Catalonia's temporada contract rules
Date Catalonia's temporada-contract rules came into force (Ley 11/2025)
- In force since
- 1 January 2026
- Last verified
- 14 August 2026
- Re-checked every
- 90 days
Ley 11/2025 (Catalonia)
Reverses the burden of proof on seasonal lettings and sets the sanction ceiling. Applies in Catalonia only.
Flat Spain dates Catalonia's temporada crackdown to 1 January 2026, when Ley 11/2025 came into force. It presumes a seasonal contract is really a habitual-residence lease unless the seasonal purpose is documented, and carries fines up to €90,000. The rule is regional: what is presumed in Barcelona is still litigated case by case elsewhere in Spain.
The burden of proof moved. Before, a tenant had to show that an 11-month 'seasonal' contract was really their home. In Catalonia the presumption now runs the other way: without a documented reason for the seasonal term — a posting, a course, a specific temporary purpose — the contract is treated as a habitual-residence lease, with the security of tenure and rent cap that brings.
Registering your address is the strongest evidence. Empadronamiento at the property is treated as decisive on the question of whether you live there, which is why it comes up in every serious dispute about a temporada contract.
There is no national rule, and pages that state one are wrong. Outside Catalonia, courts still decide from the actual use of the property, case by case. Barcelona's own enforcement gives a sense of the scale of the abuse: across 8,100-plus inspections, 71% of unlicensed tourist flats were found advertising themselves as seasonal rentals.
Still published elsewhere, and wrong
If you found a different number, it is probably one of these.
- "11-month contracts are illegal in Spain"
- Overstates it. Genuine seasonal lets are lawful everywhere; what changed in Catalonia is who has to prove the season was real.
Read the temporada contract guide
OpenChange log
- 14 August 2026
Verified. Page published.
Frequently asked questions
Is an 11-month contract legal in Spain?
A genuine seasonal contract is legal. What is not legal is using the seasonal form to avoid the protections of a residential lease. In Catalonia, since 1 January 2026, the landlord must document the seasonal purpose or the contract is presumed residential.
Does the Catalan temporada law apply in Madrid or Valencia?
No. Ley 11/2025 is Catalan. Elsewhere the question is decided from the actual use of the property, case by case — which is why national statements about 11-month contracts are unreliable.
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Flat Spain re-checks this figure every 90 days and publishes the date of every change above. It is information, not legal advice — for a decision that turns on your own circumstances, take Spanish legal advice.