Spain’s Consumer Rights Ministry finalized a €64 million penalty against Airbnb on December 15 2025 for advertising more than 65,000 holiday rentals that did not carry the mandatory national registration number required under Spain’s new short‑term‑rental registry, which became effective July 1 2025.
The registry, designed to curb the housing‑affordability crisis, mandates that every short‑term rental listed on a platform display a unique registration number; non‑compliance can trigger fines of up to €500,000. The fine follows a May 2025 order that forced Airbnb to remove the offending listings, and the investigation began in October 2024 after the Ministry identified widespread violations.
Airbnb has said it will appeal the decision, arguing that the Ministry’s interpretation of the new rules is unclear and that the company has already added registration numbers to more than 70,000 listings since January 2025. The spokesperson emphasized confidence that the fine contradicts current Spanish regulations and that the company will challenge the penalty in court.
Financially, the €64 million fine represents a modest hit against Airbnb’s 2025 revenue of $4.1 billion and net income of $1.4 billion, but it signals heightened regulatory risk that could prompt a broader compliance overhaul in Spain and other EU markets. The company’s intent to appeal suggests it views the fine as a misapplication of the law rather than a genuine enforcement failure.
While the fine is unlikely to materially alter Airbnb’s long‑term financial outlook, it may influence the company’s strategy by accelerating investment in compliance systems, potentially limiting the growth of its short‑term‑rental portfolio in high‑regulation jurisdictions, and prompting a reassessment of its market positioning in Europe.
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