The city council of Peniche in Portugal has given the green light to a new regulation seeking to implement a one-euro tourist tax for overnight stays to offset the rising influx of tourists in the Leiria district.
The proposal received unanimous approval during the latest Chamber meeting and is scheduled for submission to the Municipal Assembly.
As the Portugal News explains, before it becomes effective, Peniche’s municipal tourist tax regulation, set at one euro, will undergo a 30-day public consultation period, as outlined in the accessible proposal obtained by the Lusa agency today.
In this regard, the Peniche Chamber noted that in recent years, it has seen a substantial increase in the number of visitors to the municipality as the rationale for implementing a tourist tax.
The Municipality of Peniche considers that the principle of fair distribution of public costs requires that the operational costs incurred in generating utilities for tourists who visit the municipality be allocated in the proportion in which they benefit from these tourists and not the population resident of the municipality.
According to the Peniche Chamber, implementing a municipal tourist tax aims to ease the social and environmental strain on the municipality’s infrastructure while maintaining the municipality’s competitiveness within the regional context.
Peniche’s municipal tourist tax will apply to overnight stays in a range of accommodations, including hotels, guesthouses, apartment hotels, tourist villages, resorts, local accommodations, tourism enterprises, as well as camping and caravan parks.
Another region of Portugal that also introduced a night tax of €2 in May of this year is that of the Algarve. Such a tax was expected to be implemented during the summer season and also generate up to €300,000 in annual revenue. During the off-peak season, including the period from November to March, the rate will be reduced to €1 per night.
Previously, Portugal’s municipalities implementing a tourist tax have collectively generated a total of €21.4 million in revenue over four months, starting from January and concluding at the end of April this year. Of this amount, Lisbon alone accounted for €13.6 million in tax collection.
Based on a report provided by Portugal Resident, tourist arrivals in the country have experienced a 41 per cent increase during the first four months of this year compared to the corresponding period of the previous year.
