The president of the Council, Catalina Cladera, made clear on Friday that the Council intends to go further than eliminating the possibility of new places in saturated tourist resorts, which is what the Balearic Environment Commission called for in a report that was submitted on Thursday.
Further amendment to the Mallorca territorial plan (PTM) will include this limitation. This is expected to be approved next month, following which a different plan - PIAT for intervention in tourist areas - will be modified and provide greater detail. Cladera said that "we are committed to a model of less volume and more quality, one that is sustainable". This is a path for which "the whole of society" is conscious of the need.
Because of the Balearic government's moratorium on new places (be these for hotels or similar or for holiday rentals), no new places can be granted anyway. This moratorium will be in force until 2026, and island councils will then have to decide what to do with available new places. In Mallorca, these amount to around 13,000. In effect, therefore, the Council is saying that these will not be used - and definitively so.
* As things stand, it is still possible for, say, a new hotel to be created and for it to be granted the required number of places. But this requires the equivalent number being eliminated elsewhere. There is a swap of places, therefore. The moratorium and the planned amendments concern places over and above the existing total number.
16 comments
To be able to write a comment, you have to be registered and logged in
Ulla JacksonWell, Ulla, I have little doubt that a holiday let with capacity for 8 would receive many good reviews if it only had one bathroom. I think that restriction is meant to maintain an overall good quality of experience for tourists. And many people don't bother to read the property description, so they're often disappointed when it's something less than they expected. But there are other base requirements that otherwise might be ignored by the renter. A working refrigerator and cooking facilities are good examples. More important is that it's registered and traceable, in case it's operated in a substandard way. And of course, paying taxes on the income. After all, without roads, towns, shops, restaurants, etc., it wouldn't be very rentable, would it?
Now can you now define what you mean with substandard accomodation is in your view? You write time and time about this but apart from sheep shed, tell me a couple of examples which you regard as substandard. And no they couldn't get a licence if not a bathroom to every two bedrooms.
Ulla JacksonMallorca used to be notorious for substandard holiday lets (and ripoffs) . Not anymore. Any guesses why that might be? And yes, if you have substandard accommodation, then no, you shouldn't be renting it. Even illegally. Lastly, it was primarily Brits who screamed bloody murder when forced to go legit. No more tax free income. That really pissed off a lot of people. Many sold up and left. They could have gotten a licence, but like other inconveniences, just couldn't be bothered (like our other friend in this thread). You don't remember the fury and outrage?
I think you use a rather wide brush about other people, letting substandard with no electrical, water or sewage working and not paying tax when letting. Including illegally built properties - and lowing the price compared to others. I'm sure there were many who declared their rental income, not just you, even in the past. Or are Brits more deceitful than other nationalities?
Morgan WilliamsI beg to differ to your views. Many old houses does not have a bathroom to every 2 bedrooms, and due to this they are unsuitable to get a licence even before 2019, they still would be acceptable to many here (not all rental accommodation has that standard in the UK). And you are comment about sheep shed really rankles with me. Was the the locals who rented those out illegally as I doubt not many foreigners had any of those? In the very "old days" when my father did the tax declaration (and was mocked by the locals as they never did any), he had to add a certain % to the value of the house as it had been rented out (but never was). That is long gone now. If you not going to sell your property the 13% is totally irrelevant.
tranq tranquerIt's never been that bureaucratic. It's was actually quite easy, until lately. The problem with unlicensed lets was always that they were raking in the money, often with substandard, even illegal properties, and not declaring one penny or paying any income tax on it. A great deal, indeed. You get all the infrastructure that enables you to let at good prices, for free. You may remember the screaming (particularly from British holiday home owners) who'd bought a flat to use for 4 weeks over the course of the year, and paid the mortgage (and then some) by renting it to tourists the other 48 weeks. Not a penny in tax paid, no particular interest in providing decent accommodation (electrical, water, sewage problems, heat or aircon not working, etc). Then there were the scams. Nonexistent places, or sheep pens promoted as luxury apartments (for half the price!). No refunds, sorry. It all used to be pretty common in the early 2000's. Not any more. That may not be >your< profile, perhaps you were treating your guests quite decently. But many, many others were just in it to collect cash for free. And you got away without paying a cent in tax, too. So, the infrastructure was basically free for you. I think even you can see why that's simply an unworkable model for the future.
Ulla JacksonUlla, until they changed the requirements (in 2019, I believe), The requirements for obtaining a licence for a holiday let were pretty basic: Property has to be legally built, with a proper habitability certificate. Must have one bathroom for every 2 bedrooms. Must have a defined set of basic amenities, such as kitchen with hob, fridge, etc... Cooking necessities. TV, Other amenities get additional "points". You must have a house manual written in 3 languages. You cannot live in the property. Depending on the location, you can rent part or full year. You can only rent for the number of guests that you have bed space for. You have to declare the income and pay tax on it. And a few other minor points. If you have that, you pass inspection and you'll have a permanent licence, unless you violate basic rules (e.g., not declaring income, fail to meet base standards, etc). In 2019(?) they not only started enforcing licence requirements (up to 40k fines if rent to tourists without a licence, and they were nailing illegal lets right-and-left, you may remember) added a payment of 3500€ per bed space to obtain a licence, one time payment, which basically stopped any new licensing (too expensive). A short time later, they put a 4 year moratorium on new licences. You currently can't get one at all. And according to various estate agents, having a licence now adds an average of 13% to the value of the house. So, if you didn't bother to get a licence prior to 2019, then you're basically out of luck. If you had one, but it was taken away, then you must have seriously violated something. You don't lose your licence for some new unachievable regulations. Your licence requirements remain the same as when it was granted.
Morgan WilliamsTo get the license you need, as I understand, have a certain standard. It does not mean all who couldn't get them were bad. Many places are ok without the bells and whistles the licence demanded. Even if you have paid your tax. Don't assume all are taking shortcuts as you seem to believe.
@Morgan Williams No I didnt have a licence because we didn't need a license. One of the reasons I came to this beautiful tranquil island all those years ago was that you didn't need a licence for something every time you left your front door. When licences were introduced if I recall correctly, we did not comply because our rental accommodation was attached by a single roof to the main building. You cannot have two kitchens in one building came up. Anyway it was all too bureaucratic to bother with. We were not living on the income, just a nice extra. The social side was at least as important. Finally since I am not planning on selling my little piece of paradise i don't give a monkeys about the property price.
tranq tranquerSo, you didn't have a licence? It was free and easy up until a few years ago. And if you'd done it then, you'd still be licensed now (unless you did something wrong like neglected to pay income tax or something). And your property value would now be 13% higher because of it. Oh well, live and learn 🤨