Recently approved regulations will, from 1 April 2026, allow councils in Scotland to set higher council tax charges for long-term empty homes and second homes. Currently, councils can charge no more than double the normal council tax rate for such properties. The new rules remove that restriction.
The Scottish Government’s policy aim is to give councils more discretion to allow them to respond to local housing pressures.
This blog outlines the background to the changes.
The current position
There are around 32,300 long-term empty homes (empty for over 12 months) and 20,900 second homes (as defined by council tax legislation) in Scotland.
Overall, this is a low proportion (2%) of all homes in Scotland. But there are wide variations across council areas with higher concentrations in rural areas.
Councils have been allowed to charge a 100% council tax premium—that is, double the normal rate—on certain long-term empty homes since April 2013. This power was later extended to second homes in April 2024. These powers are contained in the Council Tax (Variation for Unoccupied Dwellings) (Scotland) Regulations 2013 (as amended).
Councils can also choose to vary the council tax charged for different circumstances, and/or to apply increases in all or part of their areas, as they consider appropriate. Scottish Government guidance emphasises the flexibility available to councils.
Currently, all councils make use of the power to charge additional council tax for second/long term empty homes in some way.
Charging council tax premiums is one of several tools that councils can use to help reduce numbers of long-term empty homes and second homes in their areas. For example, many councils use empty home officers to work with owners to bring their properties back into use.
Why the change in legislation?
The Scottish Government’s Housing to 2040 Strategy committed to providing councils with tools and powers to make the best use of existing housing stock. This includes managing the number of long-term empty homes, short-term lets and second homes in their areas.
The strategy noted that taxation is one measure that can support local areas to reach the right balance for their local circumstances. For example, owners purchasing a second home are also charged an additional 8% Land and Building Transaction Tax.
A joint Scottish Government/COSLA consultation in 2023 sought views on, amongst other matters, introducing powers that would enable a premium of greater than 100% to be applied to both second and long-term empty homes, the aim of which was to:
… encourage more residential accommodation to be used as homes for living in and for these to be occupied for more of the time. Local areas need to decide how to achieve the right balance in the use of housing to meet local needs and to support thriving communities.
Giving this power to councils needed a change to primary legislation as legislation had provided for a cap on premiums above 100%. Amendments were made at Stage 2 of the Housing (Scotland) Bill to remove the cap.
The regulations implementing the change, the Council Tax (Variation for Unoccupied Dwellings) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2026 were considered by the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee on 17 February 2026 and 24 February 2026 .
The Committee also had written evidence from councils that broadly welcomed the flexibility that the regulations would provide to them. Some councils noted that council tax could influence owner behaviour in relation to second and long-term empty homes to address housing challenges.
Details of the legislation
The 2026 regulations make changes to the 2013 regulations to:
- separate out the definition of second homes and empty homes from unoccupied dwellings
- establish a national default rate for council tax premiums for second homes and long-term empty homes of 100 per cent (the current position is that there is a default rate of a 50% discount – the 50% default position will remain for unoccupied dwellings)
- enable councils to vary the default rate, meaning there is no limit on the extent to which the percentage premium may be increased, or decreased; councils may also choose not to apply a premium, or to apply a discount.
As with current legislation, councils can apply different approaches for different cases, types of homes or areas.
The Scottish Government also intends to publish statutory guidance on the changes, which the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government, Shona Robison MSP, told the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee:
… will make it clear that councils should act proportionately and in line with the purpose of the legislation, including in circumstances in which a dwelling is unoccupied because a liable person is required to live away from home because of their employment in the armed forces or healthcare.
Existing legislation also exempts some unoccupied properties from council tax altogether, for example, where an owner is in a care home, or (for a limited time) the property of a deceased owner. Unoccupied and unfurnished homes are also exempt from the first six months. These exemptions have not changed. Job related dwellings and purpose-built holiday homes will also retain their existing 50% discount.
How will councils use the new powers?
Each council will decide whether to make any changes to its existing policies considering their local circumstances.
Given the timing of the legislation, it’s unlikely that all councils will change their policies immediately. Some councils, however, appear to have agreed to implement new policies from April 2026. For example:
- Midlothian Council: the flat rate 100% premium will be replaced by a new graduated system that rises the longer a property remains unoccupied. After 37 months of being a long-term empty or a second home the premium will rise to 500% (i.e. 600% of the standard rate will apply).
- Scottish Borders Council: second home owners will be charged a premium of 225% of the standard council tax , rising to 300% in 2028. Long-term empty home owners will be charged a 200% premium unless the property qualifies for any legislative exemptions or discounts.
- The City of Edinburgh Council: the premium for second homes and long-term empty homes will increase from 100% to 300%.
- Glasgow City Council: the premium for second homes and long-term empty homes will increase to 100% from 300%.
- Highland Council: the premium for second homes will increase to 300% in 2026/27, 350% in 2027/28 and 400% in 2028/29
Additional income may be generated from any increase in premiums. Councils will be free to use this income as they wish, although income generation is not the primary purpose of the change.
The Scottish Government will monitor the impact of the regulations in the future on changes to housing use, using data provided by councils.
Where long term empty home or second homeowners think that a council has not made a decision correctly in terms of the legislation, they can request that the council review its decision. If an owner remains unsatisfied, or the council has not responded within two months, owners can submit an appeal to the Local Taxation Chamber.
Blog image “View of buildings below Stirling Castle, Stirling, Scotland” by aaranged is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
Kate Berry, Senior Researcher, SPICe.