Rachel Allan, who joined the board of Tourism Midwest Victoria late last year, says it’s too early to tell what impact the governments new short-stay levy is having on the tourism industry locally.
From January 1st this year a 7.5% fee was introduced to encourage owners of under-utilised short-stay properties to convert them into long term renters.
Ms. Allan, who runs a tourism property management business with properties in Ballarat, says it’s the highest levy anywhere in the world.
“The global average for any other levy or tax of this type that has been brought in by a government is 3 to 5%, so 7.5% is much higher than anywhere else in the world.”
“We’ve just come straight out of COVID lockdowns, the economy has tanked, and all of our rates are down,” Ms. Allan said.
The Short Stay Levy Act received Royal Assent in October last year.
A ‘short stay’ means a stay in property for a continuous period of less than 28 days.
