Vilnius authorities postpone discussions on pillow tax

Aleksandras Zubriakovas confirmed that the issue had been removed from the municipal council’s Wednesday meeting agenda, without elaborating.

Under the plan, the levy for an overnight stay in Vilnius would stand at 50 euro cent per person, and would rise to EUR 1 as of 2017. The money would go to promoting Vilnius abroad. Notably, only individual tourists would pay the “pillow tax” as groups of tourists renting ten rooms and more would be exempt.

The Seimas of Lithuania voted in May that similar levies could be collected by all municipalities in Lithuania. Previously, only the resorts of Druskininkai, Birštonas and Palanga were allowed to do so.

Now tourists pay levies of 30 euro cents in Palanga, 58 euro cents in Birštonas and EUR 1 in Druskininkai. The “pillow tax” in Palanga will be replaced by a one-off entry levy of EUR 5 and will only be collected in summer.