The 21% VAT Increase on Tourist Apartments: A Direct Threat to Tourism and Travellers
The Government is considering applying 21% VAT to tourist apartments, a measure that could have very serious consequences not only for property owners, but for the entire tourism sector and, above all, for travellers.
The result? Higher prices, less tourism, and a severe blow to a model that has made travel more accessible to everyone.
💣 Higher VAT means higher prices
At present, many tourist apartments are exempt from VAT or are taxed at a reduced rate. Under this new proposal, prices would be forced to rise in order to absorb the new tax.
And if prices go up…
👉 Fewer families will be able to afford to travel
👉 Young people and budget travellers will have to give up their plans
👉 Domestic and rural tourism will be particularly affected
🏨 The alternative? Hotels only... and at higher prices
One of the great advantages of tourist apartments is that they have allowed thousands of people to travel freely and at reasonable prices.
If they disappear, many travellers will be forced to rely on hotels, which in most cases are more expensive, less flexible and more impersonal.
👉 This would undermine the diverse, local and sustainable tourism model that has benefited Spain so greatly.
📉 A sector that could collapse
Applying 21% VAT could be the final blow for many small property owners who rent out their homes legally, responsibly and with quality services.
These people are not large investment funds or speculators. They are individuals who have invested in a property and contribute to the local tourism economy.
⚠️ Many will close
⚠️ Others may move into the informal economy
⚠️ And travellers will lose access to affordable accommodation
📊 Tourism is one of the driving forces of the Spanish economy
More than 13% of Spain’s GDP comes from tourism
In 2024, records were broken, with the sector contributing more than €208 billion
A significant part of this growth was linked to the wide variety of tourist accommodation available
Attacking tourist accommodation means directly affecting one of the pillars of the Spanish economy.
🚫 It is not the solution to the housing problem
Tourist apartments are increasingly being blamed for the housing crisis. But the figures presented here point in a different direction:
Only 1.3% of homes in Spain are tourist accommodation properties (INE, 2024)
There are more than 4 million vacant homes
In 2023, three times more new households were created than new homes were built
🔍 The real problem is the lack of construction and urban planning, not tourism.
🧨 Conclusion: this measure would not solve the problem — it would create a new one
It harms law-abiding property owners
It makes travel more expensive
It reduces the diversity of tourist accommodation
And it puts at risk a sector that is essential to many regions
🗣️ What do you think? Do you believe increasing VAT will solve the problem, or will it simply make things more difficult for travellers and small property owners?
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