UK to explore charging international visitors at national museums
Key Points
- The Department for Culture, Media and Sport told the Public Accounts Committee it plans to explore charging international visitors at England's national museums.
- The Department stressed that no decisions have been taken on charging international visitors.
- The idea was raised in Baroness Hodge's independent review of Arts Council England.
- Free admission to national museums was introduced in 2001 and led to a large rise in public engagement.
- In 2024–25 the Department gave 15 sponsored museums and galleries £484 million in grant-in-aid, about 25% of its overall spending.
- The museums and galleries generated £563 million of their own income in 2024–25, up 53% in real terms since 2021–22.
- Total visitor numbers in 2024–25 were 13% lower than before the pandemic.
- The Public Accounts Committee report on the financial resilience of government-sponsored museums and galleries was published on 24 June 2026.
The Government plans to explore charging international visitors to enter England’s national museums and galleries, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has told MPs, though it stressed that no decisions have been taken.
The Department disclosed the plan to the Public Accounts Committee, whose report on the financial resilience of government-sponsored museums and galleries was published on Wednesday (24 June).
Asked whether it was considering charging visitors, the Department said it intended to look at the possibility of charging international visitors and that this was something it planned to explore with the museums and galleries themselves.
The Department told the Committee that the idea had been raised by Baroness Hodge in her independent review of Arts Council England, which referred to the possibility of charging international visitors.
The Department cautioned that any such measure would have to be introduced very carefully, noting that the introduction of free admission in 2001 had led to a substantial increase in public engagement with museums and galleries.
The Committee considered the option in the context of whether the Department’s funding regime gives museums and galleries sufficient incentive to maximise the income they raise themselves.
Charging international visitors was identified as one potential source of additional income. The Department was warned that any move would need to be weighed against the risk of deterring visitors.
In 2024–25, the Department provided 15 sponsored museums and galleries with £484 million in grant-in-aid, equivalent to about 25 per cent of its overall spending and 46 per cent of the institutions’ total income.
Over the same period, the museums and galleries generated £563 million of their own income through exhibitions, events, venue hire, membership schemes and retail, a 53 per cent real-terms increase since 2021–22.
Government funding has fallen by 16% in real terms since 2021–22 as the Department ended its emergency Covid-19 pandemic support, while the institutions’ total expenditure has risen by 18% in real terms over the same period, driven by higher staff, energy and maintenance costs.
Total visitor numbers in 2024–25 were 13% lower than before the pandemic.
The Committee also recommended that the Department review its funding regime to identify how it could better incentivise the long-term commercial growth of the museums and galleries, and write to MPs with its findings once the review is complete.
