Spain’s National Register for Short-Term Rentals

Spain’s National Register for Short-Term Rentals: Now Active, But Mandatory from July 1, 2025

Since 2 January 2025, Spain has officially introduced its National Register for Short-Term Rentals, a key measure intended to regulate holiday lets across the country. While the register is already operational, registration will not become mandatory until July 1, 2025. This transition period allows property owners and rental platforms to adapt to the new requirements.

The registration can be applied for on the website of the Spanish Land Registries Association at https://www.registradores.org/. The local Land Registry corresponding to your property’s location will assign the number and add it to your property’s details. The granted number will be reflected in the “Nota Simple” (Land Registry report).

However, the change coming into effect on April 3rd, which will make it compulsory for properties not yet licensed to obtain specific authorisation from the Community of Owners, has raised concerns about how this will impact the process of obtaining the new National Registration Number. As a result, many holiday home owners are choosing to apply for the new registration number as soon as possible, aiming to avoid any unexpected difficulties or additional requirements. At Bravo Legal, we advise completing this process as soon as possible.

What Does the New Register Mean for Property Owners?

• • A Unique Identification Number. Any property intended for short-term rental must obtain a registration number through the national platform. This applies to entire properties, individual rooms, and even boats used as holiday accommodations. 

  • Submission of Property Details. Owners must provide information such as personal identification, property type, capacity, exact address, and cadastral reference via the electronic office of the College of Registrars.

  • Keeping Information Up to Date. Owners will be responsible for ensuring their registered details remain accurate and current.

Is There a Penalty for Not Registering? From July 1, 2025, failure to register a rental property could result in penalties, enforced under existing state, regional, and local regulations. Until then, owners have time to complete the process without facing sanctions.

In which cases can your application be refused by the Land Registry? The Land Registry will check whether your property has previously been assigned a registration number by your Autonomous Community and whether this registration has been cancelled by the regional authorities.In that case, the Land Registry will refuse the application. However, the most important factor, and the main reason why some applications are being rejected, is that they will verify whether the statutes of the Community of Property Owners specifically prohibit holiday letting or even restrict economic activities in general. The latter has proven to be the most problematic issue, as the Spanish Supreme Court has ruled that holiday letting can be considered an economic activity in this context.

Key Takeaway

• The National Register for Short-Term Rentals is already active, but registration will only be compulsory from July 1, 2025.
• Property owners should start the process now to ensure compliance before the deadline.
• Taking into account the uncertainty surrounding the new requirement for community authorisation from 3rd April, we advise completing the process before that date, if possible.

Of course, at Bravo Legal we would be happy to assist with this.Our fees will vary depending on the situation, such as whether we have already obtained the holiday rental licence for you, whether we hold a Power of Attorney (POA) or need to arrange a new one, the location of your property, etc.As a general guideline, our fees range from €90.00 + IVA to €190.00 + IVA. Additionally, there will be a fee payable to the Land Registry of approximately €32,00.Please get in touch with us, and we will provide you with more details and a personalised quote.