Spain’s new short-term rental regulations are already having a significant effect: Airbnb has deleted 65,000 listings that became illegal under rules that took effect July 1st.
Under the new rules, all tourist accommodations or temporary rentals have to be registered with the new Single Rental Registry, or be removed from such platforms as Airbnb, VRBO, Idealista and Booking.com
Under threat of legal action, Airbnb agreed to comply promptly with the new rules. The Housing Ministry has identified another 55,000 that it says are also illegal. The registry does not define what is legal; towns and regions have local rules that determine what places may register.
The situation is still developing; as of the registration deadline, 215,438 applications had been received from among the 368,295 properties the National Statistics Institute identified as short-term rentals. Many of the missing are likely to either be ineligible to register, or belong to foreign owners who have had problems with paperwork.
