Balearic islands push rental caps

Residents across Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza are pushing for tighter limits on tourist rentals as the Balearic Islands harden their stance on overtourism. (caib.es) (majorcadailybulletin.com) The Balearic government’s Decree-Law 4/2025, approved on April 11, 2025 and later validated by the regional parliament, banned the creation of new tourist places in multi-family buildings across the islands. It also kept a one-for-one exchange system, so a new tourist bed can only be activated if another is removed first. (caib.es) (boe.es) The same law raised penalties for illegal tourist rentals by 25%, with fines now reaching €500,000 for the most serious cases, and made listing platforms jointly responsible if they publish unregistered accommodation. Owners who hand over sanctioned properties for social or price-limited housing can cut fines by up to 80%. (caib.es) (boe.es) Pressure for a broader cap has grown as public opinion has shifted. An October 2024 survey by the Balearic Tourism Strategy Agency found 75.6% of residents across the islands said too many tourists visit each year, based on a sample of 2,008 people. (majorcadailybulletin.com) In Mallorca, a separate survey cited by the Majorca Daily Bulletin found 69.1% backed capping visits, 69.2% backed limits on cruise ships, and 68.4% backed restricting tourist accommodation and establishments. The same report said housing was the main concern across party lines, with majorities also supporting rent controls. (majorcadailybulletin.com) The debate has moved from street protests to formal policy because the islands are no longer talking about expansion. Balearic president Marga Prohens said in 2025 that the region could not keep growing “in volume” and had to talk about “limits” and “containment,” even while insisting tourism remains the islands’ main source of income. (birminghammail.co.uk) The cap now under discussion goes beyond rental licensing. Reports on a proposal from the opposition Socialist party said it would set an annual ceiling of 17.8 million visitors, matching the total number of tourists recorded in 2023. (travelandtourworld.com) (euroweeklynews.com) Island councils are expected to decide any final ceilings island by island, rather than under one blanket number for the whole archipelago. The Balearic government says the temporary exchange pool is meant to hold growth in place while those councils define each island’s accommodation ceiling and tourism carrying capacity. (caib.es) (travelandtourworld.com) Tourism officials and business groups still argue the sector underpins jobs and public revenue, while critics say short-term lets have hollowed out the long-term housing market in places where residents already face high rents and traffic congestion. The new fight in Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza is over whether the 2025 crackdown on illegal and new rentals is enough, or whether the islands now need a harder numerical cap. (birminghammail.co.uk) (majorcadailybulletin.com)