Ban Airbnb tax breaks and introduce additional charges for short term lets
The Scottish Greens have tabled plans to ban tax breaks for short term let operators profiteering from houses that could be used to tackle Scotland’s homelessness crisis.
Green MSP Ross Greer has lodged an amendment to the Housing (Scotland) Bill which would ban short term let operators from receiving relief from Non-Domestic Rates (NDR), commonly known as business rates. A second amendment lodged by the MSP would give Ministers the power to charge short term lets an additional NDR rate instead.
At present short term lets typically enjoy up to 100% NDR relief through policies such as the Small Business Bonus Scheme.
These reforms would discourage businesses from buying up homes to turn into short term lets, like Airbnbs. It is hoped the move would encourage the sale of homes currently used as short term lets to free up housing for people to actually live in, rather than for businesses to profit from.
Since the last election, the Scottish Greens have doubled the tax paid when buying a holiday home or buy-to-let property and given councils the power to double Council Tax on holiday homes.
These reforms have had the desired effect on house purchases, with 2455 fewer second homes bought last year than in 2023, the largest decrease in a decade. Combined, these will also raise over a quarter of a billion pounds for public services in the current financial year.
Mr Greer said:
“There are communities across the country where the greed of short term let operators and buy-to-let landlords has destroyed any chance of local young people ever owning their own home.
“Given the damage they’ve done to the housing market, there is absolutely no need for short term let operators to continue receiving massive tax breaks. Instead, they should pay a bit more in tax to fund the extra affordable housing we need to solve the crisis they helped to cause.
“The changes already delivered by Green MSPs have reduced the number of second and holiday homes bought each year, freeing up more properties for people who need a home to live in and raising millions of pounds for vital services like schools and hospitals.
"We will continue cracking down on the rich hoarding homes and working to free up houses for people to actually live in.
“We have thousands of homeless people across Scotland while many homes are bought up and used as Airbnbs. The Scottish Greens believe housing should be for people and not for profit.”