Your tourist flat is unlicensed or shut down: what it means

Key rules

• Refund: You can usually claim your money back after a closure or delisting, mainly from the host.
• Rehousing: The authorities will not normally find you another place to stay.
• Registration numbers: A listing without both a regional tourist number and a national registration number is a warning sign.
• Evidence: Keep your booking, payment proof, messages and cancellation notice for any claim.

Platform duties and the national registry's public search have changed since 2025, so check the current position with the platform and the regional tourism or consumer office.

What a closure or delisting means for you

You will usually lose the stay, not the right to your money. If the authorities close a flat or a platform removes the listing, the booking is normally cancelled, and you can ask for a refund. The action targets the host, not you.

Spanish authorities do not normally find you somewhere else to stay. Finding a new place is your job, though the platform may help.

Can you get your money back?

Yes, usually. A flat that does not match what you booked, or that was let unlawfully, gives you grounds to end the contract and ask for a refund. In some cases you can also ask for damages. The host is the main target, because the host is the party you contracted with.

Since July 2025, tourist lets in Spain must show a national registration number as well as the regional tourist licence. Platforms must remove listings that lack one. This has led to large numbers of cancelled bookings. When a platform cancels, it generally refunds you in full and may help you rebook. Details differ by booking and by date, so read the cancellation message.

Whichever route you take, keep your booking confirmation, payment proof, messages with the host and any cancellation notice.

The decision block below walks through who to claim from. In short, the routes are:

1. Ask the host in writing for a refund.
2. Use the platform's guarantee or complaint process.
3. Ask your card issuer for a chargeback.
4. Complain to the regional consumer office, using a hoja de reclamaciones, or to your town's consumer office (OMIC).
5. Sue in small claims. For claims up to €6,000 you do not need a lawyer. For cross-border cases there is also an EU small claims procedure.

If you paid the host directly, outside a platform, you have no platform process to use. Claim from the host, by chargeback or through the courts.

The platform is generally not the seller, so it is not the main target. You can still hold it to its own guarantee terms. In some cases you can pursue it for keeping an unregistered listing online, but the law on this is still developing.

How to check a licence before you book

Do this before you pay. The checklist below has the steps. The main points:

• A listing must show the regional tourist number and the national registration number. Regional formats include VUT, VFT, HUT, HUTB (Catalonia) and ETV (Baleares).
• Search the regional tourism register on the autonomous community's website, by number or address.
• Check that the name, address and type of accommodation match the listing.
• If a number is missing, ask the host. A missing or invalid number is a warning sign, so do not book.

If you find an unlicensed let, report it to the regional tourism authority. Regional register websites vary, so the search may look different from one region to the next.

Choosing between options

Who do you claim your money back from after a closure or delisting?

• Claim through the platform: You booked on Airbnb or Booking.com. The platform usually cancels and refunds in full, and may help you rebook. With Airbnb, report the issue quickly, because AirCover has a short deadline set out in the article on what to do tonight if your arrival housing falls through.

• Claim from the host: You paid the host directly, or the platform refuses. Ask for a refund in writing, since the host is the one who contracted with you.

• Ask your card issuer for a chargeback: The host or platform does not refund. Visa and Mastercard generally allow chargebacks for about 120 days from the transaction or expected service date, and issuers may set shorter windows such as 60 days.

• Complain or sue: Other routes fail. File a complaint with the regional consumer office or your town's OMIC, or go to small claims court.

Start with whoever took your payment: the platform if you paid through it, the host if you paid directly. Move to the next route if they do not refund, and keep evidence throughout.

Checklist

• Find the registration numbers in the listing: the regional tourist number (for example VUT, VFT, HUT, HUTB or ETV) and the national registration number.

• Enter the regional number, or the address, in the online tourism register on the website of the region where the flat is.

• Ask the host for the numbers if the listing does not show them, and treat a missing or invalid number as a warning sign.

• If your booking is cancelled because the flat was closed or delisted, ask the host or platform for a full refund or rebooking, and keep your messages, receipts and booking confirmation.

• If the platform cancels, check its cancellation message for refund and rebooking help, and contact customer service to find a similar place.

Frequently asked questions

Will the authorities find me somewhere else to stay?

No. Spanish authorities act against the host and do not normally rehouse guests. Ask the host or platform to cancel and refund, or to rebook you.

What if I paid the host directly, outside a platform?

Claim from the host first, in writing. If that fails, ask your card issuer for a chargeback, file a complaint with the regional consumer office or your town's municipal consumer office (OMIC), or go to small claims court.

Can I get compensation, not just my money back?

Possibly. A stay that does not match what you booked, or a booking for an unlawful let, can give grounds to end the contract, get a refund and sometimes claim damages.

Is the platform responsible if it kept an unregistered listing up?

Usually not as the seller. But you can pursue it under its own guarantee terms and, in some cases, for failing to remove an unregistered listing.