After two years of losses due to the pandemic’s drag on tourism, 2022 was marked by the industry’s historic recovery. The impetus for the recovery was extended to the municipalities of the country, which last year accounted for more than 54 million euros in the collection of tourist tax, according to the research by DN/Dinheiro Vivo. City councils collected 209% revenue over 2021 with this tax. Still, the good winds were not enough to match the more than 56 million euros recorded in 2019, and last year’s balance was still 4% lower than before the pandemic. This small difference is justified by the equally slow growth in the number of stays in the country. Up to and including November, overnight stays fell by 1.3% compared to 2019, the National Institute for Statistics revealed last Friday. If, on the other hand, 2022 was a year of record revenues, then the number of guests staying in tourist accommodation establishments in Portugal decreased, i.e. there were fewer tourists, which directly affected municipalities’ income from the tourist tax. Another factor that also explains the results under the pre-pandemic period was the fact that some municipalities maintained tariff suspension for part of the year, a measure introduced during the covid.
In total, 11 municipalities taxed overnight stays in tourist accommodation establishments in 2022: Braga, Cascais, Faro, Lisbon, Mafra, Óbidos, Porto, Santa Cruz (Madeira), Sintra, Vila Nova de Gaia and Vila Real de Santo António.
Looking at the national map, Lisbon, whose tax on overnight stays started in 2016, by raising €33.1 million, was still leading 8% below 2019. Most of the revenue, 56.4%, comes from tourism developments and 43.6% is local accommodation. The outlook for this year is optimistic and the city council led by Carlos Moedas hopes to earn another 1.655 million euros by December, which is 5% more than in 2022. In the capital, each night costs two euros, up to a limit of seven nights , for guests over 13 years old.
With a turnover of 14.4 million euros, Porto occupies second place on the podium, 4% below 2019. The municipality, which has been charging a tourist tax of 2 euros since 2018, is looking at the year with some caution. “The income from the municipal tourist tax always depends on the tourist flow and will continue to depend in 2023 on the effects that inflation will have on the global economy. What is certain is that Porto has more flight routes, international awards that appreciate the destination.” , so we hope to be able to hold on to at least the 15 million euros in revenue,” the municipality explains to DN/Dinheiro Vivo. Vila Nova de Gaia added 605 thousand euros in 2022 with the tourist tax, which it has been introducing since 2019 , the starting year in which it collected EUR 1,000. The municipality charges EUR 1 per night between October and March and EUR 2 between April and September. The forecast for 2023 in the municipal budget indicates a revenue of EUR 700,000.
Even further north, Braga, which sets the exchange rate at 1.5 euros between April and October, raised 512 thousand euros and expects a growth of between 30% and 40% this year. Cascais, which introduced the tourist tax in 2017, was the only municipality to match 2019 revenues, with €2.7 million collected. At the moment, an overnight stay in a tourist accommodation in the municipality costs two euros. Sintra only lifted the tax suspension in July 2022 and in six months the total amounted to 258 thousand euros (625 thousand euros in 2019). The target for this year is to reach the limit of 500,000 euros. The management is currently evaluating the update of the tourist tax to two euros.
Mafra, which charges one euro in the high season and two euros in the low season, broke the national trend with a turnover increase of 35% compared to 2019 to 844 thousand euros. “Expectations for this year are positive given the revenue already collected last year in the context of post-pandemic recovery and also the existence of new registrations of local housing,” the chamber continues.
Faro also sketches an optimistic scenario in the south of the country. “Taking into account the positive balance recorded this year and the improvement of Faro’s offer as a tourist destination, namely in terms of quality tourism, an increase in revenues related to the tourist tax is expected for 2023,” said the municipality, which in debut received a million euros between March and December. The bills are also added in Vila Real de Santo António, with an increase of 19% compared to 2019, to 907 thousand euros. In the archipelagos, Santa Cruz, Madeira, is the only municipality where overnight stays are charged, worth one euro. Revenues for 2022 amounted to 517,000 euros, 3% less than in 2019. Nevertheless, 2018 was the record year for the municipality of Madeira, when it generated 569,000 euros. This year the goal is to double the amount raised with the tax to one million euros.
Óbidos completes the list of municipalities that tax tourist overnight stays and has been charging one euro per night since January 2022. Although the municipality has not yet closed its accounts for the year, it raised a hundred thousand euros in the first half.
New year, new fees
With the start of a new year, several municipalities are joining the list of 11 that already levy tourist tax. Póvoa de Varzim is one of them and will introduce this tax for the first time, taxing overnight stays at 1.5 euros for guests aged 16 and over. Viana do Castelo is also preparing to charge 1.5 euros per night in high season and 1 euro in low season from this year onwards. The draft regulation was adopted in October and was publicly discussed. At the end of December, the Intermunicipal Association of the Algarve (AMAL) submitted a proposal to charge two euros per night in the municipalities of the region in the summer and one euro in the low season.
On the other hand, the Azores took a step back in the decision to ask from this year one euro per night in tourist accommodation, for a maximum of four nights, or two euros per passenger disembarking on a cruise ship or recreationally the regional legislative assembly gave the green light to the measure in April last year. “The abolition of the tourist tax is a friendly solution for economic growth, friendly to the promotion of tourism in the Azores and the sustainable growth of the regional economy,” justified the regional government, acknowledging that the tax would “make the region more attractive “. expensive” in a context led by inflation. The decree law was repealed in December at the suggestion of Chega.
Source: DN
