He admits renting a flat illegally to tourists in Ibiza and reduces the fine from €275,000 to €33,000 by joining the ‘Lloguer Segur’ programme

The Consell de Ibiza has facilitated the inclusion of a tourist flat in the regional ‘Lloguer Segur’ programme thanks to incentives applied since last year by the Office for the Fight Against Illegal Activity. According to the island authority, this is the first case in the Balearic Islands in which a tourist flat that was due to be sanctioned has used this possibility to reduce the penalty by 80%.

The fine, which initially amounted to €275,000, has ultimately been reduced to €33,000 after first applying the 80% reduction and then a second 40% discount, as provided for under the Law on Common Administrative Procedure, due to the admission of the facts, the waiver of appeals and the prompt payment of the penalty.

From the Office for the Fight Against Illegal Activity they explain that some parameters in sanctioning procedures have been adapted to make this option more attractive, with the aim that homes which had previously been used for tourist rentals without the necessary licence are moved directly into the residential market.

Reduction of the fine

Specifically, the Consell’s initial sanction proposal had increased in recent months from €40,000 to €275,000 and, in addition, the case files considered the owner of the property as the possible offender, since it is the owner who has the authority to register the property in one of the social rental programmes promoted by the Balearic Government, in line with the possibilities provided by regional regulations and already included in the sanctioning procedures handled by the Island Council.

The first vice-president and head of the Department of Tourism Planning and the Fight Against Illegal Activity, Mariano Juan, explained that this is the first case in the Balearic Islands in which, after a tourist flat was detected by the Consell, it has ended up being incorporated into a social rental programme.

He also pointed out that the level of fines currently being processed has generated interest among property owners in applying the 80% reduction allowed under the law recently implemented by the Balearic Government, if the offender agrees to include the property in this regional programme.

This programme allows property owners to hand over their homes to the Balearic Government in exchange for a guaranteed rental income for up to seven years. In return, the regional administration can rent the property to residents of the island at a price 30% below market value.

“An interesting route”

For their part, the law firm Soriano i Piqueras, which negotiated with the Consell for the property to be incorporated into the Lloguer Segur programme, said that “this case shows that many sanctioning procedures can be resolved effectively during the administrative phase if the regulations are well understood and all available legal options are explored”.

“We have not only managed to significantly reduce the penalty for the owner, but we have also found a solution that allows the property to become part of the secure rental housing stock for five years. This is the first case on the island in which this reduction mechanism linked to the social use of housing has been applied, which opens an interesting path for other owners who may find themselves in similar situations,” said Víctor Soriano, managing partner of the firm.

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