Making it yours

Renting it out when you are away

The permissions and questions to check for the building and municipality before rental income enters the plan.

6 min readLast reviewed August 2026

Friends arriving together at a bright coastal apartment on the Costa Blanca

At a glance

Registration layers
2 registrations
Regional VUT and the national registry both matter.
Community approval
3/5 consent
Explicit approval has applied since April 2025.
Rules checked
August 2026
Municipal and building rules can still move faster than a general guide.

A legal holiday let in Andalusia, in order

As of August 2026, clear the home, building and municipality before any income forecast enters the decision.

  1. Confirm the home can be occupied and let

    Check the LPO or applicable habitability evidence, declared capacity and planning compatibility for the exact address.

    Before relying on rent

  2. Read the community rules and vote

    The community can refuse tourist letting. Confirm the statutes, minutes and explicit 3/5 approval rather than relying on another owner's activity.

    Before registration

  3. Check the municipality

    Local zoning, moratoria and compatibility rules can narrow what the regional system otherwise permits.

    For the exact address

  4. Register the VUT

    Complete the Andalusian tourist-home declaration only after the underlying property and permission trail is clean.

    Regional layer

  5. Obtain the national number

    The national registration has been required for platform advertising since July 2025.

    National layer

Rental tax as of August 2026 follows where you live

An EU or EEA resident generally pays 19% on net Spanish rental income, with qualifying expenses deductible. Keep invoices and the management trail from the first booking.

A non-EU owner generally pays 24% on gross rent without those deductions. For a UK or US owner, that difference can change whether the letting plan works at all.

The registration terms

VUT

The Andalusian regional registration for a tourist-use home.

NRUA

The national short-let registration number needed for online advertising where the rules apply.

LPO

The licence of first occupation, central to lawful occupation, utilities and many letting checks.

Questions to settle before rent enters the budget

Can I rent the home out when I am not using it?

Possibly, but check the particular building and municipality before relying on the income. As of August 2026, an Andalusian holiday let generally needed 2 registrations and explicit community approval at 3/5; local restrictions can still rule it out.

What taxes do I pay each year if I do not live in Spain?

Expect municipal IBI and a non-resident Modelo 210 return even when the home is not rented. The imputed-income rate is 19% for EU and EEA residents and 24% for non-EU owners, applied to a small cadastral-value base rather than the purchase price.

When you are ready

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