Short-term rental in Spain: rules and advice for owners

A patchwork run by the regions

Spain has no single national licence for holiday lets. Tourism belongs to the autonomous communities, each of which keeps its own register and usually requires a responsible declaration (declaración responsable) before a flat can be marketed; town councils then decide where lets may operate through zoning, quotas and moratoriums. The State tried to add a national layer: Royal Decree 1312/2024 created a single rental register from July 2025, but on 21 May 2026 the Supreme Court (judgment 620/2026) annulled that registration procedure for lack of state competence, while keeping the platform data-sharing rules. Regional registers are untouched.

Neighbours now hold a veto

Since 3 April 2025, under Organic Law 1/2025, a flat in a building under horizontal property can only start a new tourist activity if the owners' association approves it by a three-fifths majority. Read your building's statutes and minutes before anything else.

Where our Spanish cities stand

• Closed to new tourist flats: Barcelona (no new licences since 2014, existing ones due to lapse in November 2028), Málaga, Palma, Alicante, Bilbao, Cádiz and Donostia-San Sebastián; L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Girona and Ibiza (Eivissa) are also shut to newcomers under Catalan or Balearic rules.
• Open only in some districts or buildings: Madrid, Valencia, Seville, Granada, A Coruña and Benidorm, where zoning, the floor of the flat or a municipal compatibility certificate decide.
• Regional registration, no municipal limit identified in 2026: Marbella.
• Still under review: Zaragoza, Murcia, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Córdoba, Valladolid, Vigo, Gijón, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Oviedo, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Pamplona, Santander, Salamanca, Tarragona, Santiago de Compostela and Toledo.

Guests, tax and paperwork

Hosts must send guest details to the Interior Ministry through the SES.Hospedajes platform, as required by Royal Decree 933/2021. Catalonia and the Balearic Islands add a regional tourist tax per night. Rental income is taxable in Spain, and owners who are not tax resident declare it through non-resident income tax returns.

What we would do in your place

Check the municipal plan for your exact street before buying, secure the community vote in writing, then file with the regional register. Where a moratorium applies, weigh a mid-term rental against a patient wait. Tell us the address and the project; we study every request and tell you honestly whether and how we can help.