Rulings, regulatory changes and market data affecting vacation and seasonal rentals. Every item links to its primary source — no rumours, no unchecked headlines.
Every item checked against its source
National
Government re-issues the housing decrees as RDL 28/2026 and 29/2026: seasonal leases, rooms and extensions
Published in the BOE on 7 October. RDL 29/2026, in force since 8 October, brings seasonal "temporada" leases into the LAU: they require a real, provable reason for living away from one’s main home, must run for more than 31 days and, as a rule, no longer than 12 months; without an express cause, beyond 12 months without justification, or after more than two consecutive contracts between the same parties for the same home, the lease counts as a primary-residence tenancy. Room rentals now fall under the LAU, and the combined room rents may not exceed the rent for the whole dwelling. Until 31-12-2027, absent a new agreement, annual rent updates are capped at 2 %, and a tenant who is up to date with payments can request an extraordinary extension of up to two years if their mandatory extension ends before 31-12-2028. RDL 28/2026 (BOE-A-2026-20822) replaces the tacit one-year renewal from 15 November with mandatory 5-year extensions (7 years if the landlord is a legal entity), with compensation for the tenant if the landlord does not renew, subject to exceptions. With Parliament dissolved, both must be ratified by the Congress’s Diputación Permanente within 30 days or they lapse.
10 % VAT on furnished lets of up to 30 nights from 1 December, plus an IBI surcharge on tourist flats
RDL 29/2026 removes the VAT exemption for renting furnished homes for stays of up to 30 nights and taxes them at the reduced 10 % rate from 1 December 2026 — not the 21 % announced in June. In addition, town halls in rent-stressed areas ("zonas tensionadas") may set, by tax ordinance, a surcharge on IBI property tax of up to 50 % for homes used as tourist accommodation, 100 % for owners of two or more and 150 % for owners of four or more. Both measures depend on the Diputación Permanente ratifying the decree; otherwise they lapse.
Congress votes down the housing decrees: RDL 26/2026 and RDL 27/2026 repealed
On 2 October Congress refused to ratify the two housing decree-laws of 29 September: 26/2026 (social function of housing and affordable housing supply) and 27/2026 (stability of primary-residence tenancies). The repeal resolutions were published in the BOE the same day (BOE-A-2026-20526 and BOE-A-2026-20527) and their measures ceased to apply. On 6 October Royal Decree 806/2026 dissolved Parliament and called a general election for 29 November.
Housing decree postponed to September: temporada leases stay outside the LAU
Update 16-10-2026: superseded. The decree was adopted on 29-09 as RDL 26/2026 and 27/2026, Congress voted both down on 2-10, and the government re-issued them on 6-10 as RDL 28/2026 and 29/2026 (BOE 7-10), pending parliamentary ratification. VAT is not going to 21 %: furnished lets of up to 30 nights will be taxed at 10 % from 1-12-2026. See the October updates. — Original item (28-07): The government pulled the decree-law from the 28 July Council of Ministers for lack of support (Podemos rejects the land-law reform; Junts demands landlord incentives and anti-squatting measures). It returns at the first Council of Ministers in September. The package contained the first LAU rules for seasonal "temporada" leases (a 12-month maximum and a written, documented cause), 21% VAT on tourist rentals and an extension of tenancies to June 2028. None of it is law today: there is no text in the BOE, and even once approved it would need parliamentary ratification within 30 days — exactly where RD-ley 8/2026 failed in April.
Balearics activate coercive fines of up to €5,000 per day against illegal tourist lets
The Govern presented its Mesa del Intrusismo: daily fines of €500 to €5,000 for as long as an illegal listing stays active after a formal notice, referral to prosecutors after two ignored notices, and up to 80 % reductions if the home moves to affordable renting.
After the NRUA annulment: VUDA stays, no repair law and no refund of registration fees
The Supreme Court confirmed the annulment in three follow-up rulings (649, 669 and 697/2026). VUDA and platform data-sharing remain in force and the regional code is the valid number; there is no repair legislation and no route to recover fees already paid.
Government announces July housing decree: seasonal lets under tenancy safeguards, 21 % VAT on tourist flats
Update 16-10-2026: the decree was eventually published as RDL 29/2026 (BOE 7-10), pending parliamentary ratification, and VAT is not going to 21 %: furnished lets of up to 30 nights will be taxed at 10 % from 1-12-2026. See the October updates. — Original item (29-06): On 29 June the government announced a royal decree-law: seasonal and room rentals would get the same guarantees as ordinary tenancies, plus an extraordinary contract extension and VAT on tourist flats rising from 10 % to 21 %. Not yet approved or published in the BOE.
Order HAC/623/2026: new Modelo 210 forms and deadlines for non-residents
The BOE of 23 June amends forms 210, 211 and 213: a mandatory breakdown of deductible expenses per property and new deadlines — rental income due 1–20 April of the following year (already applies to 2026 income); new forms from 1 January 2027.
Supreme Court: bylaws banning “hospedería” also stop holiday lets
Ruling STS 642/2026 (Civil Chamber, 28 April) confirms that a bylaw ban on “hospedería” covers tourist rentals: the owners’ community can demand a stop even when the owner holds a valid tourist licence. An administrative licence does not override the bylaws.
Supreme Court strikes down the national rental registry (NRUA)
Judgment STS 620/2026 (19 May) annuls the NRUA created by RD 1312/2024: the State lacked competence against the regional registries. The NRA number is no longer mandatory.
Seasonal-rental supply rose 22 % year-on-year while permanent housing fell 3 %. Mid-term lets now make up around 27 % of the market (idealista data, Q1 2026).
Madrid: Decree 27/2026 takes effect — CIVUT certificate, 25 m² minimum and community approval
Since 26 April, every new tourist rental in the Madrid region needs express approval from the owners' community, the CIVUT suitability certificate and at least 25 m². Existing rentals get 3 years to adapt.
Valencia high court partially overturns the city moratorium
The TSJCV annuls Valencia city’s 2024 suspension of change-of-use licences for tourist flats on a legal defect, while upholding the ban on new-build tourist developments.
Residential rent rose 8.5 % year-on-year. Pressure on permanent tenancies and rent-capped “stressed zones” explains much of the shift toward seasonal lets.
Canary Islands: Law 6/2025 starts the clock — 5 years to consolidate your home's tourist use
In force since 13-12-2025: mandatory prior municipal authorisation, a 10 % cap on holiday homes per municipality (20 % on the green islands) and a moratorium on new registrations. Existing holiday homes have 5 years to declare consolidated tourist use.
AEPD: storing a copy of ID or passport is not allowed in lodgings
Spain’s data authority clarifies that RD 933/2021 requires collecting guest data but does not authorise keeping a copy of the document. Visual checking suffices; storing scans breaches data minimisation.