Marketing of tourist stays in apartments: the renewal of "licenses"

Recently, many doubts have emerged about the need for renewal or non-renewal of licenses allowing for the marketing of tourist accommodation in apartments (ETVs) within the territorial scope of the Balearic Islands and the rules to be applied in such renovations.

The need for renewal or non-renewal of the "tourist license" will depend on the date on which this "license" was applied for, from the date of issue of the declaration of commencement of tourism activity (DRIAT).

For this purpose, a distinction is made between four situations:

• Licenses before 1 August 2017: In this case, on the one hand, licenses are required for one-family houses that are not subject to horizontal ownership (unless it is the usual type of housing) and, on the other, licenses for other living spaces, Multi-family houses, residential buildings or family houses, which are subject to horizontal ownership. While in the first case the licenses have lifelong validity and therefore do not have to be renewed, in the second case the licenses must be renewed every five years, provided that all the specified conditions of the laws and regulations are still met, including the fact that the area remains suitable remains. In these cases, the license will be renewed for a further period of 5 years.

• Licenses after August 9, 2012 (effective date of Law 8/2012) and before deferment (August 1, 2017). - This is not renewed.

• Licenses applied for between 2006 and 2012 (regulated by the 2005 Law): These should be renewed every 6 years. The period of 6 years starts from the preliminary issue of DRIAT.

It should be noted at this point that the conditions for renewal are set out in the applicable rules.

• Licenses prior to 2006 (VT). - This is not renewed. However, there are some VT licenses after 2006 and before 2005 that need to be analyzed one after the other because they are very problematic and raise serious concerns about whether or not they need to be renewed.

Ultimately, reviewing each individual case will be necessary to ascertain whether or not the license in question should be renewed.

Also, it is recommended that the owners of the licenses to be renewed should be very careful to think about the renewal of their licenses as the expiration date approaches, although it is true that the competent authority will usually send a reminder in time, but they are not obliged to do so.

Jaime López Morente
Illeslex