Spain’s Supreme Court on Thursday struck down a national registry for tourist accommodation to combat illegal short-term rentals, ruling that the central government had overstepped its authority into areas controlled by the regions.
The central government “lacks the authority to establish an exhaustive regulation of a national registry that overlaps with regional registries already in existence”, the court said in a statement.
The ruling deals a blow to Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s government, which has sought to tighten regulation of tourist rentals that are blamed for driving up housing costs in major cities by reducing the supply of long-term homes for local residents.
The case stemmed from a legal challenge filed in May 2025 by the eastern region of Valencia, which oversees beach hotspots including Benidorm and Alicante, several months after Spain introduced the registry at the start of the year.
READ ALSO: Foreigners struggle to register their Spanish holiday lets by deadline
Under the rules, all properties rented out on a short-term basis, including through platforms such as Airbnb and Booking.com, were required to obtain a registration number after proving the seasonal nature of the rental.
Owners were also theoretically required to renew the registration annually.
The government described the registry as a first within the European Union.
But in highly decentralised Spain, several regions, including Valencia and Andalusia, which are both governed by the conservative Popular Party, argued that the regulation infringed on their powers over tourism policy.
Associations representing the tourist rental sector also opposed the measure.
The Supreme Court said it would nonetheless maintain “the obligation for platforms to share data” on rental properties, although not necessarily through a centralised national system run from Madrid.
Spain welcomed a record 97 million visitors last year, making it the world’s second most visited country after France.
The surge in mass tourism has fuelled growing public anger in Spain over pressure on public services, environmental damage and especially housing, as short-term rentals have mushroomed in major cities and coastal destinations.
