Is Airbnb legal in Spain? Many foreign investors are looking for high returns on investment, and Airbnb is top of the list to make a rental investment profitable. But is short-term rental even legal in Spain?
This article is almost an exact copy of an article published on Acheterenespagne.fr (litterally “Buying in Spain”), which is my favorite French blog about Spanish real estate. Additionally, ElPais published in April “The battle against vacation rentals spreads beyond Madrid”.
So, what exactly are the rules to limit short-term rentals in Madrid, Barcelona or Valencia?
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New laws against Airbnb, March 2019
With the implementation of Royal Decree 7/2019 in March 2019, the Property Law (“Ley de Propiedad Horizontal”) is amended. From now on, the majority of three-fifths of the owners of a building may decide to limit or prohibit tourist apartments in this building. Until now, this decision had to be unanimous. The condominium may also impose an additional cost in the distribution of co-ownership fees at the expense of tourist apartments (up to a limit of 20%).
New obligations for tourist rental platforms, January 2019
Since January 1, 2019, tourist rental booking platforms must send to the Spanish tax authorities details of all their operations in Spain. The tourist rental income for the year 2018 is therefore the first concerned. For each tourist rental, the booking platforms (Airbnb, Homeaway, Wimdu, etc.) must transmit to the tax authorities, through a declaration (the model 179), the following elements:
- Identity of the owner of the dwelling
- Owner of the right under which the housing is transferred (if different from the owner of the dwelling)
- Identity of the tenants
- Property subject to the lease
- Number of days of occupation
- Revenues collected
- Contract number
- Rental start date
- Payment date
- Identification of the payment method used
Barcelona, fighting against Airbnb since March 2017
Barcelona was the first city in the world to inflict a heavy fine to Airbnb, 600.000 € in November 2016. It is also the first city in Spain to have regulated the occupation of tourist apartments (“pisos turisticos” in Spanish).
In March 2017, the municipality approved a specific urban planning program for tourist housing, the PEUAT (“Especial Plan Urbanístico de Alojamientos Turísticos de Barcelona”). This program divides Barcelona into four main areas:
- Zone 1 (in pink on the map below): historic center, especially Poble Sec, Poblenou and much of Eixample. No new tourist accommodation license can be issued. Housing licenses that cease their tourist rental activities will not be renewed. The will of the town hall is to reduce the capacity of tourist reception in this zone.
- Zone 2 (in yellow): crown around the center, which covers the peripheral part of Eixample, Sants, Les Corts, Gracia, Sant Gervasi and Diagonal Mar. There is status quo of the number of licenses, only canceled licenses will be replaced.
- Zone 3 (in green): almost all the rest of the municipal area. New licenses are possible, but within the limit of a maximum number allowed; when this number is reached, it is necessary, as for zone 2, to wait until licenses cease to obtain one.
- Zone 4 (in blue): very marginal area covering some neighborhoods, the Sagrera, the north of 22 @ and the Marina del Prat. New licenses are subject to conditions.
According to the Catalan municipality, the implementation of this legislation led to limit the number of tourist apartments in Barcelona to 9,600 units, causing the disappearance of 6,000 illegal units. The municipality imposed 6,500 fines on owners and operators. On the website of statistical analysis of tourist accommodation Airdna, there are still 19,900 tourist accommodation units in June 2019, of which 58% of whole dwellings and 42% of tourist rooms. A gap of 1 to 2 between what the municipality declares, and the listings that can be seen online!
Madrid, defining rules to limit tourist rentals since March 2019
In March 2019, the Municipality of Madrid approved the “Plan Especial de Regulación del Uso de Hospedaje”. This plan only applies to tourist accommodations rented for more than 90 days a year.
The plan defines four zones in Madrid:
- First ring: district of Centro. In this area, the tourist apartment must have independent access to the street (occupants can not use entrances, gates or lifts common to the rest of the building). Access can not be direct, there must be a similar reception or reception.
- Second ring: includes the district of Chamberi in full and part of the districts of Chamartín, Salamanca, Retiro, Arganzuela and Moncloa-Aravaca. There are the same constraints as in the first ring.
- Third ring: extends to the remaining districts of the districts partially included in the second ring, to which are added neighborhoods of the districts of Tetuán, Usera, Carabanchel and Latina. The constraints are the same as in the first or second ring but only in buildings where professional activities are not allowed.
- Rest of the municipality, the situation does not change.
Madrid had 10,500 tourist homes before the municipal law of March 2019. Professionals think that more than half will be gone before the end of the year. Here too, data from the Airdna wesite diverge with 19,400 tourist accommodation units in June 2019, of which 68% of total housing and 32% of tourist rooms.
PS: see also the article published on ElPais.com (in English) about holiday rentals in Madrid, per zone
Valencia, limiting vacation rentals since June 2018
The new Law on Tourism and Hospitality (“Ley de Turismo y Hospitalidad”) was approved by the Municipality of Valencia in June 2018. It imposes the following constraints, in order to have a tourist license:
- The tourist accommodation must be located on the ground floor or the first floor.
- Flat must not be located above or on the same landing as another private residential dwelling.
- The building must not have more than 50% of tourist housing.
- In summary, it is either the ground floor or above a trade!
In some neighborhoods of Valencia, renting out your flat on Airbnb or HomeAway is even more complicated, with further restrictions on tourist rentals:
- In the center (Ciutat Vella), the maximum rental period granted to individuals to rent their apartment to tourists is 60 days
- In Cabanyal (a traditional seaside district), the tourist housing stock is limited to 10% of the total stock, with the exception of the seaside houses where this rate rises to 30%.
In January 2019, a new municipal decree was introduced in Valencia, which requires a renovation of the tourism licenses every 5 years.
According to hotel professionals in Valencia, there are about 5,000 tourist apartments in Valencia, half of which are illegal. The Airdna site lists 6,900 touristic flats in Valencia in June 2019.
Alicante, August 2018
There are no common standards regarding holiday rentals in Alicante, but special requirements depending on the area. Thus in the area of the San Juan Beach, the establishment of tourist accommodation is limited to the ground floor. And in the area of the traditional center and the historic center, it is limited to entire buildings.
Airdna shows 3,600 tourist accommodation units in Alicante in June 2019.
Palma de Mallorca, adopting measures against short-term rental in July 2018
Palma de Mallorca is one of the Spanish municipalities to have adopted the most drastic measures against “pisos turisticos”. In 2017, there were over 10,000 beds available for short-term rental in the capital Mallorcan for only … 645 licenses!
Since July 2018, it is simply forbidden to rent a flat for tourist purposes. Only tourist homes are allowed. Nevertheless, more than half of the “old” tourist accommodations are still in operation. Airbnb for example still shows 1,640 tourist accommodation in Palma in June 2019, one year after the ban! Airdna shows 2,200 tourist accommodation units in Palma de Mallorca, including 70% of entire homes, and 30% of private rooms.
The Balearic government has also implemented the Tourist Rental Law 6/2017, which plans fines of 40,000 € to 400,000 € for operators who advertise illegal tourist accommodation, and 20,000 € to 40,000 € for property owners.
But the human resources allocated to controlling those illegal activities are extremely low …
Andalucia: Airbnb deleted 18,000 unregistered Andalusian holiday rentals from its website
Airbnb decided in October 2018 to un-publish properties in Andalucía that are not properly registered, reducing the number to 40,800 advertisements.
Malaga and short-term rentals
Malaga City Council now considers that the problem of holiday rentals is a problem for the Autonomous Community, therefore the region of Andalusia.
Airdna shows 6,300 tourist accommodations in Malaga in June 2019, of which 88% are entire homes and 12% are private rooms.
Marbella and Airbnb
Marbella, which has the highest rental prices in Andalucia for short-term rentals, aligns with its neighbors on the Costa del Sol: it also considers the problem is a problem for Andalusia’s regional government, and not for Marbella’s city council.
Airdna: 5,500 holiday rentals units in June 2019 in Marbella, 95% of which are entire homes.
Sevilla and holiday rentals
In Sevilla, discussions and negotiations have been going on for … 2 years.
Airdna: 7,500 tourist rentals in Sevilla in June 2019.
DO NOT FORGET your declarations to the tax authorities if you own a property in Spain
If you own a flat in Spain, there are several property taxes that you need to pay: IBI, IRNR, IP. Don’t know where to begin? Contact a tax advisor in Spain by clicking on the link below.