{"id":12094,"date":"2026-08-21T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/costablanca-magazin.com\/?p=12094"},"modified":"2026-08-20T13:52:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T11:52:12","slug":"renting-out-a-holiday-home-licence-or-seasonal-let","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/costablanca-magazin.com\/en\/immobilien\/service-recht\/ferienhaus-vermieten-lizenz-oder-saisonmiete\/","title":{"rendered":"Renting out a holiday home: licence or seasonal let?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

Renting out a holiday home on the Costa Blanca: When a licence is required \u2013 and when it isn\u2019t<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Renting\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Renting out a holiday home for a couple of weeks? What used to be relatively straightforward has now become a complex web of regional and local regulations. One particular restriction that many owners are unaware of is especially important: in the Comunitat Valenciana, it makes a significant legal difference whether the same flat is let for ten days or for five weeks.<\/p>

Owning a holiday home, registering it with Turismo and then letting it out to holidaymakers \u2013 the situation in the Comunitat Valenciana can no longer be summarised quite so simply. The Generalitat has tightened the rules governing holiday lettings whilst, at the same time, giving local authorities considerably more discretion. As a result, D\u00e9nia regulates the sector differently from Torrevieja, whilst l\u2019Alf\u00e0s del Pi, in turn, follows its own model.<\/p>

However, before owners check what their local council allows, there is another question to consider: is this actually a holiday let?<\/p>

Ten days or five weeks: the crucial difference<\/strong><\/h2>

Since the reform of Valencian tourism legislation in 2024, a clear boundary has been in place. As Holiday Accommodation<\/em>, or VUT for short, refers to entire flats or houses which are let to the same tenant for a maximum of ten consecutive days for tourist purposes in return for payment.<\/p>

So, anyone who lets out their flat to holidaymakers for a week is, in principle, subject to the VUT regulations. This requires, amongst other things, tourist registration and a positive local authority certificate confirming compliance with town planning regulations.<\/p>

However, under Valencian regulations, no VUT is expressly provided for in the case of eleven or more consecutive days to the same tenant.<\/p>

This means, for example, that a five-week or three-month tenancy can be classified as a seasonal tenancy \u2013 holiday let<\/em> \u2013 to be drawn up. It is generally governed by the Spanish tenancy law (LAU) and not by the VUT regulations.<\/p>

However, this does not mean that every ten-day tenancy agreement is automatically a seasonal tenancy. The tenancy must genuinely be temporary and should be described and justified as such in the tenancy agreement. This could be a temporary stay for work, study or medical treatment \u2013 but it could also be a temporary holiday stay.<\/p>

A German owner can, for example, let their house for six weeks to a couple who spend part of the winter on the Costa Blanca, without this necessarily constituting a short-term holiday let for the purposes of tourism law. The situation is different, however, if longer contract periods are used merely on paper in order to keep short-term holiday lets to different guests outside the scope of tourism law.<\/p>

Even when children, relatives or friends use the property free of charge, the situation is different: in the absence of rent or any other form of consideration, it is generally not regarded as a let for hire.<\/p>

One region \u2013 different rules in the local authorities<\/strong><\/h2>

In the case of a genuine holiday let lasting up to ten days, the second tier comes into play. The Generalitat requires local authority confirmation that the property is compatible with town planning regulations for a VUT. At the same time, the local authorities themselves are free to determine where and to what extent VUTs are permitted.<\/p>

Three places on the Costa Blanca illustrate just how different things can be.<\/p>

Torrevieja<\/strong> continues to work on the local impact assessment. Property owners must submit an application for a VUT Certificate of Planning Compliance<\/em> apply for this and, amongst other things, submit details and documents relating to the property. There is currently no comprehensive zoning scheme comparable to that in D\u00e9nia, with different VUT ratios.<\/p>

l\u2019Alf\u00e0s del Pi<\/strong> is taking a more restrictive approach. The local authority is working on its own VUT regulations and has already suspended the issuing of new urban planning compatibility certificates. Restrictions are planned, depending, amongst other things, on location and building type. Important for property owners: the local authority\u2019s documents expressly distinguish lettings of more than ten days from the VUT \u2013 seasonal lettings under the LAU therefore remain in a separate category.<\/p>

D\u00e9nia<\/strong> This illustrates particularly clearly just how local the rules can now become. Following the public consultation process, the city further relaxed its new VUT by-law in August 2026.<\/p>

In residential areas where no new VUTs were originally planned, a quota of up to one per cent is now to be permitted. Parts of the historic centre \u2013 including Loreto and Les Roques, as well as Calle Sant Pere in Baix la Mar \u2013 have also been opened up compared with the initial draft. In the area between Cam\u00ed del Llavador and the beach, the permitted proportion of new VUTs has even been increased from the original 15 per cent to 25 per cent.<\/p>

This example shows that a short-term holiday let (VUT), which would in principle be permitted under the Generalitat\u2019s regulations, may nevertheless be subject to local restrictions. Before making an investment or switching to holiday lettings, you should therefore always check the specific address \u2013 not just the local authority.<\/p>

The catch with seasonal rentals: the deposit<\/strong><\/h2>

At first glance, a five-week seasonal tenancy sounds like the simpler alternative to a VUT. However, it does entail certain legal obligations.<\/p>

Under the LAU, a seasonal tenancy is generally regarded as a tenancy for a purpose other than permanent residential use. Section 36 of the LAU stipulates a statutory deposit of two months\u2019 rent for such tenancies. In contrast, for a standard tenancy agreement covering a permanent main residence, the deposit is only one month\u2019s rent.<\/p>

The amount of this statutory fianza<\/em> The landlord cannot simply set this at, say, 500 euros as they see fit. This is to be distinguished from an additional contractual security deposit, which the parties may agree upon separately.<\/p>

In the Comunitat Valenciana, there is an additional requirement: the landlord must deposit the statutory security deposit with the Generalitat Valenciana. The Generalitat also expressly stipulates two months\u2019 rent for tenancies not intended for permanent residence. The deposit can be paid electronically, amongst other methods, via the relevant procedure provided by the Generalitat.<\/p>

This rule seems particularly unusual in the case of a seasonal tenancy lasting just five or six weeks: the statutory deposit can be considerable in relation to the total duration of the tenancy.<\/p>

For this reason, a seasonal tenancy should not be improvised using a \u201eholiday tenancy agreement\u201c drawn up by the tenant themselves. Particularly in the case of foreign owners, it is advisable to discuss the tenancy agreement, the security deposit and the tax implications with a gestor, a tax adviser or a solicitor specialising in Spanish tenancy law before the first letting.<\/p>

And what about NRUA and guest registration?<\/strong><\/h2>

Here, too, the legal situation has recently changed. The government scheme for a standard registration number for short-term lettings \u2013 often referred to as the NRUA \u2013 introduced in 2025 initially also covered seasonal lettings offered via online platforms.<\/p>

However, in May and June 2026, the Spanish Tribunal Supremo repealed significant parts of this system. This affects, in particular, the registration procedure via the land registry or relevant register and the associated obligation to obtain a registration number in order to be able to offer short-term accommodation on online platforms. The consolidated text of the law now expressly states that the relevant articles have been repealed.<\/p>

Older guides which continue to require an NRUA across the board for all short-term holiday or seasonal lettings are therefore no longer fully in line with the current legal position.<\/p>

This is separate from the reporting obligations to the Ministry of the Interior. Royal Decree 933\/2021 defines paid accommodation very broadly and explicitly includes private individuals. The Ministry of the Interior points out that even non-professional providers may, in principle, be subject to these reporting obligations. This guest registration via SES.Hospedajes should therefore be regarded separately from the VUT licence, the seasonal tenancy agreement and the NRUA system, which has since been partially abolished.<\/p>

For owners, this means there is essentially one rule to bear in mind: do not ask about a \u201eholiday let licence\u201c straight away, but first clarify what type of letting is actually planned. A week with a succession of holiday guests, six weeks with a couple, or three months with a winter resident can, in legal terms, be entirely different arrangements for the same property.<\/p>

And when it comes to traditional holiday lettings, the location is now an additional deciding factor. Just because something is permitted in Torrevieja does not necessarily mean it is allowed under the same conditions in D\u00e9nia or l\u2019Alf\u00e0s del Pi.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ferienhaus vermieten an der Costa Blanca: Wann eine Lizenz n\u00f6tig ist \u2013 und wann nicht Ein Ferienhaus f\u00fcr ein paar Wochen vermieten? Was fr\u00fcher vergleichsweise \u00fcberschaubar war, ist inzwischen ein Geflecht aus regionalen und kommunalen Vorschriften. Besonders wichtig ist eine Grenze, die viele Eigent\u00fcmer nicht kennen: In der Comunitat Valenciana macht es rechtlich einen erheblichen […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12095,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_header_footer","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[984],"tags":[1804],"class_list":["post-12094","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-service-recht","tag-ferienvermietung-costa-blanca"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t