Development of Tourism and Regulation of Visitor Accommodation (Wales) Act 2026

Prospective

5 Meaning of regulated visitor accommodation E+W

(1) In this Act, “regulated visitor accommodation” means visitor accommodation of the following descriptions—

(a) self-catering accommodation that is self-contained, and is in—

(i) a building, or

(ii) a mobile home, vessel or other vehicle;

(b) any other description of visitor accommodation prescribed by the Welsh Ministers in regulations.

(2) But for the purposes of subsection (1)(a) self-catering accommodation that is self-contained is not regulated visitor accommodation if—

(a) it is provided in or at—

(i) a hotel (including an aparthotel), guesthouse or bed and breakfast accommodation,

(ii) a youth hostel, bunkhouse or camping barn,

(iii) a campsite in respect of which section 269 of the Public Health Act 1936 (c. 49) applies, or

(iv) a caravan site in respect of which Part 1 of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 (c. 62) applies;

(b) it is provided other than—

(i) on a short-term basis, and

(ii) for the purposes of business or leisure travel or educational trips;

(c) in the case of accommodation in a mobile home, vessel or other vehicle, it is not permanently or semi-permanently situated in one place.

(3) For the purposes of subsections (1) and (2), self-catering accommodation is “self-contained” if—

(a) it includes—

(i) one or more beds for sleeping,

(ii) a toilet, a sink, and a bath or shower, and

(iii) a kitchen or kitchen area, and

(b) during the period in which the visitor is entitled to reside in or at the accommodation, the facilities described in paragraph (a) are provided for the exclusive use of the visitor.

(4) Regulations under subsection (1)(b) may prescribe a description of regulated visitor accommodation by reference to—

(a) the nature or content of the contracts under which the accommodation is provided;

(b) the nature, status, or any particular characteristic of—

(i) the accommodation;

(ii) the premises at which the accommodation is provided;

(iii) the visitor accommodation provider (“VAP”);

(iv) any visitor to whom the accommodation is provided;

(c) any other matter that the Welsh Ministers consider appropriate.

(5) Regulations under subsection (1)(b) may amend this Act or the Visitor Accommodation (Register and Levy) Etc. (Wales) Act 2025 (asc 5) (and the reference in subsection (1)(b) to “prescribed by the Welsh Ministers in regulations” includes a reference to an amendment made by those regulations).

(6) Before making regulations under subsection (1)(b), the Welsh Ministers must consult any persons they consider appropriate and allow those persons a period of at least 12 weeks to respond.

(7) In this Act, the following terms have the meaning given in, or are to be read by reference to, the provisions of the Visitor Accommodation (Register and Levy) Etc. (Wales) Act 2025 (asc 5) specified below—

(a) “visitor accommodation”—

(i) means accommodation, in Wales, of a description given in section 2 of that Act, but

(ii) does not include accommodation‍ to the extent that it is within section 29(2)(b) of that Act (accommodation provided in certain circumstances by public bodies);

(b) “visitor accommodation provider” (or “VAP”) means a person that is registered under Part 2 of that Act (register of visitor accommodation providers);

(c) references to “providing” or “offering to provide” visitor accommodation are to be read in accordance with section 3(3) and (5)(a) of that Act;

(d) “premises” is to be read in accordance with section 4(7)(b) of that Act but the Welsh Ministers may, by regulations, make further or different provision about the meaning of the term in its application to this Act, including to amend section 6(4) or any other provision of this Act;

(e) “short-term basis” is to be read in accordance with section 2(3) of that Act;

(f) in relation to visitor accommodation, a reference to a “visitor” is a reference to an individual who is entitled to reside in or at the visitor accommodation for one or more nights, under or in consequence of a contract described in section 3(3) of that Act.

Commencement Information

I1 S. 5 in force at 4.3.2030, see s. 61(2)(b)