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Spain Fines Airbnb €64 Million Over Unlicensed Tourist Rentals

Officials frame the sanction as a consumer-protection step intended to ease housing pressures linked to short-term lets.

Overview

  • The Consumer Protection Ministry said the penalty equals six times the profit Airbnb derived from the illegal listings since the first warning.
  • Regulators ordered the platform to remove unlawful ads and fix compliance failures identified by the ministry.
  • Authorities cited more than 65,000 properties that were advertised without required local licenses.
  • The ministry described the action as its second-largest consumer-rights fine, after a €108 million penalty against Ryanair in 2024.
  • Airbnb had not issued a statement, and after an internal appeal was rejected the company can still challenge the decision through further channels.