Spain’s Supreme Court has annulled the national tourist-apartment registry created in 2025. If you let —or are considering letting— a property for short stays, we explain in plain language which obligation disappears, which ones remain fully in force, and what steps to take now to operate with confidence.
1. What the Supreme Court has decided
The Third Chamber of Spain’s Supreme Court, in Judgment 620/2026 of 19 May (made public on 21 May), has partially annulled Royal Decree 1312/2024 of 23 December. That was the rule which had created the Single Registry of Short-Term Rentals and, with it, the registration number —the NRUA— that since 1 July 2025 was required in order to advertise a tourist property on platforms such as Airbnb or Booking.
The appeal was brought by the Regional Government of Valencia, and the reason for the annulment is strictly one of competence. The court holds that the State lacks the competential authority to establish a national registry that overlaps with the registries the autonomous communities (regions) already maintain in the field of tourist rentals. Tourism is a regional competence and, by creating its own registry, the State encroached on that area.
One point is worth underlining to avoid misunderstandings: the annulment is partial. The Supreme Court has not struck down the entire Royal Decree, only the part that creates the state registry. That distinction marks the line between what disappears and what remains.
2. Which obligations disappear for owners
What falls is the state Single Registry and the registration number (NRUA). In practice, this means that:
- No owner of a tourist property is now required to obtain the state registration number in order to advertise the property on the platforms.
- The annual declaration that this registry required —to be filed each February on the previous year’s activity— also falls away. With no registry, there is no obligation to report to it.
For many owners this simply means one less procedure and a layer of red tape removed.
3. What remains fully in force
This is where care is needed, because the idea is circulating that “there is nothing left to register”. That is not true. The Supreme Court has expressly kept several things in place:
- The Single Digital Rental Window (Ventanilla Única Digital) continues to exist. The court does recognise state competence over it, so the platform does not disappear.
- The online platforms (Airbnb, Booking and the like) keep their obligation to transmit data, and the exchange of information for statistical purposes is preserved.
- The regional and municipal registries and licences remain fully in force. This is the essential point: what the Supreme Court says is that the State’s registry was redundant precisely because the autonomous communities already have their own.
Do not confuse the state registry with the tourist licence
This is a very common mistake. The NRUA that is now disappearing never replaced your region’s tourist licence or the municipal planning permit: it was a requirement added on top of them. Therefore, if your property is in a region that requires registration and a tourist licence —and most do— that obligation remains intact. The obligation to register your tourist property has not disappeared; one of them, the state one, has.
4. The Horizontal Property Law reform has not been touched
This is worth clarifying because it causes confusion: this judgment does not affect in any way the reform of the Horizontal Property Law (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal). The reform which, since 3 April 2025, requires the express agreement of three fifths of the community of owners to allocate a dwelling to tourist use remains fully in force.
These are two different things. One is an administrative registry —what the Supreme Court has annulled—; the other is the right of the residents’ community to decide, which has not been called into question. If you want to set up a tourist apartment, you still need your community’s approval exactly as before this judgment.
5. Three practical cases
Case 1. You already had the NRUA or were applying for it
You need not worry about that number: the obligation has fallen away. What matters now is to check that you are correctly registered in your region’s registry and that your tourist licence is in force, because that is what actually entitles you to operate.
Case 2. You want to start the activity now
The order of priorities returns to what it always was: first, the community of owners’ agreement; then, the regional tourist licence; and, in parallel, municipal planning compatibility. The state number is no longer part of the equation.
Case 3. You are a residents’ community wishing to regulate the matter
The judgment takes away none of your tools. The Horizontal Property Law still allows the community to authorise, limit or prohibit new tourist dwellings by a three-fifths majority. What remains decisive is that the agreement is adopted and correctly recorded in the minutes so that it is enforceable.
6. What to do now: recommendations
Our recommendation, keeping both feet on the ground, is to review three fronts and not to take decisions based on headlines:
- Check your registration in your region’s tourist registry and the validity of your licence: that is what genuinely entitles you to operate.
- Verify the municipal planning compatibility of the property and, if it is in a building, your position vis-à-vis the community of owners.
- Stay cautious: the Supreme Court judgment is final, but the Government could react with a rule of the appropriate legal rank or a coordination mechanism with the regions. Spain also remains bound by the European legislation that prompted all of this, so further developments over the coming months are to be expected.
Every property, every region and every building has its own rules, and at a time of regulatory change like this the details carry a lot of weight. A timely review prevents penalties and disputes.
7. Summary: the three key points
- The Supreme Court (Judgment 620/2026) has annulled the state registry of tourist apartments and the NRUA number: they are no longer mandatory.
- Still in force are the Single Digital Rental Window, the platforms’ obligations and, above all, the regional and municipal registries and licences.
- The Horizontal Property Law reform has not been touched: for a new tourist apartment, the three-fifths agreement of the community is still required.
Do you need advice on your tourist property or on how this judgment affects you?
You can request a consultation with the firm: we will study your specific situation —licences, regional registration and the community agreement— and tell you clearly where you stand.
