Official Valencia community guide for holiday home owners

This is a Dutch translation of the Official Community Guide of Valencia for holiday home owners. No rights can be derived from this page and/or the translation.
Espanol: Consejo General de Colegios de Administradores de Fincas.
English: Official Valencia Community guide for holiday rental owners.

Download the translation here in Dutch or English

Table of contents:

INTRODUCTION

1.    Definition of a holiday home in the Valencian Community
1.1. What is the definition of a holiday home in the Valencia region?
1.2. What is NOT considered a holiday home and which exceptions apply.
1.3. Different types of holiday homes
1.4. Categories and requirements for holiday rentals

2 Obligations and responsibilities of owners of holiday homes
2.1. REGISTRATION of holiday homes
2.2. How to register or modify existing licenses
2.3. Marketing of holiday homes
2.4. Welcoming guests to your accommodation
2.5. Energy efficiency
2.6. How to obtain a complaints book and notification
2.7. Register guests
2.8. Guest owner responsibilities regarding the Homeowners' Community
2.9. Compliance with the GDPR
2.10. Tax obligations and employment obligations regarding employees such as cleaners and other subcontracted service providers. 

3 Rights of the owner of the holiday home
3.1. Down payment
3.2. Cancellations
3.3. Vacant properties
3.4. Rights of guests to enjoy facilities
3.5. Resolutions

4. Sanctions and fines

 

1.    Definition of a holiday home in the Valencian Community

IMPLEMENTATION:

Council Decree 30/1993 approved the first regulation on tourist apartments, villas, chalets, bungalows, and the like, which granted natural rights in the Valencian Community to a modality of tourist accommodation differing from that offered in hotel establishments and tourist camps: tourist accommodation.

More than fifteen years later, Decree 92/2009 of 3 July of the Consell approved a new regulatory framework for tourist accommodation, known as apartments, villas, bungalows, and the like, and for management companies, legal entities, or natural persons dedicated to the transfer of their use and enjoyment, in the Valencian Community. It has been amended by three successive decrees: 206/2010 of 3 December; 22/2012 of 27 January; and 75/2015 of 15 May.

This manual is primarily intended for owners of tourist homes who rent out the property directly, commercially to tourist users, without using holiday rental management companies.

1.1. What is the definition of a holiday home in the Valencian Community?

In the Valencia region, “tourist accommodation” is considered real estate that meets the following requirements:

1. Means “apartments, villas, chalets, bungalows and the like 
2. For use of:

• • • • Price
        • • regularly
          • immediately available
          • for tourist, holiday or leisure purposes

The regularity can be defined by one of the following circumstances:

1. For tourist use via a holiday rental management company
2. Available for tourist purposes, directly from the owners, regardless of the duration of the rental, provided that hospitality services are offered, such as cleaning, provision of bed linen and towels, laundry and maintenance services, or similar.
3. When the property is brought to the attention of tourists via channels such as vacation rental platforms, the internet, or other forms of technology

1.2. What is NOT considered a holiday home and which exceptions apply.

1. Property rented on a seasonal basis as laid down in Law 29/1994 on Urban Leases and in Law 8/2004 of 20 October on Housing of the Valencian Community, for uses other than tourism, holidays or leisure.
2. “Aparthotels” defined by DECREE 75/2015 of 15 May of the Consell, regulator of hotel establishments of the Comunitat Valenciana.
3. Cabins, bungalows or “mobile homes” located on campsites covered by DECREE 6/2015 of 23 January, of the Consell, supervisor of campsites and transit areas for motorhomes of the Comunitat Valenciana.

1.3. Different types of holiday homes

The regulation does not provide a definition of apartment, villa, castle, and bungalow, but in the Spanish dictionary they are defined as follows:

• Apartment: Small apartment to live in. Single-family home in a multi-story building, usually consisting of one or two rooms, a kitchen, and a bathroom.
• Villa: Recreational home situated in an isolated location in the countryside. House with a garden in the countryside, usually isolated from others and used for spending rest or recreation during the seasons.
• Chalet: Building of one or a few floors, with a garden, specifically intended for single-family homes. Or a single-family home with one or more floors, usually surrounded by landscaped grounds.
• Mansion: chalet whose walls adjoin another house with the same or similar characteristics.
• Bungalow: Single-story property

And others similar houses, that is to say, all other enclosed and covered properties which have the layout, facilities, equipment and other conditions to be inhabited by people, and are consequently suitable for use as residential property. .

1.4. Categories and requirements for holiday rentals

The tourist accommodations of the Comunitat Valenciana are classified into three categories: superior, first, and standard. 

1. Access, communication and parking

• • • • Elevator
      • Parking
        

1. Facilities and services
   
2. Floor area m2 of the property
   
3. Accommodation facilities
   In general, all dwellings must be equipped with furniture, cutlery, kitchen utensils, linens, and other necessary tools and accessories to meet the needs of the clients based on their capabilities. All bedrooms must be provided with a wardrobe, both inside and outside.Superior and first category tourist accommodations must be equipped with color television. The kitchen must be equipped with at least two hotplates if the capacity of the house does not exceed 4 seats, and three or more if it exceeds this capacity, and must be equipped with a refrigerator, electric stove, oven/microwave, and extractor hood. Superior and first category accommodations must be equipped with an automatic washing machine, and superior category apartments also have a dishwasher.

2. Obligations and responsibilities of owners of holiday homes

2.1. Registration of holiday rental homes

Fill in the declaration of conformity that belongs to the holiday home.

• Download here the form for private owners. 
• Download here the form for property managers.

The following documents must be attached to the form: 

• • A copy of the deed of incorporation as registered with the Commercial Register and the company's tax identification number or another document confirming its incorporation, as well as confirmation of any authority, if this is not clearly evident from the above-mentioned documents.
  • Photocopy of the person's national identity card or an equivalent identification document.
  • If the owner has a foreign nationality, a photocopy of their foreign identity document or card, or a photocopy of their current work permit as a self-employed person.
  • Occupancy permit for the holiday home. 
  • List of holiday homes.

Submit the form as follows:

• Via the Tourism Service Registry in the province in which the property is located (or where the majority of holiday rental businesses are located, in the case of tourist real estate management companies), any administrative body belonging to the national or regional public administration or one of the bodies comprising the local government.
  In the latter case, such parties must be signatories to the corresponding collective agreement.
• Post offices, preferably to the following addresses:
  • • Registro del Servicio Territorial de Turismo de Valencia, Plaza Alfonso el Magnánimo 15, 46003 Valencia.
    • Registro del Servicio Territorial de Turismo de Castellón, Avenida Hermanos Bou 47, 12003 Castellón de la Plana.
    • Registro del Servicio Territorial de Turismo de Alicante, Calle Churruca 29, 03003 Alicante.
      
• Spanish diplomatic agencies or consular posts abroad. 
• The electronic register of the Autonomous Community of Valencia, which can be accessed via this link.

2.2. Register or modify existing licenses

The declaration of the commencement of the activity must be submitted prior to this, and the activity must commence within a period of no more than two months from the presentation of the activity.

On the other hand, changes may no longer be implemented once they have been made, and the activity may not be closed within fifteen days after the event.

Processing can take place in various ways:

• Personal: Presenting the declaration to the registry of the Provincial Territorial Tourism Office, to the corresponding bodies of the administrative organs of the State Administration, as well as to diplomatic representations or consular offices of Spain abroad.
• By mail: At any post office, with the envelope open so that the stamp and the date of application can be stamped, on the form and on the copy.
• Internet: Using an electronic signature via the following link:
  https://www.sede.fnmt.gob.es/inicio

The presentation of the declaration enables the start of the rental activity.

However, the Territorial Tourism Service may require the correction of omissions or inaccuracies if it identifies them. If such omissions are found to be of sufficient magnitude, an order may be placed to cease rental activities.

Registration is free.

2.3. Marketing of holiday rental properties

1. The advertisement, It offer and the management Rental descriptions for tourist homes must be truthful and objective and provide the guest with sufficient information about the rental property, the terms of use, and the services included in the rental.All marking of the rental property must clearly state the registration number and category of the property.
2. The features of a holiday home:At the entrance to the rental property, both inside and outside, a plaque displaying the license plate and category must be visibly affixed. These plaques are regulated by Decree 2/2017 of 24 January, which establishes their specific characteristics: The self-adhesive vinyl plate must be red (Pantone 485), 200×76 mm, measure approximately 6 microns, and be cut by a plotter with a radius of 10 mm; the registration number of each accommodation must be noted in the upper section, with the outlined contours of a house-shaped keychain, and it must feature the institutional logo of the Comunitat Valenciana. Editable PDF templates for creating the display plate can be downloaded here. https://www.turisme.gva.es/opencms/opencms/turisme/es/index.jsp

2.4. Welcoming guests to your accommodation

The owners must keep the tourist accommodations in a perfect state of habitability, in accordance with their category and the description provided to the Tourist Office.

Guests are obliged to respect the facilities of both the rental property and the common areas and facilities of the building or urbanisation in which they are located.

Failure to comply with these regulations may constitute grounds for termination of the tourist accommodation contract, with prior warning between the parties and without prejudice to any other agreements.

2.5. Energy efficiency

Decree 235/2013 of 5 April establishes the necessity to obtain the energy efficiency certificate of the rental property.

Homes that are rented out for less than four months per year, or where the energy consumption amounts to less than 25% of the consumption that would result over a full year.

This certificate must be carried out by a qualified technician and registered with the Valencian Energy Agency (AVEN): https://sgcee.aven.es/sigenervs/default.aspx

The Certificate is valid for ten years and must be made available to the guest upon request. 

2.6. How to obtain a complaints book and mandatory notification:

The owner or the authorized rental management company of the rental accommodations must have a complaints booklet available to guests. This is obtained from the Territorial Services for Trade and Consumers, upon payment in advance. Payment details here: https://hisenda.gva.es/va/

To obtain the mandatory signature indicating the existence of the Complaints Book, please consult the following link:

2.7. Register guests

Decree 1513/1959 of 18 August established the obligation for hotel businesses to keep a guest list. This obligation was extended by Decree 393/1974 of 7 February to other forms of accommodation, such as tourist rentals.

Order INT / 1922/2003 of 3 July establishes the obligation from the time of the creation of register books and booking entries for travelers.

The arrival date and duration must be recorded in the register and signed by both the guest and the owner or the authorized management company.

The register must be submitted to the Policia Nacional or Guardia Civil (depending on each city) within twenty-four hours of the start of the rental period. The registration can be submitted in the following ways:

• Personal
• Faxes
• Online via the following links:
  • • https://hospederias.guardiacivil.es/
    • https://webpol.policia.es/e-hotel/#

Records of the registration must be kept by the owner or the authorized rental management company in files/folders/books containing between 100 and 500 entries. These must be retained for at least 3 years, calculated from the last entry in the file/folder/book. 

It must be accessible to Las Fuerza y Cuerpos de Seguridad at all times.

2.8. Guest owner responsibilities regarding the Homeowners' Community

1. Community rules that may restrict the possibility of renting to tourists.
   Complying with the provisions of Decree 920/2009 regarding holiday rentals may not always be sufficient to legally rent out a property as tourist accommodation. Other public or private regulations may restrict or even prevent this activity in certain areas.
   Therefore, in properties that are part of a community of owners, whether in a residential block or an urbanization, it is essential to check whether the community statutes and rules, and regulations, do not prohibit or restrict this activity.If an owner does not yet possess the articles of association, these can be requested from the administrator of the Community of Owners or from the Land. As a general rule, only a rule included in the articles of association and duly registered in the land register can prohibit the use of a property as tourist accommodation.
2. Compliance with community rules and notification to the guest.
   As stipulated in Article 16.2 of Decree 92/2009, the rental price of the tourist accommodation includes, unless expressly stated or agreed otherwise, the use of common elements and accessories of the accommodation itself, including swimming pools, gardens, sunbeds, and communal terraces or playgrounds.In the same Article 16.2, it is emphasized that “the use of these elements will be subject to the usage rules of the community of owners”. On the other hand, Article 9.3 reminds us that “guests shall respect the facilities, both of the tourist accommodation and of the common elements of the building or urbanisation”. As a result of all the above, the owner must inform users of the basic rules that may affect the use of the dwelling and/or common elements, preferably by providing them with a brochure summarizing these obligations and/or restrictions. These community rules may originate from the statutes or even from rules agreed upon by the Community of Owners. It is the owner's responsibility to familiarise themselves with all these rules and to communicate to the guest any rules that may affect the use of the accommodation itself or the common areas/elements, such as the opening hours and regulations of the swimming pool, rules regarding waste disposal, rules regarding noise nuisance, etc.
3. Obligations of the owner towards the communityThe homeowner may be liable to the Community for both the
   violations that he commits directly himself, as well as violations that may be committed by the (paying) guests of his home.Media recommendation for the owners
   In cases where a property has multiple owners, conflicts may arise between them. The legitimate rights of all owners can be reconciled with the help of various services: the Associations of Property Managers of Valencia-Castellón and Alicante (los Colegios de Administradores de fincas de Valencia-Castellón, y de Alicante) make their Media on Services available to citizens and offer an alternative system to judicial proceedings for resolving conflicts in a collaborative manner.
   https://aaffvalencia.es/cemei/
   https://www.coafa.es/mediacion-del-colegio/
   https://aaffvalencia.es/cemei/clausulas-contractuales-de-mediacion/

2.9. Compliance with the GDPR

The personal data processed and collected during the provision of holiday rental services must:

1. treated in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in relation to the guest;
2. collected for specific, explicit, and legitimate purposes, and will subsequently not be used for any purpose other than that for which it was explicitly provided;
3. only relevant and limited to the personal data necessary to fulfill the reservation or other legal and tax obligations;
4. securely stored to safeguard and protect the identity of the interested parties, and not retained longer than necessary for the purposes of the processing of personal data;
5. processed in such a manner that adequate security of personal data is ensured, including protection against unauthorized or illegal access (hacking) and against loss, destruction, or accidental damage, through the application of appropriate technical or organizational measures.

The owner or recognized property manager must provide all information indicated below:

1. the identity and contact details of the legal entity (and its representative, if applicable) responsible for the use of the personal data;
2. the contact details of the Data Protection Officer, if applicable;
3. a clear indication of how the data will be used and the legal basis for its use;
4. the legitimate interests of the data controller or data processor or of a third party who will also have access to and make use of the personal data;
5. the identity and contact details of any data processors or third parties who have access to the personal data, if applicable;

Furthermore, the Owner must inform the guests about the following information necessary to guarantee fair and transparent storage and use of his/her personal data:

1. the period during which the personal data are retained or, if this is not possible, the criteria used to determine this period;
2. the existence of the right to request access to your personal data, the receipt or erasure thereof, or the restriction of its processing, or to object to its processing, as well as the right to portability thereof.

Finally, owners and authorized property management companies must ensure compliance with the GDPR – General Data Protection Regulation of 26 May 2018.

2.10. Tax obligations and employment obligations regarding employees such as cleaners and other subcontracted service providers.

Consult the following link:  https://aaffvalencia.es/legislacion-inmobiliaria/vivienda/

3.0 Rights of the owner of the holiday home 

3.1. RIGHT TO REQUEST A GUARANTEE 

The owner has the right, unless agreed in advance, to request a security deposit of up to €250 for damage to or loss of facilities and for an increase in the number of guests. This deposit is recorded upon the formalization of the contract between the guest and the owner or authorized manager. As soon as the tourist property is vacated, this deposit will be refunded to the customer, minus any discounts.

3.2. RIGHTS UPON CANCELLATION OF A BOOKING 

The owner or the recognized management company of the tourist property must make rental properties that meet the agreed characteristics available to customers.

In the event of cancellation by the guest, the refundable percentage must be stipulated in the contract in advance. The compensation for the owner can range between 10 and 100%.

In the event of cancellation of the booking by the owner, the guest has the option to: 

1. Accept an offered alternative accommodation with equal or superior features and category.
2. Accept monetary compensation for an amount equal to DOUBLE the advance payment.

3.3. RIGHTS IN CASE OF NO SHOWS. 

Loss of booking and prepayment. Should the guest not arrive on the indicated day and therefore not occupy the accommodation, without prior notification of the new arrival date, the owner may cancel the reservation and the guest shall not be entitled to a refund for the prepaid date. payments made.

3.4. RIGHTS OF GUESTS TO ENJOY THE FACILITIES. 

Guests must respect the facilities of the property, as well as the common elements of the building or the urbanization.

3.5. RIGHT TO MEDIATION in the event of a disagreement between the owner and the guest.

1. If the number of guests exceeds the maximum capacity of the accommodation, or, if applicable, the permitted number of guests as stipulated in the contract.
2. Subloan. The transfer to third parties of the use of tourist properties.
3. Carry out any activity that is contrary to the customary use of coexistence, hygiene, and public order, or that disturbs the normal peace of other users of the property.

4.0 FINES AND SANCTIONS

Owners of tourist homes must ensure that they do not violate any rules and pay special attention to the following:

MINOR offenses:

• Failure to comply with the obligation to display the plaque with the registration number and category visibly at the entrance of the property, both inside and outside the dwelling; or displaying a badge that does not correspond to the dwelling.
• Improper treatment of guests.
• Poor cleaning and maintenance of buildings, facilities, furniture, and inventory. 
• Failure to keep a copy of the invoices or other documents.

SERIOUS violations:

• False or misleading advertising.

• Lack of or substandard service, or deterioration of facilities.

• Lack of complaint books available to guests, or the refusal to provide or not provide them when requested, without a valid reason.

• Breach of the contract or of the agreed conditions, with regard to the location, me, price or other elements comprising the conditions of the agreed tourist accommodation.

• Failure to comply with the conditions regarding the reservation of the property or the cancellation of the booking.

• Charging a higher price than advertised

• Refusal to issue an invoice.

• Obstruction of access or the rights of the Tourist Inspector.

VERY SERIOUS violations

• Failure to comply with the essential requirements set out in the current regulations, as well as the absence of the required documentation;
• Failure to comply with fire safety and prevention regulations; safety regulations, health and hygiene standards, when this poses a serious risk to the health and well-being of the population.
• Failure to comply with advertising and communication obligations regarding the marking of tourist homes.

The sanctions as described in the decision are: –

• warning and fine of up to €601 for MINOR offenses;
• fine of up to €6,010 and suspension or closure for a period of up to six months for serious violations, and
• fine of up to €90,151.82 and closure or suspension for up to three years.

Tourism laws applicable to holiday rentals in the Valencian Community

Laws:
Tourism Act 3/1998 of the Autonomous Community of Valencia of 21 May 1998, in particular Articles 7, 7a, 8, 14, 15, 16, 18 and 18a.

Orders:

Decision 2/2010 of 29 March 2010, for the placement of signs corresponding to tourist businesses and establishments in the Autonomous Community of Valencia and in particular Articles 1, 2 and 3. 

Decrees:

Autonomous Community of Valencia Decree No. 77/1994 of 12 April 1994, which stipulates that complaint forms are available to consumers and users of services in the Valencia region and in particular Articles 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Decree No. 19/1997 of 11 February 1997, which regulates the pricing and reservation system to be applied in holiday rentals, and in particular Articles 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13. 

Decree No. 92/2009 of 2 July 2009, establishing the regulations for holiday rental companies and management companies in the Autonomous Community of Valencia, in particular Articles 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16 and 20,