Quick answer: there's no short-let licence or night cap in Bath, but several rules already apply to every holiday let. You need a fire risk assessment, an annual gas safety check and a commercial waste arrangement, and you must use the correct council tax or business rates regime. Planning permission may be needed if your use amounts to a material change of use. Two changes are coming: England's national short-let register is due by March 2027, and a visitor levy for the West of England is now being discussed.
Updated October 2026. Written by Pass the Keys Bath. This is a general overview, not legal or tax advice.
Licence: none in Bath.
Night cap: none. The 90-night rule only applies in London.
National register: mandatory, due to be fully running by March 2027.
Planning: needed only for a material change of use. There's no Article 4 Direction for short lets in Bath.
Fire safety: a written fire risk assessment is a legal requirement.
Gas safety: annual check by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
Waste: holiday let waste is commercial waste, so you need a paid collection and waste transfer notes.
Council tax: second homes pay a 100% premium. Holiday lets meeting the 140/70-night test pay business rates instead.
Tax: the furnished holiday lettings regime ended in April 2025.
Visitor levy: not in force. Legislation is going through Parliament and the West of England is preparing to consult.
Not yet, but you will soon. England's mandatory national register of short-term and holiday lets is due to be fully running by March 2027, as the Culture Secretary told Parliament on 3 September 2026. It will apply across England, including Bath, and is expected to be mainly online, with a registration number for each property.
The government hasn't yet published all the details, such as fees and exactly what owners must provide. The safety duties it's expected to check already apply today, so getting your fire risk assessment, gas certificate and insurance in order now will make registration straightforward.
Only if letting the property amounts to a material change of use, which Bath & North East Somerset Council decides case by case. Bath has no Article 4 Direction covering short lets, and the proposed national Use Class C5 for short lets isn't law yet. Listed-building consent and conservation area rules still apply to any works, which matters in a city where so many homes are listed.
Our full guide to planning permission for holiday lets in Bath covers when permission is likely, how to check, and what C5 could mean.
Holiday lets in England are covered by fire and gas safety law, whether you have one guest a year or hundreds.
Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the person responsible for a holiday let must carry out a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment, act on it and keep it under review. For small properties with a simple layout, the government's guide Making your small paying guest accommodation safe from fire includes a checklist. Larger or more complex properties, such as tall Georgian townhouses with several floors, should follow the fuller sleeping accommodation guide, and a professional assessor is often the safer choice. Your assessment will usually cover:
Linked smoke detection, and heat detection in kitchens
Escape routes, fire doors and emergency lighting where needed
Carbon monoxide alarms near fuel-burning appliances
A fire blanket, and clear fire safety information for guests
In listed buildings, fire doors and alarms may need listed-building consent, so plan these with the council. Our guide to running a period holiday home in Bath covers this in more detail.
Gas appliances, fittings and flues in a holiday let must be checked every year by a Gas Safe registered engineer, and you should keep the record.
Electrical installations and any appliances you provide must be safe. A periodic electrical inspection (EICR) and portable appliance testing are the standard ways to show this, and insurers often ask for them.
Upholstered furniture, mattresses and soft furnishings you provide must meet the fire resistance standards in the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations. Check for the permanent labels.
Waste from a holiday let is commercial waste, not household waste. Bath & North East Somerset Council says you must have a commercial waste arrangement in place for a holiday let, whether you pay council tax or business rates. In practice that means:
Using a licensed commercial waste carrier, not the council's household bin and recycling collections
Keeping the waste transfer notes your carrier gives you
Storing bins securely so waste doesn't cause litter or attract pests
The council can issue a £500 fixed penalty notice if you can't produce waste transfer documentation when asked. In central Bath, business waste can only be put out at set times, so check collection windows with your carrier before guests arrive.
It depends on how much it's let. In England, a self-catering property is assessed for business rates if it's available to let for at least 140 nights a year and was actually let for at least 70 nights in the previous 12 months. New holiday lets start on the council tax list and the Valuation Office Agency decides when they move.
If your property doesn't meet the test and isn't anyone's main home, it pays council tax as a second home. In Bath that means a 100% premium, so double the normal bill, which has applied since 1 April 2025. Business rates don't cover waste collection either way. Our guide to the hidden cost of empty homes in Bath explains the premiums and exceptions in detail.
The furnished holiday lettings (FHL) tax regime was abolished in April 2025. Short-let profits are now taxed like other residential property income. Mortgage interest relief is restricted to a basic-rate tax credit, as for buy-to-let, and some former capital gains reliefs are no longer available. You can still deduct allowable running costs: see can I deduct expenses from my short-let income in Bath? and speak to an accountant about your position.
Possibly, but not yet. The Overnight Visitor Levy Bill, announced in the King's Speech on 13 May 2026, will let mayors in England introduce a charge on overnight stays, and short-term lets are expected to be included alongside hotels and B&Bs. In Bath, the power would sit with the West of England Combined Authority.
West of England Mayor Helen Godwin has welcomed the plans, and Bath & North East Somerset Council's leader, Cllr Kevin Guy, has backed them, pointing to Bath's roughly six million visitors a year. People and businesses across the region are expected to be consulted before any decision is made. No rate or start date has been set.
If a levy arrives, hosts will likely need to add it to bookings and declare it, so it's worth building flexibility into your pricing now.
Lease: many leasehold flats in Bath ban short-term or holiday letting.
Mortgage: most lenders need consent, and some require a specialist holiday let mortgage.
Insurance: standard home insurance rarely covers paying guests, so you need specialist short-let or holiday let cover, including public liability.
Records: keep a log of available and let nights for business rates, and your safety certificates for the register.
For a step-by-step checklist, read what hosts should know before renting out their property in Bath.
For well-run properties, yes. Bath short lets averaged £38,479 in gross booking revenue over the 12 months to September 2026, according to Airdna, and the city's demand runs all year. The rules mainly add cost and paperwork, which makes good pricing and high occupancy matter more.
See earnings by property size and a gross-to-net example in Is Short-Letting Profitable in Bath?
Switching from tenants? Compare both routes in From Long Let to Short Let in Bath.
Keep the quieter months earning with how to fill a Bath holiday let in winter.
A local manager can take on the compliance work as well as the day-to-day running. See how to choose the best short-let management company in Bath, or find out more about our holiday let management in Bath.
No. Bath has no short-let licence, but England's national register is due to be fully running by March 2027.
No. The 90-night limit only applies in Greater London.
Yes. Fire safety law requires anyone letting to paying guests to carry out and record a fire risk assessment and act on its findings.
No. Holiday let waste is commercial waste, so you need a paid collection from a licensed carrier and must keep waste transfer notes. The council can issue a £500 fixed penalty if you can't show them.
Yes. Since April 2025, second homes in Bath & North East Somerset pay a 100% premium. Holiday lets that meet the 140/70-night test pay business rates instead.
Not yet. The Overnight Visitor Levy Bill would let the West of England Combined Authority introduce one after consultation. No rate or date has been set.
Only if your use amounts to a material change of use. See our planning permission guide for how to check.
Want help getting your Bath property compliant and earning? Calculate your income or speak to Chris and the Bath team.