Edinburgh Council seeks power to fine unlicensed short-term lets up to £50,000
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There have been renewed calls for council officials to get more powers to tackle short term lets in the city
Edinburgh councillors have made a third plea in eight months to the Scottish Government for greater powers to crack down on unlicensed short-term lets, including a dramatic increase in fines.
Councillor Neil Ross tabled a motion at Friday’s Regulatory Committee meeting, proposing that the local authority writes to Housing Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville.
The motion called on ministers to allow the council to increase maximum penalties for unlicensed operators from £2,500 to £50,000. The proposed rate would match the fines applied to the unlicensed operation of houses in multiple occupation (HMOs).
It marks the third time since the end of last year that the council has pressed Holyrood for stronger enforcement tools.
City of Edinburgh Council wrote to the then housing secretary Màiri McAllan in December 2025 asking for more powers. Ms McAllan responded in January 2026 committing to review and reset the maximum level of fines that may be applied to unlicensed short term let operators of entire properties.
Cllr Ross—acting as convener of the committee - then wrote to Ms Somerville in May asking the housing secretary to re-commit to the plans laid out by her predecessor.
The latest motion once again calls on the Scottish Government to allow the council to increase maximum penalties to £50,000—an increase from the current maximum of £2,500. The increased rate would match that which applies to the unlicensed operation of Houses of Multiple Occupation.
The motion notes “continuing public concerns” surrounding unlicensed short-term lets and their potential danger to visitors.
Speaking at the meeting, Councillor Neil Ross said: “Whether the absence of a license or a temporary exemption is deliberate or not, the failure to comply, as we know, is a criminal offense, as well as potentially a danger to visitors.
“Antisocial behavior from unlicensed short-term letting is also very annoying to neighbours, and it's certainly unfair to licensed operators who want to comply with the law.”
He added: “The council has no powers to stop the collection of rents or do anything to restrict an unlicensed landlord from continuing to let, and the maximum fine a court can impose is a paltry £2,500.
“This is absolutely no deterrent when compared to the rents that can be earned over a weekend at popular times of the year. Compare this to an unlicensed HMO or an unregistered landlord, where the council has very effective powers to stop rents being collected, and for serious cases, the maximum fine in court is 50,000.
“So, why are unlicensed short-term let operators treated so lightly? It's a question that needs to be answered by the Scottish Government as they drew up the rules.”
Current available powers to deal with unlicensed STLs are limited to reporting the case to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS)—but the lets are not required to immediately cease trading.
There were 92 unlicensed short-term lets reported to City of Edinburgh Council's Private Rented Sector Enforcement team in the first quarter of 2026/27 — about one a day, and the third largest category of service request the team received, behind unregistered landlords/properties (113) and general PRS advice requests (143).
Edinburgh currently has 4,750 full, temporary and exemption short term let licenses in operation across the city. Since October 2022, operators have been legally required to apply for a license to operate in Edinburgh.