More and more countries are introducing tourist taxes that are intended to benefit nature. In the Faroe Islands, the tax will apply from October 1, while Greenland will have a tourist tax from the turn of the year.

More and more countries around the world are introducing tourist taxes that are intended to benefit nature and the population. 

More and more countries

It is a global trend that parliaments in, for example, Greenland and the Faroe Islands have legislated to benefit nature.

More and more countries around the world are introducing tourist taxes that are intended to benefit nature and the population. 

More and more countriesAnnouncement

It is a global trend that parliaments in, for example, Greenland and the Faroe Islands have legislated to benefit nature.

The Faroese law came into force about a year ago, but the tax itself will be introduced on October 1st of this year. On January 1st, 2026, Greenland will introduce an overnight stay tax, or popularly known as a tourist tax.

A dozen years ago, there weren’t many tourists in the Faroe Islands. But now it’s different. Last year, around 130,000 tourists visited the 18 islands in the Atlantic Ocean, where the population is just under 55,000.

Hotel and Airbnb accommodations

10 years ago, according to a very rough estimate, the number of tourists was less than 60,000.

– We have had challenges with private payment fees for access to certain areas, among other things. With the new law, it is a condition for charging a fee that a service is included.

This is what Jóhan Pauli Helgason, head of the development department at the Faroe Islands Tourist Board, Visit Faroe Islands, tells Sermitsiaq.

The new tourist tax means that all guests staying at hotels, airbnbs and other commercial accommodations must pay 20 kroner per day for up to 10 days. The tax per tourist may not exceed 200 kroner.

Germany’s secret

In Norway and Sweden, everyone has the right to freely roam the countryside, but you must make sure to leave the countryside in as good a condition as before you arrived.

– We do not have the right of way in the Faroe Islands. As a nation, we do not have overtourism either. But certain towns and villages of course have some challenges with tourists in the high season, says Jóhan Pauli Helgason.

Visit Faroe Islands has, before the tourist tax law was introduced, recommended a nature conservation tax.

– The politicians listened to this when they adopted the new overnight tax on hotels, for example, and a one-off tax for passengers from cruise ships. Instead of the current practice of charging fees at various natural attractions, he says.

The money from the tourist tax goes into a fund that will invest in nature protection and the expansion of infrastructure, for example trails, lookouts on mountaintops and vulnerable areas, and toilets, says Jóhan Pauli Helgason.

This will mean that the fund will receive a few million each year with the current number of tourists.

– The new tourist tax in combination with a new fund and the new nature protection law will change a lot about tourism in the Faroe Islands. Over time, we will have a large fund with a lot of money, which has the muscle to implement large projects, believes the development department in the head of the development department at Visit Faroe Islands.

Greenland

Inatsisartut passed the law on tourist taxes in November last year, but the tax itself, as mentioned, applies from January 1, 2026.

This means that tourists must pay a tax of 30 kroner per night in rooms, dormitories, apartments, houses, accommodation containers and tents in Greenland.

The scheme applies to tourists coming from outside, but not tourists living in Greenland.

The new tax is expected to bring in around 6.3 million kroner annually, which will be distributed between the country’s five municipalities. The purpose is to support tourism development.

The tax paid is distributed between the municipalities in proportion to the number of registered overnight stays.

As stated in section eight of the law:

– Municipalities may only use the income from the accommodation tax to develop tourism locally and regionally, including mitigating any negative consequences of increased tourism in an area.

Overturisme i Island

In 2024, Iceland broke a record with almost 2.3 million foreign tourists visiting. Last year, the government introduced a tourist tax as part of the country’s climate goals. The tax is 30 kroner per night at hotels and guesthouses.

Overtourism is putting pressure on Iceland’s nature. The government hopes to protect the pristine nature from mass tourism by introducing a fee.

The Icelandic government hopes that the new tax will reduce the impact visitors have on wildlife and the ecosystem.

Norge

The Norwegian authorities have been working for several years to put a tourist tax system in place. The government wants municipalities to be able to introduce a tourist tax on hotel accommodation, camping accommodation and airbnb.

It will be up to the municipalities whether they want to introduce the scheme. The proposal comes in the wake of a record year for Norwegian tourism in 2024 with over 38 million overnight stays.

Bhutan reduces mass tourism

The small Buddhist kingdom of Bhutan in the Himalayas has, according to the digital media outlet, “World’s Best News”, been successful in reducing mass tourism.

Every year, 300,000 tourists visit the country, and they all pay a tourist tax of 660 kroner per day. The money goes to development projects within the education and health sectors. All tourists must be accompanied by a local guide if they travel outside the capital.

In Greece, the tourist tax has been renamed a climate tax. Here, the money goes to restoring nature in tourist areas that have been affected by wildfires and floods.

Denmark has no tourist tax, although there has been discussion about introducing one in Copenhagen.

France, Italy, Spain, Japan, Thailand, countries in the Caribbean and many other countries have also introduced tourist taxes at different rates and in different schemes.

More and more countries around the world are introducing tourist taxes that are intended to benefit nature and the population. 

More and more countries

It is a global trend that parliaments in, for example, Greenland and the Faroe Islands have legislated to benefit nature.

More and more countries around the world are introducing tourist taxes that are intended to benefit nature and the population. 

More and more countriesAnnouncement

It is a global trend that parliaments in, for example, Greenland and the Faroe Islands have legislated to benefit nature.

The Faroese law came into force about a year ago, but the tax itself will be introduced on October 1st of this year. On January 1st, 2026, Greenland will introduce an overnight stay tax, or popularly known as a tourist tax.

A dozen years ago, there weren’t many tourists in the Faroe Islands. But now it’s different. Last year, around 130,000 tourists visited the 18 islands in the Atlantic Ocean, where the population is just under 55,000.

Hotel and Airbnb accommodations

10 years ago, according to a very rough estimate, the number of tourists was less than 60,000.

– Among other things, we have had challenges with private payment fees to gain access to certain areas. With the new law, it is a condition for charging a fee that a service is included.

This is what Jóhan Pauli Helgason, head of the development department at the Faroe Islands Tourist Board, Visit Faroe Islands, tells Sermitsiaq.

The new tourist tax means that all guests staying at hotels, airbnbs and other commercial accommodations must pay 20 kroner per day for up to 10 days. The tax per tourist may not exceed 200 kroner.

Germany’s secret

In Norway and Sweden, everyone has the right to freely roam the countryside, but you must make sure to leave the countryside in as good a condition as before you arrived.

– We do not have the right of way in the Faroe Islands. As a nation, we do not have overtourism either. But certain towns and villages of course have some challenges with tourists in the high season, says Jóhan Pauli Helgason.

Visit Faroe Islands has, before the tourist tax law was introduced, recommended a nature conservation tax.

– The politicians listened to this when they adopted the new overnight tax on hotels, for example, and a one-off tax for passengers from cruise ships. Instead of the current practice of charging fees at various natural attractions, he says.

The money from the tourist tax goes into a fund that will invest in nature protection and the expansion of infrastructure, for example trails, lookouts on mountaintops and vulnerable areas, and toilets, says Jóhan Pauli Helgason.

This will mean that the fund will receive a few million each year with the current number of tourists.

– The new tourist tax in combination with a new fund and the new nature protection law will change a lot about tourism in the Faroe Islands. Over time, we will have a large fund with a lot of money, which has the muscle to implement large projects, believes the development department in the head of the development department at Visit Faroe Islands.

Greenland

Inatsisartut passed the law on tourist taxes in November last year, but the tax itself, as mentioned, applies from January 1, 2026.

This means that tourists must pay a tax of 30 kroner per night in rooms, dormitories, apartments, houses, accommodation containers and tents in Greenland.

The scheme applies to tourists coming from outside, but not tourists living in Greenland.

The new tax is expected to bring in around 6.3 million kroner annually, which will be distributed between the country’s five municipalities. The purpose is to support tourism development.

The tax paid is distributed between the municipalities in proportion to the number of registered overnight stays.

As stated in section eight of the law:

– Municipalities may only use the income from the accommodation tax to develop tourism locally and regionally, including mitigating any negative consequences of increased tourism in an area.

Overturisme i Island

In 2024, Iceland broke a record with almost 2.3 million foreign tourists visiting. Last year, the government introduced a tourist tax as part of the country’s climate goals. The tax is 30 kroner per night at hotels and guesthouses.

Overtourism is putting pressure on Iceland’s nature. The government hopes to protect the pristine nature from mass tourism by introducing a fee.

The Icelandic government hopes that the new tax will reduce the impact visitors have on wildlife and the ecosystem.

Norge

The Norwegian authorities have been working for several years to get a tourist tax system in place. The government wants municipalities to be able to introduce a tourist tax on hotel accommodation, camping accommodation and airbnb.

It will be up to the municipalities whether they want to introduce the scheme. The proposal comes in the wake of a record year for Norwegian tourism in 2024 with over 38 million overnight stays.

Bhutan reduces mass tourism

The small Buddhist kingdom of Bhutan in the Himalayas has, according to the digital media outlet, “World’s Best News”, been successful in reducing mass tourism.

Every year, 300,000 tourists visit the country, and they all pay a tourist tax of 660 kroner per day. The money goes to development projects within the education and health sectors. All tourists must be accompanied by a local guide if they travel outside the capital.

In Greece, the tourist tax has been renamed a climate tax. Here, the money goes to restoring nature in tourist areas that have been affected by wildfires and floods.

Denmark has no tourist tax, although there has been discussion about introducing one in Copenhagen.

France, Italy, Spain, Japan, Thailand, countries in the Caribbean and many other countries have also introduced tourist taxes at different rates and in different schemes.