VAT treatment for tourist rentals in Spain will change from 1 December 2026. Royal Decree-Law 26/2026, published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) on 30 September, removes the VAT exemption for certain short-term rentals of furnished homes and applies the reduced 10% rate. The final rule does not set the 21% rate announced earlier in the year.
As a general rule, the change covers rentals of up to 30 nights to the same guest when the landlord does not habitually live in the property. There is an exception when the rented home is the landlord’s habitual residence. Rentals that include hotel-type services were already subject to VAT and remain taxable.
What Spain has approved on tourist-rental VAT
Article 7 of Royal Decree-Law 26/2026 amends Spain’s VAT Law 37/1992. The reform makes two related changes: it removes the exemption for certain furnished-home rentals and expressly includes them among services taxed at 10%.
The amendment takes effect on 1 December 2026. Its publication does not mean that every host must start charging VAT in October.
Which rentals are covered by the new rule
From December, renting out a furnished apartment or home will be subject to VAT if either of these conditions applies:
- The landlord undertakes to provide hotel-type services, such as restaurant, cleaning or laundry services.
- The rental to the same tenant lasts no more than 30 nights, unless the rented apartment or home is the landlord’s habitual residence.
The amended Article 91(1)(2)(2) of Spain’s VAT Law includes these rentals at the 10% rate. The published rule does not set a 21% rate for this category.
How VAT treatment varies by rental type
| Situation | Treatment from 1 December |
|---|---|
| Furnished home rented to the same guest for 30 nights or fewer | 10% VAT, except where the landlord’s habitual residence exception applies |
| The rented home is the landlord’s habitual residence and the stay is no longer than 30 nights | The exemption remains |
| Rental that includes hotel-type services | Subject to VAT; the law includes these rentals at 10% |
| Rental longer than 30 nights, with no hotel-type services | The new short-stay rule does not by itself remove the exemption; check the contract and specific circumstances |
The difference between the proposed 21% and the published rule
In June 2026, the Government announced that it was preparing a measure to tax tourist accommodation at 21%. The text ultimately approved and published in the BOE takes a different approach: it brings certain short-term furnished rentals within the reduced 10% rate.
Earlier headlines about ending the exemption or raising VAT to 21% do not, on their own, describe the rule that was ultimately enacted. The published Royal Decree-Law, its effective date and the circumstances of each rental determine which treatment applies.
Who collects VAT when you book through Airbnb or Booking?
Under the general rule in Spain’s VAT Law, the taxable person is the supplier of the taxable service. Airbnb’s VAT Help Centre page says that, depending on the country or listing location, a host may need to apply VAT to the accommodation. Its guide to taxes for hosts says hosts generally need to collect taxes manually unless Airbnb offers automatic collection and remittance in that jurisdiction.
Airbnb also distinguishes between collecting and remitting. In some locations it charges guests certain taxes and remits them to the tax authority. If a host uses Airbnb’s custom-tax feature, Airbnb may collect the amount and pass it to the host as a separate payout; the host remains responsible for settling, paying and reporting those custom taxes. Airbnb’s published list of locations with automatic accommodation-tax collection does not include Spain as of this article’s review date.
These pages describe Airbnb’s general policy, but they do not confirm how the new 10% VAT in Spain will be collected from 1 December 2026. The Spanish rule does not set out a specific collection procedure for Airbnb or Booking. Check the listing’s tax settings and the platform’s updated instructions before deciding how to display or collect the tax. Airbnb’s information does not establish what Booking.com will do.
From 1 July 2028, Directive (EU) 2025/516 provides for platforms facilitating short-term accommodation rentals to be treated as suppliers for VAT purposes, unless conditions such as the host providing a VAT number and declaring that they will charge VAT are met. The precise application will also depend on national rules.
What to review before December 2026
If you manage one or more properties, review the change with your tax adviser. For each property, check:
- The agreed length of each guest’s stay, expressed in nights.
- Whether the landlord lives in the rented property as their habitual residence.
- Whether you provide services during the stay that may count as hotel-type services.
- How VAT will need to appear in prices, invoices and tax returns from the effective date.
The BOE sets 1 December 2026 as the start date, but the tax treatment of a particular booking may depend on its dates, contract and services. Do not automatically apply the same conclusion to every property in a portfolio.
The VAT change does not replace guest registration
The VAT reform concerns the taxation of the rental. It does not, by itself, remove the duty to register guests and report their details. For that process, see our guide to guest registration with SES Hospedajes. These are separate obligations and should be handled separately.
Official sources
- Royal Decree-Law 26/2026 of 29 September, Article 7 and final provision 11.
- Spanish Tax Agency: Do I have to pay VAT when renting out a tourist apartment?.
- Spain’s VAT Law 37/1992, Article 84 (taxable person).
- Directive (EU) 2025/516, Article 28a, applicable from 1 July 2028.
- Airbnb: VAT on bookings and host tax obligations.
- Airbnb: taxes for hosts and manual collection.
- Airbnb: locations where it collects and remits taxes automatically.
Tax treatment may depend on the circumstances of each rental and on any changes during the parliamentary review of the Royal Decree-Law. Ask a tax adviser how to invoice a booking or report the tax.