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Barcelona launches its digital radar against irregular tourist flats
Barcelona steps up its commitment to recover housing for residents with a new tool.
From 1 July, the city joins the Digital One-Stop Shop for Rentals (VUDA), a pioneering system that will make it possible to detect, monitor and deactivate illegal tourist flats more effectively.
VUDA, promoted by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda, will serve as a centralised database in which all properties for tourist or short-term use must be registered. Platforms will be required to check the registration number before publishing an advertisement and remove it within a maximum of 48 hours if it does not comply with the rules. They will also send monthly reports with detailed information on location, links and activity data.
This digital radar seeks to bring order to a sector that has grown without control and directly contributes to higher rents. The tool becomes the first line of defence in a broader strategy: Barcelona will stop granting tourist-flat licences in 2028. The more than 10,000 homes with permission will have to return to the residential market.
With this measure, the City Council takes a firm step towards a fairer city model, where housing is not a luxury and legality does not depend on digital chance.