Investment approach
Barcelona's tourist flat licences end in 2028: what this changes
Barcelona will not renew its 10,101 tourist flat licences after November 2028. Buying a flat in the city to let on Airbnb no longer works as a strategy.
Barcelona will not renew its 10,101 active tourist flat licences (HUT) after November 2028. For an investor, this means the ‘buy to let on Airbnb’ strategy no longer works in the city: a flat bought for its tourist income will lose that income after this date, unless the decision is overturned in court.
What the city decided
In June 2024 the Mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, announced that the 10,101 HUT licences would not be renewed once the transitional period set by the Catalan decree Decret llei 3/2023 ends: it came into force in November 2023 and keeps existing licences valid for five years, that is, until November 2028. After that date, flats operating as tourist accommodation will have to go back onto the long-term rental or sales market. The official announcement is on the Ajuntament de Barcelona website.
Where the legal challenge stands
Apartur, the association of tourist flat owners, has challenged the decision in the administrative courts; as of May 2026, the case remained undecided. Spain's Constitutional Court confirmed the constitutionality of the Catalan decree behind the measure in March 2025, and in September 2026 Apartur said the EU's affordable-housing regulation then in preparation, in its view, calls Barcelona's decision into question, and it took the matter to EU-level bodies. Since 1 July 2025, a flat with an active licence also needs a national registration number, the NRUA, in order to operate.
Why this matters even if you are not planning tourist lets
Withdrawing the licences changes the market as a whole. Some flats will go back into long-term rental or onto the sales market, and in certain neighbourhoods this may affect supply. Buying on the assumption that a HUT licence will ‘come with the flat’ and keep producing tourist income after 2028 is a high-risk strategy: you stand to lose your main source of income.
How DNPI takes this into account
DNPI Capital's strategies are not built on tourist rentals. Our projects earn their return through renovation and sale, or through a long-term commercial tenant, as in the strategy described in our article on commercial premises. The end of HUT licences has no direct effect on these models.
Questions and answers
If I buy a flat with an active HUT licence, will it pass to me?
It can pass to you with the property, but it will only be valid until November 2028, unless the city's decision is overturned in court. Paying for the licence as if it were a long-term asset is risky.
Does the ban also apply to the area around Barcelona?
Barcelona's decision applies within the city itself. Some municipalities, such as Cornellà de Llobregat, have announced similar measures of their own, so the rules need to be checked for each municipality.