British expats to face BAN from buying homes in Spanish hotspots under fresh anti-tourist crackdown

Foreign nationals currently own approximately 90,000 properties across the islands - or 16 per cent of all housing stock.

British buyers purchased nearly 12,000 Spanish properties in 2024, according to data from property website Idealista.

Politicians are set to debate the bill in the coming weeks.

Lluis Apesteguia, a Mes per Mallorca MP, said "extraordinary measures were necessary" to tackle the issue of over-tourism on the islands, which received 19 million visitors last year.

He said: "We have to prioritise the houses that are for living in - not for those who want to speculate and continue with this game of Monopoly."

The campaign group Menys Turisme Mes Vida, which organised major anti-tourist demonstrations last summer, has announced plans for fresh street protests this year.

The organisation argues that second home ownership is inflating prices and displacing locals in popular destinations such as Barcelona and the Balearics.

Mr Apesteguia suggested the bill could go on to inspire similar laws elsewhere in Spain.

But opposition parties have raised doubts about whether the proposals are workable.

Sebastia Sagreras, a spokesman for Centre-Right party PP, said EU regulations meant the plans "cannot be fulfilled" and that his party would vote against it.

Marc Pons, of Left-wing party PSOE, which has called for a cap on visitor numbers to the islands, said that while the policy could ease price rises in the region, the Balearic Government could "not rely solely on this solution to the problems".

The proposed restrictions would mirror Danish rules requiring British buyers to have lived there for at least five years in a row before buying property.

This is not the first attempt to restrict foreign property purchases in Spain.

The Spanish Government announced plans last year to levy a tax of up to 100 per cent on properties bought by non-EU residents.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the measure would help tackle Spain's housing crisis.

That bill remains unpassed and has faced criticism for accelerating foreign purchases, with buyers rushing to complete ahead of any new rules.

Ferran Rosa, an MP in the Balearic Islands' Parliament, said: "Housing is certainly the largest problem for Mallorcans, as prices have been rising for years and more and more houses are devoted to non-residential uses."