On 19 May 2026, the Supreme Court handed down judgment No. 620/2026, which overturns the procedure of the Single Register for Short-Term Rentals—known as the NRUA or NRA—regulated by Royal Decree 1312/2024. A decision that directly affects owners of both tourist and seasonal homes across Spain, including the Dénia area and the Marina Alta.
We explain what has happened, what changes in practice, and what remains mandatory.
What was the NRUA and why did they strike it down?
From 1 July 2025, Royal Decree 1312/2024 required owners who wanted to advertise a short-term rental home on platforms such as Airbnb or Booking to obtain a state registration number—the NRUA—as a prerequisite. Without that number, the platforms could not publish the listing.
The issue is that this national register overlapped with the regional registers that already existed in communities such as Valencia, which has been running its own system for registering tourist homes for years. The Supreme Court ruled that the State lacked the authority to establish comprehensive regulation of a single national register that overlaps with the regional registers already in place. Deia
The appeal was filed precisely by the Generalitat Valenciana—which makes this judgment especially relevant for owners in the Comunitat.
What exactly changes?
The effect that is no longer in place is the state procedure of the Single Register for short-term rentals exactly as it was set out in Royal Decree 1312/2024. In practice, owners are no longer required to obtain that state registration number in order to advertise their home on digital platforms. airbnb
But there is an important nuance: the judgment partially upholds the appeal—only the provisions that create the single register for rentals are annulled, but not those that regulate the single digital window for rentals, the obligations of platforms to transmit data, and the transmission of data for statistical purposes. Garrido
Put simply: less red tape from the State for the owner, but the platforms still have obligations related to monitoring and transferring data to the authorities.
What remains mandatory in Dénia and the Comunitat Valenciana?
This is where you should not be misled. The annulment of the NRUA does not remove regional or municipal obligations. In the Comunitat Valenciana, the following remain in force:
Tourist registration in the Registry of Tourism of the Generalitat Valenciana—required in order to operate as a tourist-use home.
The favorable urban compatibility report from the corresponding town hall.
Compliance with the technical requirements of the Valencian regulations for tourist homes.
Any limits that may have been approved by the owners’ association for the building.
The specific municipal restrictions for each area.
In Dénia, as in the rest of the municipalities of the Marina Alta, these regional and local obligations are what really determine whether a home can legally be operated as a tourist rental. The NRUA was an additional state layer that has been removed—however, the regional basis remains intact.
What does this mean for the Dénia real estate market?
For investors who were interested in buying a home in Dénia with the intention of renting it out for tourism, the judgment removes a bureaucratic uncertainty that had raised doubts in recent months. The obligation to obtain the NRUA complicated matters for many owners who already had their regional registration in good standing and found themselves facing an additional procedure of questionable legality—as the Supreme Court itself has confirmed.
That said, the tourist rental market in Dénia is still one of the most regulated in the Costa Blanca. Regional registration, the municipal planning report, and any potential limits set by the owners’ association remain the key factors for determining whether a specific property can be allocated to holiday rentals.
If you are considering buying a home in Dénia for that purpose, the most important thing is still to verify those requirements before signing—not afterwards. At COSBA, we can guide you on the current status of each property.
Information updated as of May 2026. The legal situation may continue to evolve. Always consult a professional before making investment decisions.
