Home » Barcelona plans 150% property tax increase on tourist flats ahead of 2028 ban

Author: Mark Stücklin
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Barcelona City Council has approved plans to increase property taxes by up to 150% on owners with multiple tourist rental licences, adding another financial burden to a sector already facing extinction in 2028.

Barcelona City Council’s Economy and Finance Committee has approved a proposal to increase the annual property tax (IBI) on tourist rental properties, with the biggest increases targeting owners and operators holding four or more tourist accommodation licences.

The measure was supported by the Socialists (PSC), Barcelona en Comú and ERC, with Junts abstaining and the PP and Vox voting against.

Under the proposal, the increases would be:

  • 150% for holders of four or more tourist rental licences, affecting approximately 6,000 licences, or 60% of the city’s total.
  • 100% for holders of two or three licences, affecting around 1,200 licences, or 11% of the total.
  • No increase for owners holding just one tourist rental licence.

The proposal is not yet final. It must go through a period for objections before being submitted for approval at the December council meeting.

Another blow to Barcelona’s tourist rental sector

Deputy Mayor for Economic Affairs Jordi Valls explained that the objective is to make tourist rentals less attractive financially until the city’s planned elimination of tourist rental licences takes effect in 2028.

Valls argued that the tax increases primarily target companies operating tourist accommodation as a business, rather than individual owners renting out a single property.

Barcelona currently has around 10,000 licensed tourist flats, all of which are scheduled to lose their tourist rental licences in 2028 under the city’s controversial plan to eliminate this form of accommodation.

The latest tax proposal adds to the growing regulatory and financial pressure on the sector, potentially reducing profitability well before the licences themselves disappear.

Will higher taxes solve Barcelona’s housing shortage?

Supporters of the measure argue that discouraging tourist rentals will help tackle Barcelona’s housing problems. However, there is no guarantee that increasing taxes on tourist accommodation will make more homes available for long-term residential use.

The opposition has questioned both the effectiveness and proportionality of the proposal. Junts warned of growing legal uncertainty, whilst the PP described the increase as a punitive tax measure targeting a particular group of property owners.

Vox argued that the measure does nothing to guarantee more residential housing, suggesting that the council would achieve more by encouraging construction and removing restrictions on development.

The underlying problem remains Barcelona’s chronic shortage of housing supply. Increasing taxes on existing accommodation, or eliminating tourist rentals altogether, does nothing directly to encourage the construction of new homes.

For owners and investors in Barcelona’s tourist rental market, the message from City Hall is increasingly clear: the authorities intend to make the business less attractive long before the planned ban arrives in 2028.