{"id":37484,"date":"2025-04-09T08:22:37","date_gmt":"2025-04-09T08:22:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/54.247.233.135\/?p=37484"},"modified":"2026-07-17T10:46:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T10:46:15","slug":"barcelonas-short-term-rental-ban-why-has-it-happened-and-what-does-it-mean-for-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rentalsunited.com\/fr\/blog\/barcelonas-short-term-rental-ban-why-has-it-happened-and-what-does-it-mean-for-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Barcelona short-term rental ban: What\u2019s next for your vacation rental business?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Barcelona short term rental ban will be active, as of April 2025. Permits are no longer granted, and by 2028 existing licenses will not be renewed. This <\/span>decision is being upheld by Spain’s Constitutional Court.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spain\u2019s vacation rental industry continues to go from strength to strength, and in this article, we break down <\/span>what this means for property managers like you. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s break down exactly what’s happening, and what it means for property managers like you.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The story so far.<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For cities like Barcelona, the rapid growth of short-term rentals\u2014driven by platforms like Airbnb\u2014has highlighted the need for balanced urban planning, housing affordability measures, and thoughtful tourism management. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As tensions rise among residents the city has been taking bold action over the past decades. In a landmark March 2025 decision, Spain\u2019s Constitutional Court upheld Barcelona\u2019s plan to phase out all short-term rental licenses by 2028.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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So what happened?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In 2014<\/b>, the former Mayor <\/span>Ada Colau announced the city would <\/span>stop issuing new tourist licenses for short-term rentals in the city centre <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2017, she approved the <\/span>Special Urban Plan for Tourist Accommodations(<\/b>PEUAT<\/b><\/a>)<\/b>, which regulated where these rentals could grow, stay the same, or be reduced. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2022<\/b>, the Catalan government introduced a decree that grants local councils the authority to regulate STRs.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In June 2024<\/b>,by then newly elected Mayor Jaume Collboni announced a plan to return tourist apartments to the long-term rental market and ease the city\u2019s housing crisis by phasing out all 10,000 STRs by 2028. This plan sparked a strong debate between housing advocates, tourism groups, and property owners.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In November 2024,<\/b> \u2013 Airbnb responded to the planned STR ban with a proposal advocating a data-driven approach, aiming to balance tourism demand with affordable housing concerns. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

March 2025<\/b> \u2013 Barcelona\u2019s STR ban is upheld by Spain\u2019s Constitutional Court, dismissing appeals from property owners.<\/span>The city will stop issuing new licences to properties and not renew existing permits by November 2028, meaning that from 2029, no homes will be allowed to be rented as tourist accommodation.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Barcelona isn\u2019t the first city to announce major restrictions \u2013 in the U.S<\/span> cities like New York<\/a> crackdown last September<\/span>, and in Europe Florence, Lisbon and Athens, among others have recently established bans on new STR licenses in busiest districts. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are vacation rentals really to blame for increased rent?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Rent is soaring not only in Barcelona, but across the whole of Europe. And so is tourism. So is tourism to blame?<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it’s easy to draw a straight line between rising rents and vacation rentals, the reality is much more complex. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Barcelona\u2019s tourism sector is booming\u2014bringing in \u20ac9.6 billion in 2023<\/a> and creating nearly 130,000 jobs, most of them permanent contracts for the first time ever. That same year, the city\u2019s tourism sector also recorded its second-lowest unemployment rate<\/a> since 2007.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Barcelona is also a top destination for prestigious multinationals, more and more of which are choosing to open offices in the city, generating a significant amount of new job offerings to attract workers to the city. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Add the influx of students and the trend for co-primary living (owners of multiple properties wanting to use their second home on a semi-permanent basis) into the mix and the situation starts to look more complicated. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tourism is far from the only factor when considering a restricted supply of properties to rent. Which leads us to the next point:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What can property managers do to stay ahead?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now that the STR ban has constitutional backing and a clear roadmap, how should professional STR managers respond? Here are three things you can do:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n