Flat detector

You can easily detect if there are unlicensed tourist flats in your building or if you are staying in one.
Fill in the boxes. If your address does not appear, the flat you are looking for is illegal. (For flats in the city of Barcelona.)

Collaborate

If you believe your building has unlicensed tourist-use flats or you believe you may be staying in one of them...

Let us know

The city of Barcelona offers a wide array of tourist accommodation so that everyone who visits, whether for business or pleasure, can enjoy their stay as though they were just another Barcelona resident, integrated into the daily life of the city and the communities of local residents with whom they are sharing living space. Staying in this type of accommodation brings with it a whole series of rights and obligations that you need to know how to identify when you make your booking. Having a personally fulfilling trip that also respects the city's local residents also depends on the visitors themselves.

Like many tourist destinations, in Barcelona people also offer accommodation that does not have the corresponding tourist license and is therefore illegal. This brings harm to both the person renting the place, because they lose their rights to lodge complaints if there is an incident and it precludes mandatory services from being offered, and also to the city, because it creates speculation, an underground economy, and does not have a positive impact on the communities of local residents surrounding this type of accommodation, instead causing headaches and complaints.

If you visit our city, we need your commitment and collaboration to ensure that this illegal tourist accommodation, which leads to irresponsible, economically unsustainable and disrespectful tourism, does not spring up and take root in Barcelona.

Before renting a tourist flat, check whether it's legal, and don't book it if it's not. You'll be helping us fight fraud and rising property prices, as well as preventing people from being priced out of their own neighbourhood.

If you're a local resident and you're experiencing disturbances stemming from the activity of this type of accommodation and you want to contribute to fighting this phenomenon, send us your complaint here

Resolve your queries

What is a tourist flat?

These are residential properties whose owners or tenants allow them to be used, either directly or indirectly through agencies, for stays of up to 31 days in exchange for payment. Flats are rented in full, and cannot be shared with other groups.

Owners must expressly inform the City Council of their wish to use their property in this way, and the Administration must grant a licence showing that all the requirements laid down in law and in urban planning regulations have been met. The properties must also have a certificate of habitability, which states the maximum number of people that can be accommodated. The interior of the property must be perfectly clean and fully furnished, and contain all the household items needed for everyday life. Legal tourism properties are given a Catalan Tourism Register Number (NIRTC). A sign with this number must be displayed inside the property, and visitors must also be given the number when they make their booking. Furthermore, people staying at legal tourism properties are given a 24-hour telephone number that they can call should there any issues arise during their stay.

Either the owner directly, or the agency managing the flat, must provide the tenants or neighbours with their phone number so they can immediately deal with and resolve any queries or incidents relating to their flats. They must also ensure there is a care or maintenance service for any incident.

Check if the rented flat has a municipal permit and that its address matches the one you are staying in. Sometimes other people who are not staying in the flat with you are named in the contract you sign. Or you may be told not to answer the door if a City Council inspector calls and say that a friend has given you use of the flat.

Here is the usual administrative procedure to close down a tourist let operating without a licence. From start to finish, the process can take from 6 to 12 months. This is a long period, not without its obstacles. The process entails multiple inspections, notifications and resources which need to be carried out to guarantee everybody’s rights and duties.
Barcelona City Council’s role is to bring cases and work throughout the process to ensure there are sufficient grounds and evidence for the courts, ultimately, to give a ruling on ceasing the activity of the flat, based on the Tourism in Catalonia Act 13/2002

You will not be affected, whether you’re the person reporting the flat or whether you’re staying there when the authorities act on a previous report. The procedure to seal off an illegal tourist flat can take time and may take several months.
If a flat is to be sealed off while tourists happen to be staying there, the City Council will find them alternative accommodation at no charge. The City Council will then pass on the related costs to the owner of the unlicensed flat.

Legal tourist-use flats Illegal tourist-use flats
Guarantee a 24 hour telephone support service
To deal with complaints and resolve potential problems
Guarantee the contribution of corresponding taxes to make the city better for everyone.
You run the risk of municipal inspectors expelling occupants from the home in order to seal it off due to illegal activity.
Mean greater control of those staying overnight in the city. Legal tourist-use flats detail who is staying in them, making those details available to the authorities and helping to avoid those wanted by the police from entering or staying in the country.

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