The Spanish government has imposed a fine of €64 million ($75 million) on short-term rental giant Airbnb due to rentals not having the relevant license, officials said Monday.
This comes as Madrid tries to act against the country's housing affordability problem, with the issue worsening in the centers of Spain's big cities.
The country's leftist government, and many locals, see short-term rentals and the tech giants behind them as bearing some of the responsibility for the rise in housing prices, resulting in the most recent crackdown against Airbnb.
According to Spain's consumer rights ministry, the rentals did not include the license numbers required by the many regions in the country or listed numbers that differed from those of the authorities, with some providing incorrect information about hosts.
Pablo Bustinduy, Spain's consumer rights minister, said in a statement that while many families are struggling to make ends meet, "a few enrich themselves with business models that evict people from their homes."
According to the ministry, the fine equals six times Airbnb's profit from the illegal listings.
It is the second largest fine the ministry has ever imposed for breaching consumer rights.
Bustinduy's office already acted against Airbnb in May, as it ordered to remove some 65,000 listings due to rule violations.
Authorities in Barcelona plan to take action against the some 10,000 listings in the Catalan city with a view of phasing them all out by 2028.
Airbnb said it will take the Spanish government to court over the fine, and that it is working with the authorities to comply with local laws. Seventy thousand rentals had added a license number since January, the company said, adding it is "confident" the move is against regulations in Spain.
Spain is one of the world's most visited countries for tourists, with the country's cities struggling to make sure the effects on local residents and their housing costs remain low.
Other companies, such as Booking.com and Ryanair, also faced large fines by the Spanish government in 2024.
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