Furnished or empty: contract, tax and rules after RDL 29/2026

It pays to let in the format that matches demand and withstands the tax: furniture alone does not change the tenancy regime. From 8 October 2026 a contrato de temporada (seasonal lease), on which furnished letting usually rests, is permitted for a term of more than 31 days and, as a rule, up to 12 months only with a real and provable reason (art. 9 bis LAU, RDL 29/2026). The tax reduction of up to 100% goes only to a let of the main residence.

A furnished let is the letting of a flat together with furniture and appliances. The residential tenancy rules extend to the furniture supplied by the same owner (art. 2.2 LAU), so the real choice is between an ordinary vivienda habitual (main-residence) contract, a seasonal contract and short terms.

How the three letting regimes differ

The differences concern the term, the guarantees, repairs and taxes, not the sofa in the living room. The Congreso has not yet validated the decree-law (as of 13 October 2026), so before signing check the wording in force with an abogado (lawyer).

If a seasonal contract runs for more than 12 months without a justified reason, or more than two seasonal contracts in a row are signed with the same tenant for the same flat, the first is treated as an ordinary main-residence contract with all its terms (art. 9 bis.2). Without a stated reason the contract is ordinary from the start (art. 7.2).

Which tax reduction each option gets

The reduction under art. 23.2 LIRPF as worded by RDL 29/2026 concerns only a let under art. 2.1 LAU, that is the main residence, and applies to contracts concluded after 1 December 2026; for earlier contracts the previous wording applies (disposición transitoria 38 LIRPF). For an owner who is letting for the first time and does not have gran tenedor (large property holder) status, it is 100% where the rent is below the price index, 90% in a zona de mercado residencial tensionado (stressed housing market area; 95% if the tenant is aged 18 to 35) and at least 50% in other cases. With a new contract with a rent increase over the previous one, the reduction falls to 15–40%. A seasonal let gets no reduction.

The rules concern tax residents of Spain. A non-resident pays IRNR (non-resident income tax) under other rules, covered in the article on the tax on a non-resident's rental income. Whether the reduction applies to your contract is checked by an asesor fiscal (tax adviser).

What the owner is left with: a worked example

Worked example, not a forecast. The flat is let for the first time under a contract after 1 December 2026, the owner is a resident, the flat is in a stressed housing market area. Furnished to seasonal tenants at 2,000 € a month with two months' vacancy a year; unfurnished for the long term at 1,700 € with one month's vacancy. Upkeep costs are assumed at 3,000 € a year in both cases; for the furnished flat, furniture wear of 1,200 € and preparation between tenants of 800 € are added.

In the example the premium for furniture is eaten up by vacancy and costs, and the taxable base differs almost tenfold. The conclusion depends on your own figures; it is convenient to run them through the investment analysis.

What costs furniture adds

Furniture is a permanent cost item: purchase, wear, replacement, preparation between tenants. Under a seasonal contract, from 8 October 2026 minor repairs from ordinary wear also fall on the owner (art. 21 bis LAU).

In the IRPF, furniture supplied with the flat is deducted through depreciation under the simplified table, and the building itself up to 3% a year of its value without the land (art. 14 Reglamento del IRPF, the IRPF regulations). An inventory with photographs is attached to a contract with furniture; otherwise a dispute over the deposit at move-out is almost inevitable.

How the rent changes after the decree-law

The rent increase is limited under both options. With annual indexation the increase cannot exceed the change in the IRAV index (art. 18.1 LAU), and the rent under each following seasonal contract for the same flat cannot rise by more than the IRAV (art. 17.8). In August 2026 the IRAV was 2.47% (INE, 15 September 2026).

Until 31 December 2027 rent above the upper limit of the state index is not raised at all, and in other cases, without a new agreement, by no more than 2% (disposición final sexta of the decree-law). When letting by the room, the sum of the rents cannot exceed the rent for the whole flat (art. 17.9).

How to choose the format for a specific flat

1. Establish who actually rents in this area: employees on a contract and students, or families for the long term.
2. Check whether a future seasonal tenant will have a documented reason: a work contract, study, medical treatment.
3. Calculate both options after vacancy, costs and tax, not by the monthly rate.
4. Take into account the Catalan rules on seasonal letting, covered in the article on mid-term rental in Barcelona.
5. Fix in the contract the inventory, the repair of appliances and the procedure for returning the deposit; the list of clauses is in the material what to include in a lease.

When a furnished seasonal let does not fit

It does not fit if the area has no steady demand with a documented reason for temporary residence: without a reason the contract becomes ordinary from day one. Nor does the model of renewing the same tenant contract after contract: the third in a row turns the first into an ordinary one.

A let of up to 30 nights with furniture is subject to 10% IVA from 1 December 2026, unless it is the owner's own main residence (art. 20.Uno.23 and 91 Ley del IVA as worded by RDL 29/2026), and a tourist let in Barcelona requires a licence.