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Málaga

Tourist homes in Málaga city in 2026: the moratorium, what can be done and what cannot

Málaga city has not admitted new tourist homes since August 2025, at least until August 2028. Registered ones keep operating and can be bought, sold and managed. What options an owner with an unlicensed flat has.

Reviewed on 22 September 2026 · Versión en español

Salón de un apartamento turístico de tres dormitorios en el centro de Torremolinos, con sofá gris y mapa decorativo

In short: Málaga City Council suspended the registration of new tourist homes in August 2025 across the whole municipality, for up to three years (at least until August 2028). Homes already registered keep operating normally, can change holder (sale, inheritance, change of manager) and are, for that reason, a scarce asset. If your flat in Málaga has no licence, it cannot get one today; you are left with seasonal lets, long-term lets or waiting.

What exactly does the moratorium say?

  • It grew out of the municipal study that identified 43 neighbourhoods where tourist homes exceed 8 % of dwellings (Centro Histórico, Ensanche Centro, La Victoria, La Malagueta, El Palo, among others), where no registrations had been admitted since 2024. The amendment of the plan (PL 51/2024, finally approved on 29 May 2025) divided the city into three zones: 43 neighbourhoods of decrease (over 8 %: total ban), 32 of limited growth (between 4.53 % and 8 %: registrations up to the cap, with independent entrance and services) and 296 of growth (under 4.53 %: allowed with independent entrance and services). Three months later, the general suspension of August 2025 put everything on hold.
  • In August 2025 the suspension was extended to the whole city, while the urban plan is reviewed, for a maximum of three years.
  • It affects new registrations, not homes already registered that meet habitability, safety and tax obligations.
  • Legal basis: article 6 of Decree-Law 1/2025 of the Junta de Andalucía, which allows town halls to suspend new tourist homes for up to three years while they process the change of their urban plan. Agreement of the Local Government Board of 14 August 2025, BOP of the 22nd, in force since the 23rd.
  • July 2026, another turn of the screw: on 16 July the Plenary gave initial approval to amendment no. 28 of the PGOU (BOP of the 24th, in force on the 25th): lodging is no longer a compatible or alternative use to residential across the whole city, and converting ground-floor commercial premises into homes is limited. For up to three years or until final approval.
  • Source: Málaga Urban Planning Agency and local press (links at the end).

What if my flat has its own entrance? Wasn't that an exception?

It was, which is why many people still believe it. From 10 June 2024 (Instruction 1/2024 of the Urban Planning Agency) Málaga applied the General Plan's rule for lodging use to tourist homes: in a residential building only those with independent access and evacuation from the rest of the building and fully independent installations (electricity, water, telephone) could be registered. In January 2025 the neighbourhood zoning kept that condition outside the 43 saturated neighbourhoods. But the general suspension of August 2025 has no such exception: it affects all new tourist homes, with or without their own entrance. And the amendment of the plan in July 2026 goes further: lodging is no longer compatible with residential use. Today, in Málaga city, an own entrance opens no door; only files submitted before each publication in the BOP are spared.

I have a registered flat in Málaga: what can I do?

Everything you were doing: rent, change manager, sell with the licence (communicating the change of holder to the Junta) or pass it on as an inheritance. What you must not do is deregister it "temporarily": you could not register it again. See Deregistering the licence. And it is worth having all the paperwork in order (association agreement if it was registered after April 2025, flat requirements, traveller registration), because inspections concentrate where there is a moratorium.

I have an unlicensed flat in Málaga: what are the options?

  1. Seasonal let (more than two months to the same tenant: students, relocated workers, winter stays). It is not tourist use, needs no licence or association permission, and in Málaga there is demand all year.
  2. Long-term let, with the 60 % tax reduction if it is the tenant's main home (Tourist or long-term?).
  3. Wait until 2028 and whatever the new plan says, with no guarantee that it will be allowed again in your area.
  4. Buy another flat that is already registered, if what you want is the tourist business, with the checks in Buying a flat with a tourist licence.

How much more is a registered flat in Málaga worth?

There is no official figure, but the market reflects it: sale listings highlight "with tourist licence" as a main attribute and investment buyers look for it expressly. Scarcity, while the moratorium lasts, supports that premium.

And the neighbourhoods?

For a home that is already registered, the ones that work best are those of urban tourism: Centro Histórico, Soho, La Malagueta, El Perchel-Estación (high-speed train) and Huelin. All year round, short stays, European and Spanish guests, high nightly prices per square metre. El Palo and Pedregalejo work with guests looking for beach and a neighbourhood feel. Inland neighbourhoods have occupancy in medium and long stays.

Do you manage in Málaga city?

Yes, homes that are already registered. And we help check, before a purchase, whether the licence being advertised exists and is active. Ask us by WhatsApp or from contact.

Sources