What is the ITS?
Since 1 July 2016 the Sustainable Tourism Tax has been applied to all stays in tourist accommodation in the Balearic Islands. Thanks to this contribution, important investments have been made in order to compensate for the impact that tourism has on the land and environment in Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera.
Sustainable Tourism Tax
Tourism is the economic activity with the biggest impact on the Balearic Islands and it is, without a doubt, the main resource of the archipelago; therefore, it must undergo constant transformation, innovation and development, which, by definition, must be sustainable over time. Tourism, which has most definitely become the core activity of the Balearic economy and has generated economic and social progress in the Balearic Islands, has meant, at the same time, a high usage of the territorial and environmental resources. In order to assume and face these circumstances and, therefore, maintain the competitiveness of the touristic product of the Balearic Islands, it is necessary to not only invest in environmental products that meet current tourist preferences and the future trends of people who are increasingly interested in destinations that promote sustainable environmental development, but it is also necessary to invest in infrastructure. Therefore, in the fiscal year 2016, Law 2/2016, of 30 March, was approved and launched regarding a tax on tourist stays in the Balearic Islands and measures to promote sustainable tourism (LIET), creating a new, mainly purpose-based tax for which the income collected will be invested in the development and protection of the environment, and sustainable tourism, which was already in place, both here and outside of the islands. Through this law a fund was created to favour sustainable tourism, which is to be supported by the collection of this new tax, and in addition, the Commission for the Promotion of Sustainable Tourism was also created, which is the body responsible for preparing an annual plan to promote sustainable tourism by setting priority annual objectives, with a criterion of territorial balance, etc. This law was supported by Decree 35/2016, of 23 June, which outlined the tax law on tourist stays and measures to promote sustainable tourism. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Commission for the Promotion of Sustainable Tourism | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Commission for the Promotion of Sustainable Tourism of the Balearic Islands is responsible for analysing, assessing and selecting the projects corresponding to actions submitted by the administrations and the rest of the entities that make up the Commission, which are to be paid for from the Promotion of Sustainable Tourism Fund. To ensure maximum transparency, every project financed by the proceeds from this tax will be published on this website. The objective is to provide each type of user (visitors, tourist companies, island citizens, etc.) with all of the information on the different initiatives that will be carried out thanks to this contribution. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Commission | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Commission for the Promotion of Sustainable Tourism, which met for the first time on 19 July 2016, is comprised as follows:
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Plenary Session Minutes of the Commission | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Below are the plenary session minutes of the Commission for the Promotion of Sustainable Tourism:
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What is the purpose of the sustainable tourism fund?
In accordance with article 19.3 of Law 2/2016, the actions for which projects are fully or partially financed by the Sustainable Tourism Fund, and considering that on the whole these actions should prioritise activities of an environmental nature, aim to have the following purposes: |
Environment |
The protection, preservation, modernisation and recovery of the natural, rural, agricultural and marine environments refer to, for example, improvements in protected natural parks and the effort to conserve natural ecosystems and native flora and fauna. |
Sustainable Tourism |
The promotion of deseasonalisation, the creation and activation of possible tourist products for the low season, and the promotion of sustainable and low season tourism, which can be achieved through projects such as the recovery of cycling and hiking routes, with better signposting, in order to boost deseasonalisation. |
Cultural Heritage |
The recovery and rehabilitation of historical and cultural heritage. The purpose of the tax here is for historical buildings or elements with archaeological value to be reformed and made more accessible in such a way that the cultural heritage of the islands can be maintained and the Balearic Islands' history and culture made known. |
Scientific Research |
The promotion of scientific research projects, technological development and innovation (R+D+I) which contribute to economic diversification, the fight against climate change or are related to the tourism sector. In this sense, investment will be made to continue the process of acting as a leading area in the tourism sector. |
Training & Employment |
The improvement of training and quality of employment available as well as increasing employment in the low season. The aim is to create qualified job positions and improve working conditions through active measures that will optimise the training for service sector jobs, for example, by means of a more varied offering of vocational training courses. |
Social Renting |
Investment in the acquisition and rehabilitation of housing for social renting with a criterion of energy sustainability so as to directly allocate the income generated from tourist stays to a housing policy and the extension of the public rental area. |
What territorial scope and establishments does it cover?
The objective estimate scheme shall be applied to the tax withholders of the taxpayers, who are the owners of the companies that operate tourist establishments included under letters a to j of article 4.1 of Law 2/2016 unless they resign or are excluded, under the terms established in this decree. The scheme shall be applicable when the establishments located in the Balearic Islands that withhold the tax meet any of the following two requirements: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A. They do not exceed the figure of 12,000 beds at the end of the previous fiscal year or, in the case of a new activity, during the time opened authorised by the relevant tourist administration. | B. More than 15% of the beds have been sold during the previous fiscal year by intermediaries, wholesalers or tour operators. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
For the purposes of this article, the fiscal year is given as the 12 months from 1 January to 31 December. When the objective estimate scheme is applicable, it shall be applied to all the establishments located in the Balearic Islands which a taxpayer makes use of, meaning that the same tax withholder cannot apply different schemes in order to determine the taxable base. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Taxable Event | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The taxable event of the tax is the stays, for days or fractions of days, with or without an overnight stay that the taxpayers make in the Balearic Islands in the following tourist establishments:
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What is a taxable event and who is exempt?
The rates classified according to the type of establishment and the season in which the taxpayer stays are summarised below. The high season is understood as being from 1 May to 31 October, while the low season is from 1 November to 31 April. In addition, modifications to previous rates and all tax exemptions are outlined below. | ||||
Sustainable Tourism Tax Rates | ||||
HIGH SEASON 01.MAY - 31.OCTOBER Euros/day | ||||
TYPES OF TOURIST ESTABLISHMENTS | PRICES | |||
A | Five-star, luxury five-star and four-star superior hotels, city hotels and apart-hotels. | 4€ | ||
B | Four-star and three-star superior hotels, city hotels and apart-hotels. | 3€ | ||
C | One, two and three-star hotels, city hotels and apart-hotels. | 2€ | ||
D | Four-key and four-key superior tourist apartments. | 4€ | ||
E | Three-key superior tourist apartments. | 3€ | ||
F | One, two and three-key tourist apartments. | 2€ | ||
G | Non-residential accommodation establishments run by residential-tourism companies. | 4€ | ||
H | Tourist holiday homes, housing used for tourist stays and houses used for tourism. | 2€ | ||
I | Rural hotels, agrotourism accommodation, hostelry and inland tourism accommodation. | 2€ | ||
J | Hostels, lodgings, guest houses, inns and camps or campsites. | 1€ | ||
K | Shelters and refuges. | 1€ | ||
L | Other establishments or houses used for tourism. | 2€ | ||
M | Tourist cruise ships. | 2€ | ||
LOW SEASON 01.NOVEMBER - 30.APRIL Euros/day | ||||
TYPES OF TOURIST ESTABLISHMENTS | PRICES | |||
A | Five-star, luxury five-star and four-star superior hotels, city hotels and apart-hotels. | 1€ | ||
B | Four-star and three-star superior hotels, city hotels and apart-hotels. | 0.75€ | ||
C | One, two and three-star hotels, city hotels and apart-hotels. | 0.5€ | ||
D | Four-key and four-key superior tourist apartments. | 1€ | ||
E | Three-key superior tourist apartments. | 0.75€ | ||
F | One, two and three-key tourist apartments. | 0.5€ | ||
G | Non-residential accommodation establishments run by residential-tourism companies. | 1€ | ||
H | Tourist holiday homes, housing used for tourist stays and houses used for tourism. | 0.5€ | ||
I | Rural hotels, agrotourism accommodation, hostelry and inland tourism accommodation. | 0.5€ | ||
J | Hostels, lodgings, guest houses, inns and camps or campsites. | 0.25€ | ||
K | Shelters and refuges. | 0.25€ | ||
L | Other establishments or houses used for tourism. | 0.5€ | ||
M | Tourist cruise ships. | 0.5€ | ||
+10% VAT | ||||
Regarding the modifications to previous rates, the same amount is to be maintained in the low season (between 1 November and 30 April each year) with the increase being limited to high season stays. Specifically, the general tax rate has been doubled and the discount has been increased during low season, meaning that the tax has been reduced by 75% in these months. Hereinafter, the stays of all cruise ship passengers who dock at the ports of the Balearic Islands are to be included as "tourist stays" regardless of the number of hours of stay in transit and, therefore, are subject to the application of the tax. Cruise ship passengers whose ships have their home port in the Balearic Islands will be exempt from paying the tax. | ||||
Exemptions | ||||
A taxable event constitutes a stay made by a taxpayer in tourist establishments, that is, hotel establishments and other typical accommodation establishments, tourist homes and tourist cruise ships. In this sense, a wide range of tax application is foreseen, which, therefore, not only affects the most common hotel establishments, but also includes tourist cruise ships that call at the ports of the Balearic Islands and the tourist homes regulated by the legislation of the autonomous region. | ||||
A | Children under the age of 16 are exempt from this tax. | |||
B | From the ninth day of any stay at the same establishment the tax is reduced by 50%. | |||
C | Cruise ship passengers whose ships have their home port in the Balearic Islands will be exempt from paying the tax. | |||
Do you offer tourist stays?
The following are the formal obligations of the tax withholder |
A. Submit the census declarations as established by law regarding the start of the activity at the tourist establishments, the relevant tax elements for the application of the tax and its modifications, and the termination of the activity. |
B. Submit the self-assessments referred to in article 14 of this law. |
C. Issue and deliver proof of the requirement and the collection of the tax from the taxpayer. |
D. Keep the books and records necessary to document all of the circumstances with tax relevance for stays subject to the tax, the supporting documents referred to in the previous point, exemptions and, in general, the different tax elements necessary for the application of the tax. |
E. Record the operations and other elements referred to in the previous point within the period established for the settlement and payment of the tax. |
F. Appoint a representative with an address in the Balearic Islands for the purposes of communications between the tax authorities and the tax withholder subject to the application of the tax in the case of withholders with a tax address outside the Balearic Islands. |
By means of a decree, it is possible to develop the conditions, limits and specific requirements applicable to the formal obligations of the tax withholder referred to in the previous section of this article, as well as the cases in which some of these formal obligations may be replaced by others or eliminated. In any case, the aforementioned decree may provide that the submission of census declarations and other documents required for the compliance with said formal obligations must be made by electronic means. On the website of the Tax Agency of the Balearic Islands, in the autonomous taxes section, more information is available on this tax, such as regulations, manuals, tax models, the implementation schedule and FAQs. |
Information material for visitors |
Should you require further information on the Sustainable Tourism Tax for your guests, please contact ip@aetib.caib.es. Rate's summary: Catalan | Spanish | English | German | French | Italian Project's summary: Mallorca | Menorca | Ibiza / Formentera |