“We'll just rent it out on Airbnb when we're not there” — the sentence that fails most often in Mallorca. Tourist letting requires a licence, is capped and is prohibited in many locations. What applies, and what works instead.
Tourist short-term letting (estancias turísticas en viviendas, ETV) is only permitted in the Balearics with a licence. The licence is tied to the property and the number of beds (plazas), the places are bought from a limited quota held by the island council, and since 2022 a moratorium on new places has applied, extended several times. In Palma, holiday lets in apartment buildings have been generally prohibited since 2018. Letting without a licence is pursued with heavy fines — platforms and neighbours report.
A property with a valid ETV licence has genuine added value — provided the licence is transferable, the places are paid for and the requirements (zoning, minimum standards, insurance, guest registration) are met. Check: licence number in the register, number of places, remaining term or renewal conditions, whether the licence matches the current use (detached house vs. apartment).
Every municipality designates zones in which ETV is permitted, restricted (e.g. detached houses only, 60 days only) or prohibited. On rústico, issuance is additionally restricted. Before you buy a property for its letting potential, we clarify with the municipality whether and how letting is possible there.
Long-term letting (from one year, Spanish tenancy law LAU with tenant protection) is permitted everywhere and, given the housing shortage, in strong demand — but brings commitment. Seasonal letting (arrendamiento de temporada, e.g. to winter residents or companies) sits legally between the two and is an underrated option. Those who mainly use the property themselves are often better off with preservation than letting stress.
Factor in management, cleaning, laundry, platform fees, maintenance, vacancy outside the season, tourist tax (ecotasa) and non-resident income tax on rental income. What remains is rarely what the listing promises — and never what an increase in value in a good location brings.
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