The Algarve’s association for hoteliers has slammed the government and its agencies for doing nothing at all to stamp out illegal rentals of villas and apartments.
The AHETA has condemned the illicit tourism rental in the Algarve and demands appropriate action from Finanças, Tourism of Portugal and local mayors which, it says, have done nothing to stop this illegal business.
AHETA has the full backing of the Secretary of State for Tourism, Ana Mendes Godinho, (pictured below) despite the boom in the illegal rentals market being her responsibility.
Godinho said today that the position of AHETA, "is due to the fact that there are many tourist villages and apartments where there are illegal rentals by the owners, middlemen, internet platforms, unclear structures and companies."
According to AHETA, "it’s these apartments and villas that are not allocated to operating companies, nor are they classified or registered officially as Alojamento Local units. These do not appear to pay any taxes, which means they are unfair competition."
"And although this always has been standard practice in the Algarve, the truth is that the problem has been growing, and it is not possible to discern any involvement at all of the regulatory bodies that should be involved, despite the seriousness the problem," says AHETA.
"The lack of careful, effective and timely oversight by the competent authorities, including ASAE and Finanças, has allowed the growth of a problem which damages not only the legitimate interests of hoteliers and tourism operators but also the national public interest."
As for the deeply flawed and unpopular Alojamento Local scheme, AHETA "agrees with the current legislation but considers it necessary to make adjustments to improve the law, with particular emphasis on guest accommodation in the Algarve, as opposed to in Lisbon and Oporto where there are different problems requiring different solutions."
For multiple tourist units, AHETA wants a single entity operating under the same trade name of each tourist development to avoid “misuse by third parties,” to avoid confusing consumers and to eradicate unnecessary problems of control and supervision."
Officially, the Algarve accommodates 3.5 million tourists, of which 2.5 million are foreign and 1 million are from Portugal.
On top of this, the Algarve receives 750,000 foreign tourists and 2 million Portuguese visitors each year, with a significant proportion of them staying in unregistered accommodation.
The Algarve has a resident population of just over 400,000 and has 400,000 family homes and 200,000 second homes.
When Ana Mendes Godinho took over her brief in autumn 2015, she said the Alojamento Local scheme was flawed, yet she has failed to address the rise in illegal rentals despite much of those involved failing to pay taxes on rental income. Her agreement with the AHETA that the sector is booming and ‘nothing is being done’ is more a long-winded resignation letter than a helpful contribution.
The much-maligned Alojamento Local scheme has been avoided by many owners as the rules appear complex, the scheme clearly is hardly being policed and it is easier to not pay tax than to volunteer to become part of the system.
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For information on the Alojamento Local scheme and the tax implications, click on: NALLE The voice for local lodgings in Portugal
Secretary of State for Tourism, Ana Mendes Godinho