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Spanish Councils Set 2026 Levies as Waste Fees Rise and Barcelona Advances Tourist Charge

EU waste-cost mandates are pushing cost‑reflective pricing, prompting incentives to ease the transition.

Overview

  • Municipal plenaries approved broadly modest updates to local taxes and fees for 2026, typically 2.7% to 3.3%, with Irún expanding capacity-based reductions so about 80% of households can access lower tariffs.
  • Waste-pricing overhauls moved ahead to meet legal cost-recovery rules: Portugalete approved a 45% rise alongside carded organics containers, Elgeta raised 6% to reduce deficits, and Valladolid’s provincial council asked the Government to suspend the mandatory state waste fee.
  • In Santurtzi, the full opposition bloc voted 14–7 to defeat a PNV proposal that sought to lift garbage revenue by 306%, sending the council back to the drawing board.
  • Ontinyent set a 20% increase for 2026 but will refund that uplift in 2027 to households that meet recycling-use thresholds under a door‑to‑door, chip‑tracked system.
  • Housing levers featured prominently, with Basauri and Galdakao approving a 150% IBI surcharge on vacant homes and a 99% IBI discount for units ceded to public rental, while Barcelona provisionally froze family and SME taxes and backed a gradual €1‑per‑year rise in the municipal tourist surcharge pending Catalan approval.