except the last one. We checked every row on 23 October 2026.
| Topic | What it says | Status | Since | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Licence | Scotland's licensing scheme opened on 1 October 2022, and a new host has to hold a licence before accepting bookings or guests. A licence usually lasts three years. Letting without one is a criminal offence, with a fine of up to £2,500 and a one-year ban on applying again. | In force | 1 October 2022 | Scottish Government, mygov.scot |
| Licence conditions | A gas safety certificate dated within the last 12 months, an electrical installation condition report, heat, smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, a Legionella risk assessment, no more guests than the licence allows, buildings and public liability insurance, and the EPC rating shown in every advert. | In force | 1 October 2022 | mygov.scot |
| Control area | The whole City of Edinburgh Council area became a short-term let control area on 5 September 2022. Letting an entire dwelling that isn't someone's principal home is a change of use that needs planning permission. Home sharing, and letting your own home while you're away, normally don't. It's one of only two control areas in Scotland; the other is Badenoch and Strathspey. | In force | 5 September 2022 | City of Edinburgh Council, mygov.scot |
| Visitor levy | 5% of the accommodation-only cost, on the first five nights of a stay, for stays from 24 July 2026 booked after 1 October 2025. The accommodation provider collects it, and the council said the first returns and payments were due in October. | In force | 24 July 2026 | City of Edinburgh Council |
| England's register | GOV.UK marks the national register expected in March 2027 as applying to England, so a flat in Edinburgh is covered by the Scottish licence above. The English scheme is on our England page. | Not yet in force | March 2027 (expected) | GOV.UK |
Planning permission and the licence are two separate decisions, and the council says some lets need both. A licence on its own doesn't settle the planning question for a whole flat.
This is not legal or tax advice, and Upbridge does not file anything for you: no registrations and no tax returns.
How it works on the ground
The Scottish Government's figures, published on 28 April 2026, counted 3,209 licences in operation in Edinburgh at the end of 2025, granted or provisional. The city also held 54 of Scotland's 63 temporary licences and all 128 temporary exemptions, and the report says those are mainly for the Festival.
So August brings flats that are only let for a few weeks of the year, whose owners may not have a regular cleaner, on top of the year-round ones. The Fringe has already announced 6 to 30 August 2027 for its 80th edition, which gives you the dates to plan linen and staff around nearly a year ahead.
Because the levy only covers the first five nights, a guest staying a full week pays it on five of them. If your booking tool shows the levy as its own line, check it once against a long stay before August.
Edinburgh Trams says trams leave the airport every 7 minutes, with the first at 06:30 and the last at 22:52. A guest landing after that last tram will need another way into town, and your arrival note is the place to tell them which one.
Where Upbridge fits
The licence conditions turn into things a cleaner can check. On a photo checklist you can mark items such as the carbon monoxide alarm as required, so each changeover has a photo of it, and the list is created from each checkout on Guesty, Hostaway, Lodgify, Uplisting or your iCal.
For a guest coming in on the tram, the guest guide we build holds the walk from the stop and how to get into the flat, and with online check-in turned on they upload their ID before arriving. Inventory per property is deducted after each stay, so before the Festival you can see which flats are short of towels or bin bags.
If you run a cleaning company in Edinburgh
In August you may be asked to turn over Festival-only flats alongside your regular clients, often for owners you've never worked with. The account for cleaning companies brings each owner's iCal or PMS into a single calendar, takes no cut per job, and leaves every client with you.
Questions about short-term lets in Edinburgh
Do I need a licence to let a flat short term in Edinburgh?
Yes. Under Scotland's scheme, which opened on 1 October 2022, a new host needs a licence before taking bookings or guests, and mygov.scot, updated 9 October 2025, says letting without one is a criminal offence.
Do I need planning permission for a short-term let in Edinburgh?
For a whole flat that isn't someone's principal home, yes. The city has been a short-term let control area since 5 September 2022. Home sharing and letting your own home while you're away normally don't need it.
When does the Edinburgh visitor levy apply?
To stays from 24 July 2026 that were booked after 1 October 2025. It's 5% of the accommodation-only cost on the first five nights, according to the council's notice of 10 July 2026.
More questions
Does England's short-let register apply in Edinburgh?
GOV.UK lists the register, expected in March 2027, as applying to England. Edinburgh hosts deal with the Scottish licence instead.
Sources
Checked on 23 October 2026
- mygov.scot, “Short-term let licences”, updated 9 October 2025.
- mygov.scot, “Legal requirements for short-term lets”, updated 9 October 2025.
- mygov.scot, “Planning permission and control areas for short-term lets”, updated 9 October 2025.
- Scottish Government, “Licensing scheme opens for short-term lets”, 1 October 2022.
- Scottish Government, “Short Term Lets Licensing Statistics Scotland to 31 December 2025”, 28 April 2026.
- City of Edinburgh Council, “Short-term lets: planning”, undated, read 23 October 2026.
- City of Edinburgh Council, “Two weeks to go: preparations ongoing ahead of Edinburgh Visitor Levy launch”, 10 July 2026.
- GOV.UK, “Letting out a self-catering holiday home in England: rules and regulations”, updated 2 October 2026.
- Edinburgh Festival Fringe, undated, read 23 October 2026.
- Edinburgh Trams, undated, read 23 October 2026.