Spain asks two platforms to pull 8,318 tourist flat ads posing as seasonal rentals

The request

Spain's Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and 2030 Agenda, led by Pablo Bustinduy, has asked two property platforms to remove 8,318 adverts that promote tourist flats as seasonal rentals. The ministry says the listings accept bookings of fewer than 31 days, below the minimum duration the law now sets for seasonal contracts. That threshold comes from Royal Decree-Law 29/2026, approved by the Council of Ministers on 6 October, which amends the Urban Leasing Act. The ministry has not named the two platforms, and its Directorate General for Consumer Affairs treats the adverts as potentially misleading commercial practice under article 47 of the consumer protection law (TRLGDCU). According to El Confidencial, the new text classes such rentals as tourist flats whether or not they offer hotel services, and subjects them to 10% VAT.

Where the listings sit

The Community of Madrid accounts for 6,772 of the flagged adverts, and 6,523 of those are in the city of Madrid. El Confidencial puts the capital's share of the Madrid listings at 96%. Consumer affairs asked for the removals through the notice mechanisms of the Digital Services Act, the EU rulebook for online platforms. Once notified, the platforms take direct responsibility for the flagged content under European rules. If they neither remove nor block the adverts, they could face the opening of a sanctioning file.

Madrid's own crackdown

On 22 October, Madrid's deputy mayor Inma Sanz, who is also the city council spokesperson and security and emergencies delegate, defended the city's plans against illegal tourist flats. She cited National Statistics Institute (INE) data showing a 40% fall, from 22,435 tourist flats in August 2024 to 13,431 in May 2026, a reduction of 9,004 homes against a national average drop of 15%. Sanz said the city's measures are working, and she framed the figures as proof of the council's approach.

The city council's plans are working, as the official statistics confirm.

She also urged the Socialist group (PSOE) to stop its overacting, after the group launched a digital platform for flagging tourist flats in the city.

Earlier enforcement and EU housing policy

The ministry points to earlier action, including a 64 million euro fine on Airbnb for offering thousands of tourist listings that broke the rules, which led to the removal of more than 65,000 adverts. Booking, according to the ministry, removed more than 4,000 adverts after an official request. Separately, Spain's Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda has opened a public consultation on the European Affordable Housing Act, a proposed EU regulation presented by the European Commission on 9 September. Contributions can be sent until 4 November 2026 through a form, and they will feed into the impact study of the proposal and Spain's position in EU negotiations. The consultation covers subsidiarity, effects on public competences, affordability and availability of housing, and wider economic and social impacts.