Buying a holiday home in Spain: rules, costs and renting it out

Is a holiday home in Spain right for you?

Most British, Irish and American buyers of a holiday home in Spain want a place for a few weeks a year, perhaps with some rental income to cover costs. Before choosing a town, be honest about two things: how many days you will really use it, and whether you need rental income to make the numbers work. The first is limited by immigration rules; the second by regional and local rental rules that have tightened sharply since 2024.

The purchase itself follows the standard route in our guide to buying property in Spain, and the taxes and fees on top of the price are set out in the cost of buying property in Spain.

The 90/180 rule for non-EU owners

Since Brexit, UK citizens are treated like Americans, Canadians and Australians: they can spend up to 90 days in any rolling 180-day period in the Schengen area without a visa. Days in France, Portugal or Italy count towards the same 90. Owning a second home in Spain gives no extra days.

• Count backwards: on any day, look at the previous 180 days. If you have been in Schengen more than 90 of them, you have overstayed.
• The EU's Entry/Exit System now records entries and exits electronically, so overstays are easier to detect.
• If you want longer stays, you need a Spanish visa. The non-lucrative visa is the usual route for retirees and people living on savings. The property 'golden visa' ended in April 2025.

Irish and other EU citizens have free movement and aren't subject to the 90/180 rule, though they must register if they stay more than three months.

Running costs of a second home in Spain

Budget for these every year. Amounts vary widely by town and building, so the figures below are typical ranges, not rules.

See our Spanish home insurance guide and property taxes in Spain for the full picture.

Non-resident tax on an empty holiday home

Spain taxes non-residents on a notional income from a home they keep for their own use. The Agencia Tributaria sets it at 2% of the cadastral value, or 1.1% where the town's cadastral values were revised from 2012 onwards. No expenses are deductible. The tax rate is 19% for residents of the EU, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein and 24% for everyone else, including the UK and US.

Worked example

A UK owner has a flat with a cadastral value of €120,000 in a town with revised values (1.1%). Imputed income = €1,320. Tax at 24% = €316.80 a year. If the flat is let for part of the year, the imputed income is cut in proportion to the days it was let, and the rental income is declared separately.

Our non-resident tax guide covers filing Modelo 210 and the UK-Spain treaty relief.

Renting out a holiday home in Spain

Tax on rental income

Rental income is taxed in Spain at the same 19% or 24%. EU/EEA residents can deduct expenses such as IBI, community fees, insurance, repairs and depreciation; UK and US residents are taxed on the gross income with no deductions. Rental income is declared on Modelo 210; check the current filing periods on the Agencia Tributaria site.

Tourist licences: set by each region

Short-term holiday lets (vivienda de uso turístico) are regulated by the regions, and many town halls add their own limits. Before you buy, check:

• Does the region require a licence or registration in its tourism register, and is it tied to the property or the owner?
• Has the town paused new licences? Several coastal and city councils have frozen or zoned them. Barcelona, for example, has announced it will not renew existing tourist-flat licences when they expire in 2028.
• Is the licence transferable? In some regions it survives a sale; in others the buyer must reapply and may be refused.

The national registry since 2025

Under Real Decreto 1312/2024, since 1 July 2025 anyone offering short-term rentals (tourist lets and seasonal lets) must first obtain a registration number from the Registro de la Propiedad through the Ventanilla Única Digital de Arrendamientos. Platforms such as Airbnb and Booking.com must display it and remove listings without a valid number. The regional licence is still needed where the region requires one; the national number sits on top of it.

The community of owners

Since 3 April 2025, starting a tourist let in a building under horizontal property needs the express approval of three-fifths of the owners (who also hold three-fifths of the shares). The community can also limit or ban the activity by the same majority and raise that owner's fees by up to 20%. Lets already operating legally before that date can continue. Ask for the community statutes and recent minutes before you buy.

Managing a Spanish holiday home from abroad

• Bank account and direct debits: set IBI, community fees and utilities to pay from a Spanish bank account so nothing falls into arrears.
• Tax filing: most owners use an adviser or gestor for Modelo 210 and IBI queries.
• Letting agent: full management for holiday lets commonly costs 15–30% of rental income (typical market range). Check they handle guest registration with the police, which is a legal obligation for tourist accommodation.
• Security and occupation: an empty home is a target. Our okupas guide covers prevention.
• Your will: a Spanish will covering the property can save your heirs time and cost.

Checks before buying a holiday home in Spain

• Nota simple: owner and charges. Catastro: the cadastral value (which drives IBI and your imputed tax) and the built area.
• Planning status of pools, terraces and extensions; see pitfalls of buying property in Spain.
• Community debts and statutes, including any tourist-let ban.
• The tourist licence and national registration number, if you plan to rent.

If you have a property in mind, send the address or referencia catastral to our free property check and we'll reply by email with what we find.