A new regulation to limit new holiday lets will take effect across Spain on 3 April.
The change, introduced on 1 January, means that a property owner wishing to operate a holiday rental in residential areas must obtain approval from the locals.
At least 60% of residents must vote in favour of the holiday rental, or it will be banned.
However, the amendment to Spain’s Ley de Propiedad Horizontal (Law of Horizontal Property) only applies to new rentals, so properties that already have a licence won’t be affected.
Further details of the addition of Section 7.3 to the law, which also applies to property owners in the Spanish islands, have been published in Spain’s Boletín Oficial del Estado.
The change to the law follows multiple demonstrations across Spain and its islands against mass tourism and the explosion of Airbnb-style rentals, which residents claim are pushing up house prices and squeezing locals out.
