Holiday Rentals

Tourist rental regulations

Homes for Tourist Use – Junta de Andalucía

What’s the Current Law?

1. The main law that covers tourist rentals in Andalusia is Decree 28/2016, which sets out the general rules for homes used as holiday rentals. (PDF 114 KB)

2. There’s an update to that: Decree 31/2024, dated January 29. This introduces a transition period for properties that are already registered, giving them time to adjust to the new rules. (PDF 63 KB)

3. And here’s a key change to keep in mind — under  Organic Law 1/2025, published January 2, 2025there’s a modification to the Horizontal Property Law , which is what governs buildings with multiple owners (like apartment blocks). Here's what’s new:

A new section has been added (Article 7.3),...which now requires owners who want to do tourist rentals to get prior approval from the community of owners(Comunidad de Propietarios)».

Article 17.12 has also been updated — and it specifies that this approval needs a 3/5 majority of all the owners, who must also represent 3/5 of the ownership shares in the building.

This is important because while since 2019 communities could already limit or even ban tourist rentals, starting April 3, 2025, owners won’t be able to rent out their property for tourism at all unless they’ve received that formal approval from the community, with the required majority majority of three fifths of the total number of owners, which in turn represent three fifths of the participation quotas.

Now — the good news is — according to an additional clause added to the law, if you’re already renting your property as a tourist rental before April 3, 2025, you’ll be able to continue doing so, as long as you meet the conditions and deadlines set out in the tourism regulations.

Digital Rental Register – National and European Framework

European and National Framework

The Spanish government is also rolling out new rules to align with European regulations on short-term rentals. This includes the EU Regulation 2024/1028, approved by the European Parliament and Councilon April 11, 2024, and Spain’s own Royal Decree 1312/2024, published December 23, 2024 ..

Basically, these rules aim to get more control and transparency in the tourist rental market, especially as it’s become harder for people to find regular housing. The EU regulation pushes for a Digital Single Window, where platforms like Airbnb and Booking.com, property managers, and local authorities can all stay connected.

To apply this at a national level, the Spanish government is launching a Single Rental Register and a Digital Rental Portal, to collect and exchange data about short-term rental services in Spain. The Royal Decree clearly outlines who’s involved:

1. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda will be in charge of managing the digital portal.
2. The College of Registrars will assign the new registration numbers.
3. Regional governments (like Andalusia) will continue to regulate the sector.
4. City councils will handle supervision and enforcement at the local level.
5. Digital platforms (like Airbnb) will help keep the process transparent and legal.

When Does It Start?

The Digital Rental Portal and the new registration process will officially launch on January 2, 2025, but the rules won’t actually take effect until July 1, 2025. This gives everyone — property owners, platforms, and authorities — time to adapt to the new system and get everything in place.