Note

HUT licence in Catalonia: tourist dwellings

§ 1What we read

We read the text of Decree-law 3/2023 of the Government of Catalonia, of 7 November, on urgent measures on the planning regime of tourist dwellings, as published in the Spanish official gazette. We did not read the Generalitat’s own pages, which our tools could not open, nor the Constitutional Court’s ruling of March 2025 on a challenge to it. The court’s record says the appeal was dismissed, and the page we read notes that without detail. This page belongs to the chapter in what to know about holiday rentals.

§ 2Where it applies

It applies to the municipalities listed in its annex, 262 in total, including Barcelona, Girona, Lleida and Tarragona. The list is chosen for housing access problems or the risk of overtourism, valid for five years and then revised. The criteria are in a transitional provision and include a share of housing cost to income and the number of tourist flats per hundred inhabitants. We do not repeat the thresholds.

§ 3The prior licence

In the listed municipalities, assigning a dwelling to tourist use is subject to a prior urban planning licence. The licence lasts five years and is renewable in equal periods only if planning permits. The decree amends the Catalan planning law so that tourist use is compatible with residential use only where planning expressly allows it, after showing that enough land is zoned for permanent housing.

§ 4The cap

An additional provision caps the licences at ten per hundred inhabitants, and requires publicity, objectivity, impartiality, transparency and competitive concurrence in granting and renewing them.

§ 5Existing licences

Holders of dwellings already authorised in listed municipalities must obtain the new licence within five years of the entry into force or stop the activity. One extension of up to five more years is possible if the holder shows the transitional regime does not compensate the loss, applying after four years and before the first period ends. The transitional regime is described as an indemnity. Municipalities added later get the same regime from the date of the order.

§ 6What the text omits

The text we read does not define the tourist dwelling, does not mention the exceptions for main residences let for short periods or for rooms, does not contain community rules, and does not set penalties. Penalties and the rules for the rest of Catalonia are in other texts. The community vote in detail explains the community’s approval and vote, and the national registry number in detail explains why the national number was annulled in 2026.

§ 7Before you buy

Do not buy in a listed municipality expecting a new licence. Ask the town hall whether any are available, and ask your lawyer to check the exact dates.

§ 8More on this topic

Letting on Airbnb in detail explains the platform side of tourist lets and the Valencian Community in detail explains the Valencian rules for tourist dwellings.

Andalusia in detail explains what the Junta says about tourist dwellings and a closer look at the Balearic Islands explains the Balearic decree-law on tourist stays in dwellings.

A closer look at the Canary Islands explains the Canary law on tourist use of homes and a closer look at Madrid explains the Madrid rules for tourist dwellings.

Legal note. How the process works in general. It is not legal advice, and it never replaces an independent Spanish lawyer acting for you.