Airbnb agrees to remove unlicensed listings in Spain from August

Airbnb has agreed to remove listings for holiday rentals in Spain that do not have an official registration code.

The commitment was made during a meeting on Tuesday with Spain's Ministry of Housing, as part of efforts to tighten control over the short-term rental market.

Starting in August 2025, Airbnb will be required to provide the ministry with monthly reports containing detailed information about active listings, including national and regional registration codes that prove their legality.

If any irregularities are found, the platform will remove the listing after notifying the host.

If the issue stems from an official revocation of the registration number, the listing will be automatically removed within 48 hours.

With this agreement, Spain becomes the first EU country to implement the bloc's rules on a single registration system for short-term rentals, introduced through the EU's Digital Single Entry Point.

The goal is to combat fraud and reduce the impact that tourist apartments have on citizens' access to long-term housing, particularly in "tense housing zones," according to a statement from the ministry.

The agreement aims to crack down on opaque listings that often escape administrative oversight and hinder efforts to align urban planning with housing rights.

Barcelona

The measures agreed between Airbnb and Spain's housing ministry coincide with with recent demands by Barcelona City Council for the platform to remove illegal listings within 48 hours.

There was "dialogue" but no consensus when Barcelona mayor, Jaume Collboni, and the CEO of Airbnb in Spain met in June, against the backdrop of the housing crisis and plans from the council to remove all tourist apartments from the city by 2028.

Airbnb has urged Barcelona to reconsider its intention to eliminate tourist apartments, and accused Barcelona City Council of applying an "indiscriminate methodology" in its requests to have listings removed.