A measure that aligns Milan with the majority of Italian and European tourist cities: from September 1st, 2012 onwards, visitors to our city will be subject to a residence tax. The revenue from this tax will be specifically allocated to tourism and to the promotion of the city by the enhancement of tourist facilities, plus, the upkeep and restoration of the cultural and environmental heritage of Milan. The aim is to upgrade the tourist potential of our city, making it increasingly more welcoming and visitor-friendly.
All visitors staying in hotel facilities throughout the municipality will be required to pay. The application of the tax will be proportional to the type of accommodation chosen, be it hotel or other lodging. An equitable benchmark has been approved identifying the types and classifications of accommodation by star ratings, each category will charge an amount of euro equal to the number of stars (1 star: 1€, 2 stars: 2€ etc). The tax will be applied per person per day of stay, with the exception of residence accommodation where the tax will be applied for up to a maximum of fourteen consecutive overnight stays.
There will be a number of the exemptions to this regulation, including all residents in Milan, anyone under 18, travellers under 30 staying in youth hostels, university students under the age of 26 housed in university facilities. Also exempt are family members and carers (within the period of hospitalisation or out-patient care) of people utilising medical facilities in Milan and its province. Also exempted are on-duty members of the Police and Civil Protection.
To facilitate your stay in Milan the tax will be reduced by 50% in low season periods identified on the basis of statistical trends in tourism, also in July and August and from December 10th to January 10th. For conferences and major trade exhibitions the benefit is conditioned by the price reduction of at least 25% charged by the hospitality structures.
