Holiday lets under scrutiny

Holiday lets under scrutiny

ASAE, the Portuguese authority in charge of food safety, is also responsible for the safety of holiday accommodations, and in this role, is taking aim at property owners who rent out to tourists illegally. It recently started a clamp-down on unlicensed holidays lets in the Algarve.

Private tourist lets are gaining more fans; holidays in a private apartment with self-catering facilities are much favored by Scandinavian clients and other nationalities. These apartments and houses, however, have to satisfy certain standards in order to uphold a high level of quality for the visitors and avoid accidents.

With a new law established in 2008, it is now mandatory to have a license (“Alojamento Local”) and fulfill some basic obligations. For this, a simple licensing structure was established. The request for a license, accompanied by some paperwork, is made to the local City Hall, and once handed it, the property owner can rent out to tourists. The City Hall may make inspections and ask for additional safety features. It then informs the Tourist Board and the Tax Authorities about the new venture.

Fines for non-compliance range from €2.500 up to €45.000. The ASAE does an annual survey on current registrations, checks websites and follows up on reports from third parties.

One advantage of this process is that, if property set up, the taxation on this income is quite low - the Portuguese State is interested to promote this alternative to hotel accommodation. Read more on http://www.algarveresident.com/50399-0/algarve/stamping-down or contact our team.