Russia to change tourist tax calculation — what awaits Tatarstan
This year, tourists will be charged in Kazan, Yelabuga and Bolgar
The Ministry of Economic Development will adjust the mechanism for imposing the tourist tax in Russia. This instruction was given by head of the department Maxim Reshetnikov at a meeting with representatives of the tourism industry as part of Travel forum. Previously, tour operators asked the government to cancel the lower limit of the tax of 100 rubles. Realnoe Vremya found out what changes industry representatives in Tatarstan are expecting.
Tour operators' proposal
In August 2025, the Russian Union of Travel Industry sent a proposal to the Ministry of Economic Development and the Federal Tax Service to change the principle of calculating the tourist tax so that it is equivalent to market prices for accommodation in hotels and inns. Tourism industry experts believe that it is necessary to leave the gradual increase in the tax to 5%, while removing the minimum fee of 100 rubles per day from each occupied hotel room.
As Executive Director of the Kazan and Tatarstan Hotel Association Alexandra Yushutina previously reported to Realnoe Vremya, the tourist tax as a whole can have a negative impact on the hotel business. This is especially true for hotels with budget accommodation for 2,500-4,000 rubles per day, which have to raise prices due to the introduction of the minimum tax.
Such changes inevitably lead to the fact that instead of a hotel room, people began to rent daily apartments, in the so-called gray sector of the tourism business.
“The ‘grey’ market is a separate pain”
The head of the Association of Hotels of Kazan and Tatarstan Inga Gadzaova noted that sharp jumps in the change of the tourist tax are unacceptable, since the very fact of its introduction has become a sudden and colossal financial burden on hoteliers. At the same time, it most often does not affect the cost of rooms, since this is only a standard additional tax on income from accommodating tourists in hotel rooms.
Tourist flow to Kazan is stable
The tourist tax was introduced on 1 January 2025. In Tatarstan, it is currently in effect in Kazan, Yelabuga and Bolgar. According to preliminary estimates, in the first year, the new tax should attract more than 150 million rubles to the budget of the Tatarstan capital. The funds are planned to be used to improve infrastructure, public spaces and promote the city's tourist brand.
“The current legislation provides for a gradual increase in the tourist tax: starting with the current threshold of 1% and gradually bringing it to 5% by 2029. Despite the introduction of the tourist tax, the city's popularity among travellers remains, and the number of tourists remains stable,” the Kazan Tourism Development Committee reported.
As reported by head of the committee Daria Sannikova, in the first half of 2025, more than 2.3 million people visited the capital of Tatarstan. The occupancy rate of hotels before the May holidays in Kazan this year was 85% of the rooms.