- A VT registration is not transferable: it lapses on sale and the buyer applies for a new one
- The buyer needs a municipal compatibility report for that, and town halls may restrict
- Registrations are valid for 5 years (art. 65.4 of Ley 15/2018, since Decret Llei 9/2024)
- Your licence is proof that rental works here, not an automatic premium; here's how to present that honestly
Plenty of sellers on the Costa Blanca hold a tourist licence (vivienda de uso turístico, VT for short) and count on it to push up the sale price. That story changed in August 2024, and whoever still tells the old version is promising buyers something the law no longer delivers. In my view you sell better with the right story: it’s at least as strong, and it’s true.
Since August 2024: the licence lapses on sale
Decret Llei 9/2024 of the Generalitat Valenciana rewrote the rules for tourist rental. The key change for sellers: on a transfer of ownership, the existing registration lapses. The new owner must file their own declaración responsable, and for that they need a municipal report of urban-planning compatibility (informe de compatibilidad urbanística).
That’s where the catch sits: town halls may limit the number and location of tourist homes. Whether the buyer actually gets the licence again depends on your municipality’s policy at the moment of application. In most zones that works fine today, but it’s no longer guaranteed.
Even without a sale: valid 5 years, then renew
Registrations have been valid for 5 years since the same reform (article 65.4 of Ley 15/2018). If your registration already existed before August 2024, the clock runs from 8 August 2024: renew before August 2029. Renewal happens with a new declaración responsable. Renting out without a valid registration risks serious fines; that’s not a risk you want in the months before your sale.
Your registration number (the CV-VUT number) sits in the Generalitat’s public register. At my free valuation I check that register against your referencia catastral, so we see straight away whether your licence is registered and since when.
How to present your licence to buyers, the strong way
Does this make your licence worthless? No, quite the opposite. It proves 3 things buyers genuinely care about: that tourist rental works at this address, that the home met the requirements, and that there’s a rental track record. If you have booking figures, show them. For a buyer with rental plans that’s gold, even though they have to file the application themselves.
What you’d better not do: put “tourist licence included” in the listing as if it transfers. A well-informed buyer (or their lawyer) sees through that instantly, and then your negotiation starts with a credibility problem. Honest selling works better: rental is allowed here, you’ve proven it, and the buyer knows exactly which step is theirs to take.
Questions about this
Does my tourist licence transfer automatically to the buyer?
No. Since Decret Llei 9/2024 the registration lapses on sale. The new owner must file a fresh declaración responsable, with a municipal urban-compatibility report.
How long is a VT registration valid?
5 years. After that you renew it. Older registrations run 5 years from 8 August 2024, so until August 2029 at the latest.
Is a home with a VT licence worth more?
It's a selling point: it proves tourist rental works at this address. But because the buyer has to reapply themselves, it's not a guaranteed premium in euros.
Further reading
- What does it cost to sell a house on the Costa Blanca? The full list (2026)
- The energy certificate when selling: required before you advertise, and how to sort it
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