Push to delay accommodation licensing amid closure warnings

The proposals will see businesses that offer B&B, AirBnB, and agritourism operations that offer accommodation, apply for a licence through their local authority – with one organisation warning the system could see thousands of rural businesses closing.

Operators say the move means rural businesses offering accommodation such as pods and glamping are being caught up in a system aimed at freeing up city centre properties.

Caroline Millar, Agritourism Sector Lead

Rural business organisation Scottish Land & Estates has added its voice to calls for the deadline for businesses to apply for a short-term let licence to be extended.

SLE said that measures to comply with licensing, such as obtaining various types of certifications, were simply unfeasible for many businesses given the shortage of contractors in rural Scotland.

It added that many members were facing six-month waits or more to be able to get a booking arranged with tradespeople.

Stephen Young, Director of Policy at Scottish Land & Estates said: “Rural Scotland, far more than urban areas, is heavily dependent on tourism for its economic and community success.

“If the Scottish Government chooses to proceed on the path it is on, it may well be to blame for hundreds if not thousands of these businesses closing, with the resulting impacts on other local businesses such as retail and hospitality also needing to be factored in.

“The Scottish Government has dismissed calls for an extension to the licensing registration deadline in recent weeks, citing the fact that registration has been open for many months.

“This is factually incorrect as the earliest that an application could be made to a local authority was 1 October 2022, and in some areas, this licence application process has only been in full operation since February 2023.

Stephen Young, SL&E Policy Director

“This has meant that some hosts and operators have only had seven months to obtain the relevant supporting documentation and additional certifications required just as they were entering the busiest part of their year.

“Specialist contractors were, and still are, giving six-month waiting times for work to be undertaken in rural areas.

“Businesses are not refusing to register out of obstinacy, but out of a total lack of faith that this is a workable or proportionate scheme, and because it doesn’t recognise unique challenges in the provision of rural accommodation.”

Scottish Agritourism, the sector body representing farms and crofts in Scotland with a tourism or leisure offering, is also calling for a delay in the introduction of the legislation.

Caroline Millar, Sector Lead said “We have been gathering data and evidence from across rural Scotland from members on an ongoing basis in relation to progress being made with short-term let applications.

“There are definitely significant differences between local authorities in the interpretation of the legislation and the application process itself.

“For example, one local authority insists that a cottage has all its door handles and locks changed, while another local authority is not requesting this.

“Farmers located in areas with the most burdensome requests are finding it particularly difficult to make all the relevant requests in time, particularly those which require third-party trades.

“We will be in the public gallery to hear the debate on short-term lets in the Scottish Parliament this week and will continue to call on the Scottish Government to delay the deadline of 1st October 2023 which is going to mean many businesses are not compliant and cannot operate. This is not good for business and not good for our perception with visitors at a time when there is a national strategy for agritourism with targets to grow farm businesses in tourism, including in accommodation ventures.”