Catalonia Delays Tourist Tax Hike to Fund Housing Initiatives

Sunday 18 May 2025 - 14:37

By: Zahouani Ilham

Catalonia Delays Tourist Tax Hike to Fund Housing Initiatives

The Catalan government (Govern) and the political group Comuns reached an agreement on Friday involving four housing-related measures. This deal was made in exchange for accepting a decree passed earlier this week that postpones the increase of the tourist tax in Catalonia. Jéssica Albiach, leader of Comuns in the Parliament, emphasized that the pact allocates €60 million equivalent to the expected revenue from the tax hike towards the Generalitat’s right of first refusal in purchasing apartments and supporting local housing projects.

Last week, the Parliament approved the tax surcharge increase with backing from PSC, ERC, and Comuns. However, a subsequent vote to delay its implementation until October failed due to Comuns opposing the postponement. Consequently, the Govern, which had arranged a delay with ERC to ensure greater legal certainty and introduce further proposals through a legislative process, issued a new decree to halt the tourist tax increase temporarily.

Comuns insisted that the Catalan government guarantee the €60 million in lost revenue from postponing the tax increase. They argued that these funds should mainly be invested in housing policies.