Rental regulations in Spain: from rental licence to NRA number

Because there is a lot of confusion about this topic, this short explanation aims to provide some clarity.

Due to the ongoing housing crisis, which limits supply, the Spanish government strictly monitors all illegal or unregistered holiday rentals. That is why new laws were adopted in 2025 and a national register for short-term rentals was set up this year: the Ventanilla Única Digital de Arrendamientos (VUDA).

In addition, since 3 April 2025 homeowners’ associations (comunidades de propietarios) may decide whether an owner is allowed to apply for a tourist licence. Associations can therefore ban holiday rentals entirely. If you own or are buying a property in Spain, it is important to check whether your association permits holiday rentals, as this can affect the value and resale potential of your property.

These rules apply exclusively to:

• Holiday rentals (alquileres vacacionales)

• Seasonal rentals (alquiler de temporada)

Each autonomous region in Spain has its own laws for these forms of rental.

Long-term rentals (alquiler de larga duración) are not covered and are governed by the national tenancy law (LAU). So if you rent out your property for a longer period, these rules do not apply to you. For seasonal rentals, for example a few winter months to the same tenant, you do need the NRA number, but not the regional licence. If you want to rent out an apartment and this is prohibited in the association’s statutes, it is not possible to obtain an NRA number and renting out is therefore not allowed. Inspections are becoming ever stricter and fines are sky-high.

If you offer your property as a holiday rental, you need two things:

• A regional tourist licence

• An NRA code (the national registration number in the VUDA register)

Important: your association must now explicitly give permission before you can apply for a tourist licence. An exception only applies if you already had a licence before 3 April 2025; in that case the association cannot object.

Seasonal rental is rental for a limited period, for example for work, study, medical reasons or a temporary stay when buying a property. For seasonal rentals only the NRA code is required; a tourist licence is not needed.

Registration in the new short-term register (VUDA) is mandatory for:

• Holiday homes

• Seasonal rentals

• Short-term rental of individual rooms

All three require an NRA code.

Since 2025, owners of holiday homes and short-term rentals in Spain are required, in addition to the regional tourist registration with SES Hospedajes, to also hold an NRA number and to report their rental activities annually. This extra layer is part of the national effort to increase transparency and control over holiday rentals. At Take a Holiday in Spain we handle the registration with SES Hospedajes and with the Ventanilla Única Digital de Arrendamientos entirely free of charge with full rental/management.

Below we explain what the NRA number is, how the annual registration works and how it relates to the regional registration.

The NRA number (Número de Registro de Arrendamientos) is a unique identification number that your property receives when you register in the Ventanilla Única Digital de Arrendamientos (VUDA), the national register for short-term rentals.

Important to know:

• The NRA number is mandatory in addition to the regional tourist registration.

• The number must be visible in advertisements on platforms.

• It allows the government and platforms to easily verify that your property is rented out legally.

In short: the NRA number is a national identification of your property as a rental unit, separate from the regional tourist licence.

In Andalusia you register your property for holiday rental with SES Hospedajes, the regional system.

• For every booking and on the day of check-in you report this within 24 hours to SES Hospedajes.

• The NRA number is a national number intended to link and monitor all short-term rentals in Spain, regardless of the region.

Important: having an NRA number does not automatically mean you have a regional tourist licence. Both registrations are mandatory to rent out legally.

In addition to applying for the NRA number, you must submit an annual report of your rental activities to the national register. This can be seen as an "overview of all bookings and rental periods of the previous year".

The purpose of this annual registration is:

• Transparency about the number of nights a property is rented out.

• Monitoring of tax payment and compliance with national rules.

• Preventing illegal or unregistered holiday rentals.

In practice this means owners must report annually:

• The property’s NRA number.

• The period(s) in which the property was rented out.

• Number of nights.

• Type of rental.

Anyone who does not apply for their NRA number or does not complete the annual registration risks:

• Fines that can be enormously high.

• Withdrawal of the ability to offer holiday and seasonal rentals.

1. Apply for the NRA number as soon as you start renting out via platforms (Take a Holiday in Spain arranges this for its clients).

2. Check annually that you have reported all rental periods correctly.

3. Keep SES Hospedajes and the NRA register separate; both registrations are mandatory. At Take a Holiday in Spain this is included with full rental/management.

4. Report both the booking and the day of check-in to SES Hospedajes and provide the correct requested data.

5. Communicate your NRA number clearly in your advertisements and on platforms. The NRA number and the annual registration therefore form an extra layer on top of the regional tourist registration. Anyone who has both correctly in order avoids fines, increases transparency and can offer holiday rentals to tourists in Spain legally and safely.

A final tip: a good rental manager takes all of this off your hands. Before entering into a partnership, check whether that is the case. At Take a Holiday in Spain this is fully taken care of when renting out and managing your holiday home in Spain.