Majorca cracks down on ‘illegal tourism’ as Brits threaten to boycott Balearic Island

Majorcan authorities are bringing measures clampdown on ‘fraudulent’ seasonal tourist accommodation (Image: Getty)

Authorities in Majorca say a major crackdown on people letting out their second homes to tourists will help mobilise residential housing, as Britons threaten a boycott over separate tourist registration rules.

The rental property rules, set to come into force in January, will require homeowners renting their properties for short periods to list them on a single register with landlords unable to market that property on any digital platform (like Airbnb or Booking, and other real estate portals and agencies), until they have registered and received a resistration number.

Under the rules, online portals will also have to display the number on booking pages.

Isabel Rodríguez, the Minister for Housing and the Urban Agenda told government ministers at their Cabinet meeting on Tuesday that under the policy, “The Land Registry will be able to certify that the property complies with local and state regulations, as well as that the residents‘ association has approved that there can be tourist flats in the block.”

The minister said the move would achieve two objectives, uncovering any fraud and stopping illegal tourist accommodation and in doing so freeing up “more residential rental housing stock”, as per Sur in English.

Majorca (Image: Getty)

The move by authorities is an apparent attempt to appease growing public frustration over spiralling rental and property prices.

Separate regulations being introduced in December will see tourists in Spain required to provide an expanded list of 43 pieces of information when checking into their accommodation, which authorities argue will enhance national security.

For car rentals, the number of required data points will increase from 14 to 64 per booking.

Carlos Abella, the secretary general of the tourism leaders organisation Mesa del Turismo, says the update of the Royal Decree requires accommodation and car rental firms, as well as intermediary tour operators to provide customer information in excessive detail telematically to authorities, as per Majorca Daily Bulletin. Firms could potential face penalties of up to 30,000 euros for infringements.

It also hasn’t gone down well with many foreign sunseekers, with a recent poll by Majorca Daily Bulletin, an English language outlet on the Belearic island, finding that 85 percent of respondents said they would be put off by the registration law.

One reader commented: “I usually take the view that I’ve got nothing to hide so I don’t mind giving information. However, there’s a limit and it looks like the new regulations exceed what I and most people would regard as sufficient for the cause (of renting a room or a car).

Tourists and industry leaders have voiced frustration at the new rules. (Image: Getty)

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“Yes, Spain will lose visitors as a result if this becomes law since most people will get the impression that the country is heading to becoming a Police state and they don’t need that hassle on a holiday.”

Benidorm party organiser Frank, who goes by frankthestagman on TikTok, adressed the new rules in a video on the platform, claiming “as soon as you arrive at the airports”, you’ll be required to fill out a form and provide information about yourself. Frank said a lot of the information you have to provide will be “very personal”.

The information will include things like email addresses, check-in and check-out times, the relationship between visitors, personal addresses, credit card numbers, bank account details, telephones numbers, and whether guests had internet access.

People in the comments suggested the rules had given them second thoughts about visiting Spain, with one writing: “It’s going to really put the stops for loads of people – too much hassle for a bit of sun.” Another said: “Won’t be going.”

A third commented: “As much as we love Benidorm, and have for many years, sadly this will put me off. If more people feel the same way, tourist figures drop, which I fear they will.”

Another said: “That’s a shame. We’ve been to Finestrat for the last two years (10 of us), popping into Benidorm as well. We were just about to book again. We’ve just discussed it, and we are not booking now.”

The Spanish Government has defended the new measures, arguing that the stricter requirements will greater safety by allowing the Ministry of Interior to monitor when and where both domestic and international guests are staying, which will help apprehend terrorists and organised crime groups.

In an earlier statement a spokesperson for the Interior Ministry said: “The regulation respects the principle of efficiency, proportionality, judicial security and transparency.”