The city of Málaga in Andalusia has become the latest in Spain to clamp down on short-term holiday rentals, halting the approval of new licences for a three-year period.
Local authorities confirmed on Friday that the city council has frozen permits for tourist apartments, a move that delivers on a commitment made earlier by mayor Francisco de la Torre to control the booming rental market in the Costa del Sol capital.
The suspension stems from amendments to Málaga’s General Urban Development Plan (PGOU), which will block the issuing of new tourist accommodation licences until at least 2027 or until fresh regulations are introduced.
Spanish media outlets described the decision as the ‘full stop’ in a series of measures designed to curb the growth of tourist flats in the city, which last year became one of the focal points of Spain’s anti-tourism protests. ALSO READ: Thousands protest against over-tourism in Barcelona & Mallorca, many with water pistols.
The freeze follows several earlier attempts to rein in the sector. Initially, officials prohibited new tourist licences for apartments lacking an independent entrance. Later, they restricted permits in 43 neighbourhoods where short-term rentals already accounted for more than 8% of homes. ALSO READ: Airbnb reaches agreement with Spanish government to remove irregular listings.
This latest measure now applies to the entire municipality. According to de la Torre, Málaga has 12,754 licensed tourist flats, though only 8,596 are currently in use. Authorities believe that hundreds, if not thousands, of others may be operating without authorisation. ALSO READ: Spanish government makes Booking.com remove over 4,000 tourist rental ads.
Málaga’s action reflects a broader trend across Spain. Barcelona has pledged to eliminate all tourist apartments by 2028, while other cities, including Valencia, Madrid and destinations in the Canary Islands, have also moved to curb the impact of Airbnb-style rentals on local housing supply and soaring rents. ALSO READ: Barcelona wants to revoke all city’s 10,101 tourist apartment licences by Nov 2028.
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