How to get (and keep) a tourist rental licence in Andalucia in 2026: Decreto 31/2024, municipal freezes and the annulled NRU

Published 3 July 2026 · Updated 9 November 2026

Why this matters in 2026

If you own or plan to buy a holiday flat on the Costa del Sol, the rules in 2026 are a layered system. Andalucia's regional regulation is Decreto 31/2024 (in force since 22 February 2024). On top of that there is an EU-level transparency regime under Regulation (EU) 2024/1028, fully applicable since 20 May 2026. The national registration number (NRU) of Real Decreto 1312/2024 is no longer required: the Supreme Court annulled its registration procedure in May 2026. Since 8 October 2026 a tourist let stays outside the LAU (the national tenancy law) only if a specific tourism regime covers it, and its maximum length, set by the authorities, can never exceed 31 days (LAU art. 5.e, as amended by Royal Decree-law 29/2026). The decree-law still had to be validated by Congress when we checked the BOE on 9 November 2026; if it is not validated, it lapses.

What Decreto 31/2024 requires - the essentials

Decreto 31/2024 sets the core Andalucian requirements for viviendas de uso turistico (VUT). What people call a tourist licence is in law a declaración responsable (Decreto 28/2016, art. 9, as rewritten by Decreto-ley 1/2025): you file it electronically with the regional tourism authority before you advertise or accept guests, and the home is then entered in the Registro de Turismo de Andalucia (RTA). In the filing you state that the home meets the requirements, that planning rules allow the use, that you hold any planning licence or declaration required, and that the community of owners, where there is one, has expressly authorised the let. A false statement is a serious infringement (Ley 13/2011, art. 71.5). Other mandatory items include compliance with municipal planning rules, a minimum size of 14 m² per guest place, cooling if you let in May to August and heating if you let in December to March, a first-aid kit, a smoke detector near the kitchen, a fire extinguisher and official complaint forms. The RTA code must appear on each payment receipt.

Two licence modalities - choose the right one

The decree recognises two modalities. You can operate the whole home as a tourist flat, or you can rent by rooms if the owner is resident in the property. The choice changes rules on common areas, guest privacy and community relations, so pick the modality that matches the property and your business model.

National and EU layers - the NRU is annulled, the platform rules remain

On the national layer, until May 2026 you had to obtain an NRU registration number through the Land Registry. Display of the NRU was mandatory from 1 July 2025 until the Supreme Court annulled the procedure in May 2026. The twelve-monthly information return to the Land Registry (article 10.4 of Real Decreto 1312/2024) is no longer required either: article 10 was annulled with the rest of the procedure.

Since 20 May 2026 Regulation (EU) 2024/1028 is fully applicable. Where a registration procedure applies, a platform must get a registration number from the host before allowing the unit to be offered, must ensure the host displays it clearly in the listing, and must make reasonable efforts to check those numbers at random (art. 7). The regulation covers regional registration procedures as well as national ones (art. 4.1). The platform asks you to declare whether your home is in an area where one applies and must tell you if it does; you answer for that declaration (arts. 7 and 8). In areas a Member State has listed, platforms send activity data to the national single digital entry point every month, or every quarter for small or micro platforms below a monthly average of 4,250 listings (art. 9). A competent authority can order a platform to remove a listing when a host fails to correct its registration details (art. 6).

For a plain explanation of the national registration and EU rules, see our NRU and EU rules guide.

Municipal freezes and community votes - check before you buy

Since March 2025 a town hall that is preparing planning rules for tourist flats can, where it justifies the need and proportionality, suspend new licences and declarations, for the whole municipality or for specific zones or building types. Exceptionally, for overriding reasons of general interest, it can do so from the start of that process, for up to three years (Decreto-ley 1/2025, art. 6.2). Always check the town hall rules and planning status for the specific municipality on the Costa del Sol before you buy to let short-term.

Since April 2025 an owner starting a tourist let in a home that belongs to a community of owners needs the community’s express prior approval, by a vote of 3/5 of all owners who also hold 3/5 of the participation shares (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal, arts. 7.3 and 17.12). If that majority is not reached, the let cannot start, whatever the town hall’s position. If you start without it, the community president must require you to stop, and a court can order the let to end, award damages and bar you from using the home for up to three years (arts. 7.2 and 7.3). An owner who was already letting before 3 April 2025 and had already come under the tourism rules may carry on, on the conditions and within the periods those rules set (additional provision 2). The provision speaks of that owner and does not say a buyer inherits the position, so take advice before paying for an existing licence.

Step-by-step: how to get a VUT licence in Andalucia

Follow these practical steps to obtain and activate a tourist rental licence under Decreto 31/2024.

• Confirm permitted use and municipal position - check whether the town hall has a suspension in place, and confirm the building community rules and, if the home belongs to a community of owners, whether you have its express 3/5 approval.
• Check the home meets the decree’s standards before you register it: municipal planning compliance, at least 14 m² per guest place (25 m² minimum), enough bathrooms, ventilation and a way to darken bedroom and living-room windows, and cooling and heating for the months you let.
• Decide modality - whole-home or by-rooms (owner resident). The choice influences community relations and practical operations.
• Fit required equipment and documentation before you file, because the declaración responsable states that the home already meets the requirements - cooling if you let in May to August and heating if you let in December to March, a first-aid kit, a smoke detector near the kitchen, a fire extinguisher and official complaint forms are compulsory.
• File the declaración responsable with the regional tourism authority, for entry in the Registro de Turismo de Andalucia (RTA) - you must do this before you advertise or start trading.
• Put your RTA code in every advert. Since 8 October 2026 Royal Decree-law 29/2026 (art. 20.2.c) requires every rental advert to include the unit’s number or code where applicable; its preamble says that means where such a number or code exists and gives regional tourist-home codes as an example. The decree-law still had to be validated by Congress when we checked the BOE on 9 November 2026; if it is not validated, it lapses. On platforms, Regulation (EU) 2024/1028 (art. 7) requires the platform to ensure the number appears in the listing where a registration procedure applies. The national NRU is no longer required.
• Prepare guest-facing materials and advertising - use the same RTA code in every advert, online and offline (see above), and on each payment receipt.
• Plan ongoing reporting - be ready to respond to platform data requests under Regulation (EU) 2024/1028.

How to keep your licence - practical compliance tips

These rules may be enforced through platform data-sharing and municipal checks.

• Keep the RTA registration up to date and your documents available for inspection.
• Use the same RTA code on every listing and on each payment receipt.
• Keep cooling and heating working for the required periods - cooling if you let in May to August, heating if you let in December to March - and document maintenance.
• Keep the first-aid kit, smoke detector, fire extinguisher and official complaint forms in the home, with the notice announcing the forms on view, and make sure guests know where they are.
• Monitor your platform listings so they exactly match your RTA details - under Regulation (EU) 2024/1028, where a registration procedure applies, platforms must make reasonable efforts to check registration numbers at random and must report invalid ones to the authorities.
• Document guest stays and contracts - this helps in audits and in responding to community concerns.

Penalties and enforcement - what you must avoid

Advertising or operating a tourist home without having filed the declaración responsable is clandestine activity (Ley 13/2011, art. 30.4), a serious infringement (art. 71.1) fined from EUR 2,001 to EUR 18,000 (art. 78.2). False data in the declaración responsable is also a serious infringement (art. 71.5). If the false or incorrect information is essential, the registration can be cancelled and a new filing for the same activity barred for one year (art. 38.4). Very serious infringements, such as obstructing a tourism inspection (art. 72.3) or committing another serious infringement of the same kind within a year of a final administrative sanction (arts. 72.10 and 79.2), carry EUR 18,001 to EUR 150,000 (art. 78.3). Under the EU regulation a platform must not allow a unit to be offered without a registration number where a registration procedure applies, and an authority can order a listing removed.

Because town halls can suspend new licences while they prepare planning rules and a new tourist let needs the community’s 3/5 approval, a new let can be blocked or delayed before any enforcement action. Check and document permissions carefully before you advertise.

Checklist table - key milestones and timing

Milestone	When to complete	Why it matters
Confirm municipal freeze and community rules	Before you buy or file	Town halls can suspend licences since March 2025; a new let needs the community’s 3/5 approval since April 2025
File the declaración responsable	Before you advertise or start trading	Mandatory under Decreto 28/2016, art. 9, as rewritten by Decreto-ley 1/2025; filing it is what allows you to advertise

Common practical problems and how to avoid them

Conflict with the building community is common where flats are converted to tourist use. Prevent disputes by informing neighbours, checking statutes and, where the home belongs to a community of owners, obtaining its 3/5 approval. Also keep the RTA code identical on every listing because, where a registration procedure applies, platforms must make reasonable efforts to check registration numbers at random and must report invalid ones to the authorities (Regulation (EU) 2024/1028).

FAQ

Final practical notes

Getting and keeping a tourist rental licence in Andalucia in 2026 requires attention to three layers - regional (Decreto 28/2016 as rewritten by Decreto-ley 1/2025, Decreto 31/2024 in force since 22 February 2024, and Ley 13/2011), national (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal and Royal Decree-law 29/2026, which Congress had not yet validated on 9 November 2026) and EU (Regulation (EU) 2024/1028, fully applicable since 20 May 2026). Check municipal freezes, get the community’s 3/5 approval if the home belongs to a community of owners, and keep documentation up to date to avoid fines of up to EUR 18,000 for a serious infringement and up to EUR 150,000 for a very serious one, and the risk of a listing being removed.

If you are buying to let, do the municipal and community checks before you sign. If you operate now, keep your RTA details synchronised across every platform.

Browse live listings and notary-verified market data on PropertyList: https://propertylist.pt/en. Estate agents can also join the PropertyList MLS to list and manage VUTs across the Costa del Sol.