VUT

A VUT (Vivienda con Fines Turísticos) is the licence issued by the Andalusian regional government (Junta de Andalucía) to legally let a residential property on a short-term tourist basis. Any apartment let to tourists in Andalucía must have one.

Requirements include: a habitability certificate, specific safety features (smoke detectors, first-aid kit, fire extinguisher), defined minimum standards for amenities, and registration of the licence on the public registry.

Some Andalusian municipalities have imposed caps on new VUT licences in specific zones (especially Málaga centro and parts of Marbella). Before buying with short-let intent, confirm with the municipality and with the building's comunidad bylaws that:

(1) the apartment qualifies for a VUT licence, (2) the comunidad bylaws do not prohibit short-let (some buildings now explicitly do), and (3) the municipality is not in a capped or moratorium zone for new VUT registrations.

Skip any of these checks and you may end up owning an apartment you cannot legally short-let. Your lawyer must verify this at due diligence stage if rental intent is part of the purchase rationale.