Spain short-term rental regulation and SDEP status

What this means

Spain already has a national model for short-term rental registration and digital data exchange.

Units need a registration number before they can be offered through online short-term rental platforms under the Spanish model.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda describes itself as the central authority/manager of the Ventanilla Unica Digital, with the Colegio de Registradores assigning registration numbers through the Property or Movable Property Registers.

Implementation status

Royal Decree 1312/2024 creates the Registro Unico de Arrendamientos and the Ventanilla Unica Digital de Arrendamientos.

The official Ministry portal says the system is available from 2 January 2025 and its provisions take effect on 1 July 2025 after a technology/functionality adaptation period.

Order VAU/653/2025 defines platform data-transmission deadlines and model. Order VAU/1560/2025 defines an annual host-side information model and XBRL taxonomy.

Monthly reporting is expected for regular platforms. Microplatform alternatives include quarterly transmission and either manual Ministry-portal reporting or machine-to-machine integration.

The Spanish system does not replace autonomous-community or municipal tourism, housing, licensing, inspection, and sanction regimes.

Technical interface

The official Ministry platform page states that online platforms must report activity records monthly to the Ventanilla Unica Digital through machine-to-machine integration.

Platforms must facilitate inclusion of registration numbers in listings, display the number clearly, support removal or disablement of non-compliant listings when required by competent authorities, and perform random or periodic checks through permanent automatic consultation of Ventanilla Unica Digital register data for listings intended for publication.

Platform payload fields include registration number, unit address, postal code, municipality, country, guest count, guest countries of residence, rental period, listing URL, platform identity, reference period, and send timestamp.

The host/lessor annual model supports electronic filing through the Registrars electronic office and an XBRL taxonomy named in the legal instrument; the Ministry FAQ says the annual model is first due in February 2026 for 2025 short-term urban rentals.

The Ministry says tools, manuals, and documentation are available to platforms through its platform contact route. A public platform-adherence procedure PDF describes who may request adhesion to the Ventanilla Unica Digital de Arrendamientos, but no public Spain-specific SDEP source code, OpenAPI schema, sandbox, or self-serve developer portal is currently available.

Implementation timeline

The Ministry says the Ventanilla Unica Digital and registration-number requests are available from 2 January 2025 and the provisions take effect on 1 July 2025.

Order VAU/653/2025 defines platform transmission deadlines and model.

Order VAU/1560/2025 defines the annual host/lessor information model and XBRL taxonomy.

Registration workflow

Each property or separable unit intended for short-term rental through platforms must obtain a unique registration number.

The registration route is handled through the Property Register or, where relevant, the Movable Property Register, with applications through the Colegio de Registradores electronic office or the competent registry.

Registration numbers do not expire after favourable registrar qualification, but lessors must update changed unit information and submit the annual information model.

Platform obligations

Regular platforms transmit activity data machine-to-machine.

The reference period is monthly and the transmission deadline is the first 15 calendar days of the following month unless the European Commission establishes a different deadline.

Platforms must display registration numbers clearly, facilitate host entry of those numbers, support removal or disablement of non-compliant listings when ordered, and conduct random or periodic checks against Ventanilla Unica Digital register data.

Microplatform routes include quarterly transmission and either manual Ministry-portal reporting or machine-to-machine integration.

Technical interfaces

The legal payload model includes unit address, municipality, country, registration number, guest count, guest residence countries, rental period, listing URL, platform identity, reference period, and send timestamp.

The Ministry platform and microplatform pages refer to machine-to-machine integration, manual reporting for microplatforms, and Ministry-provided tools/manuals/documentation through contact routes, rather than a public OpenAPI portal.

The annual host/lessor model uses an XBRL taxonomy named in Order VAU/1560/2025.

Open questions

Whether channel managers or PMS vendors can submit as delegated platform agents, or whether only the publication platform can submit.

Whether Spain will publish a public OpenAPI schema, sandbox, or self-serve onboarding process beyond the Ministry platform contact route.