Top 8+ Countries That Might Ban Short-Term Rentals Soon—And Why

Greece: Tourist Tax Explosion in Athens

Greece has announced a ban on new short-term rental licenses in central Athens, set to take effect in January 2025. Additionally, taxes on rentals will significantly increase during peak seasons, further squeezing hosts.

Think of it like a one-two punch to the rental market. The government is also incentivizing long-term leases with tax exemptions for properties transitioning out of STRs.

The writing's on the wall here—Greece is pushing property owners toward traditional rentals instead of chasing tourist dollars.

Hungary: Budapest's Referendum Revolution

In Budapest's Terézváros District, a referendum resulted in a ban on short-term rentals beginning in 2026, with more districts likely to follow suit. This is part of a broader conversation in Hungary about addressing housing shortages through stricter STR policies.

It's like dominoes falling—once one district votes for a ban, others are watching and taking notes. Local residents are clearly prioritizing their own housing needs over tourist accommodations.

Belgium: Bruges Puts Historic Charm Before Profit

Belgium, specifically in Bruges, has introduced strict limits on short-term rental permits in the city center. The UNESCO World Heritage Site is taking steps to control tourist influx and rising housing prices by also banning new hotel construction in the area.

They're essentially saying "we're full" to the tourism industry. When a city famous for its medieval architecture starts turning away tourists, you know the pressure is real.

Czech Republic: Prague's Platform Launch

Czechia is preparing new STR regulations, with a national framework expected to go live in July 2025. Prague, in particular, will see hosts required to register their properties via a new platform, e-Turista, while caps on annual rental days and limits on tourist apartments in city centers are also on the horizon.

The Czech government is taking a tech-forward approach to control what's becoming an uncontrollable market. Registration systems like this are often the first step toward stricter enforcement.

Spain: Barcelona's Complete Phase-Out Plan

Barcelona pledged an outright ban on short-term rentals in June, in one of the most aggressive policies so far. It had already forbidden the rental of private rooms within homes.

Barcelona plans to phase out tourist apartment rentals by 2028, and restrictions are in place in Alicante and Madrid. This isn't just regulation—it's a complete elimination strategy.

Barcelona is willing to sacrifice tourist revenue to get housing back for locals.

Portugal: The Great Reversal and Lisbon's Next Move

Licence ban is lifted, and licences are again transmissible and have no expiration date. Municipalities can decide once again on the development of AL locally.

Portugal just did a 180-degree turn, but here's the kicker: Lisbon residents seeking to restrict tourist rentals in residential buildings have moved a step closer to securing a public vote after the Portuguese city's municipal assembly approved a proposal for a local referendum. The move, which seeks to curb the city's housing crisis and soaring rents that have pushed many out of the capital, may put an end to the 20,000 or so short-term holiday rentals such as Airbnb, freeing up housing opportunities for locals.

Italy: The Self-Check-In Crackdown

Signed into effect in November 2024, the ban now requires hosts to meet guests in person, prohibiting the use of once-popular lockboxes. Fines for not complying with short-term rental laws in 2024 start at €2,000 – 10,000 for renting out more than four properties without a SCIA and range up to €800 – 8,000 for renting out a property without a CIN.

Italy isn't banning rentals outright, but they're making it so complicated and expensive that many hosts might just throw in the towel.

United States: New York's Devastating Impact

The law requires short-term rental hosts to register with the Mayor's Office of Special Enforcement (OSE), and prohibits booking service platforms (such as Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com, and others) from processing transactions for unregistered short-term rentals. LL18 resulted in an over 90 percent drop in Airbnb listings across New York City following its implementation in September 2023.

In the outer boroughs alone, listings dropped from approximately 17,000 to 1,400, resulting in an average of 80,000 fewer guests per month on the platform. The numbers don't lie—this is what a near-total ban looks like in practice.

United Kingdom: Scotland's Licensing Maze

Hosts with new listings in Scotland must now obtain a licence to use a property for short-term letting before accepting any bookings. In Edinburgh, planning permission is required to rent out a second home on Airbnb.

UK is set to overhaul how STRs are regulated. Scotland's approach is death by a thousand cuts—making the process so bureaucratic that casual hosts can't be bothered anymore.

France: Paris Sets the Global Standard

Parisians seeking to rent their primary residence on a platform like Airbnb need to register with the local town hall. They are limited to renting their primary residence for a maximum of 120 days a year.

The city even has a dedicated unit to hunt down illegal rentals and fine offenders. Paris has become the blueprint for how cities can control short-term rentals without completely banning them—but their enforcement is aggressive enough to scare off many potential hosts.

Austria: Vienna's Tourism Time Limit

Austria's capital has announced that, from July 2024, home owners will be limited to renting out individual units to tourists for a maximum of 90 days per year. Parts of Vienna have already imposed these restrictions since 2018 but it will soon apply to the whole city.

Vienna's taking a measured approach—they're not killing the industry, just putting it on a strict diet. The move aims to ensure that properties aren't used solely for short-term rentals.

The Economic Reality Behind the Bans

According to a study by Oxford Economics, stays in short term rentals in 2023 generated over 149 billion euros in positive economic impact and supported 2.1 million jobs in countries across the EU. Travelers staying in short-term rentals generated €149 billion in economic benefits, supported 2.1 million jobs, and generated €40 billion in total tax revenue in 2023.

But here's the catch—Booking platforms such as Airbnb and Vrbo are increasingly faulted for limiting housing options for local residents and driving up rents. Short-term bookings, often defined as stays shorter than a month, reduce the supply of long-term rentals in local markets and are frequently blamed for exacerbating housing shortages, inflating rents and threatening hospitality jobs.

The Future of Short-Term Rentals

These regulatory actions are not isolated incidents. They are part of a broader, continent-wide shift that property managers must prepare for.

Regulations are no longer a hypothetical. They're happening, and fast.

The party's over in many cities, and countries are choosing their residents over tourists. Short-term rental regulations are tightening in many major cities around the world.

Especially in Europe. Places like New York, Istanbul, Edinburgh, Barcelona, and Paris have introduced strict rules—or even outright bans—that make it extremely difficult to operate legally on platforms like Airbnb.

What started as a sharing economy revolution has become a housing crisis catalyst. These countries aren't just tweaking rules—they're fundamentally reshaping how tourism and housing intersect.

The question isn't whether more bans are coming, but which cities will be brave enough to prioritize their residents over tourist dollars. What would you choose if tourists were pricing you out of your own neighborhood?

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