Royal Decree 933/2021 explained
RD 933/2021 governs the registration and reporting of guest and customer data in Spain. Here is who it affects, what obligations it imposes, and how to comply.
In short
Royal Decree 933/2021, of 26 October, requires accommodation businesses and motor-vehicle rental companies in Spain to register their customers’ data and report it to the authorities through the SES system. The report must be made within a maximum of 24 hours, and the data handled in line with the GDPR. Its application through SES Hospedajes became fully operational at the end of 2024.
What is Royal Decree 933/2021?
Royal Decree 933/2021, of 26 October, regulates the documentary and computerised registration obligations of people and businesses carrying out accommodation and motor-vehicle rental activities in Spain.
It is the regulation that underpins the SES Hospedajes system and that updates and expands the traveller-registration obligations that already existed under previous rules.
Official sources
- BOE-A-2021-17461 — Royal Decree 933/2021 of 26 October— Consolidated text and ELI reference in the BOE
- hospedajes.ses.mir.es— Official reporting portal
- interior.gob.es— Ministry of the Interior — FAQ and supporting regulation
Who does RD 933/2021 affect?
The regulation affects a broad set of activities related to accommodation and traveller mobility.
- ✓Accommodation establishments: hotels, hostels, guest houses, tourist apartments, rural houses, and campsites.
- ✓Homes for tourist use and those who manage or intermediate them.
- ✓Motor-vehicle rental companies.
- ✓Digital platforms involved in booking or renting these services.
What obligations it imposes
RD 933/2021 requires collecting customers’ identification, contact, and stay data, keeping it for the established period, and reporting it to the authorities through the SES system.
The report must be made within a maximum of 24 hours. Data must also be handled in line with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Penalties for non-compliance and how to comply
Failing to register or correctly report guest data can lead to administrative penalties. Beyond the fine, repeated non-compliance is a reputational and operational risk for the business.
The amounts come from Organic Law 4/2015 on the protection of public safety: irregularities in completing the registers are a minor infringement (€100 to €600), and failing to meet the documentary-registration obligations can be a serious infringement (€601 to €30,000). Filing a report late usually fits as minor; not filing it at all can be serious.
The safest way to comply is to automate the process. BookCheckin captures every field required by RD 933/2021, validates it, and files it within the legal deadline, keeping documentation encrypted and ready for any inspection.
2026: the NRUA ruling and the Brussels infringement case
2026 is proving a turbulent year for short-term-rental regulation in Spain, with two important legal events that should not be confused — above all because neither of them removes the traveller report.
The first is the NRUA annulment: in 2026 the Supreme Court annulled the Single Rental Registry and its Digital One-Stop Shop (RD 1312/2024). That is a different rule from RD 933/2021, with a different purpose (a market-oriented rental registry, not a security one). Its fall removed the NRUA number, but touches neither the regional licence nor the traveller report.
The second is the Brussels case: on 4 June 2026 the European Commission sent Spain a letter of formal notice [INFR(2026)4005] because it considers the RD 933/2021 traveller-registration system incompatible with Directive (EU) 2016/680 — excessive data (including payment and GPS data), police access without sufficiently narrow purposes, and a disproportionate three-year retention. While the case runs, RD 933/2021 remains fully in force and the reporting obligation does not change at all.
Official sources
- European Commission — June 2026 infringement package (Spain)— Official note citing case INFR(2026)4005
- EU opens infringement procedure against Spain over traveller registration— What the Commission objects to, what may happen, and what does not change
Going deeper into RD 933/2021
The decree itself is short, but its practical consequences are not. These guides cover the questions that come up most:
Related resources
- RD 933/2021 fines— Where the penalties come from and how they are graded
- Late SES Hospedajes report— What happens past the 24-hour mark: minor or serious infringement
- GDPR and guest data— What you can store, what you cannot, and for how long
- RD 933/2021: a practical guide for hosts— The decree in plain English, obligation by obligation
- What is SES Hospedajes— The platform through which RD 933/2021 is fulfilled
- The traveller report: what it is and how to file it— The day-to-day obligation, step by step
How to comply with RD 933/2021 step by step
The five steps with which an accommodation fulfils the registration and reporting obligations of Royal Decree 933/2021.
- 1
Register as an obligated party
Enrol your establishment in SES Hospedajes (hospedajes.ses.mir.es). If your property is in Catalonia or the Basque Country, enrolment happens in the regional Mossos d’Esquadra or Ertzaintza registry instead.
- 2
Collect the Annex I data for every guest
Identification, date of birth, nationality, contact and residence details, plus the stay and payment data. You can collect them at check-in or, better, before arrival with an online check-in.
- 3
Verify the document without keeping a copy
Check that the data matches the identity document. Since June 2025 the Spanish DPA (AEPD) has clarified that keeping a copy of the document is not permitted: the law requires collecting the data, not an image.
- 4
Report the data within a maximum of 24 hours
File the report with SES Hospedajes (or the regional registry) within 24 hours of the guest’s arrival, and keep the receipt or batch (lote) code of the submission.
- 5
Keep the register for three years
Maintain the documentary register of your reports for three years, available to the authorities for any inspection.
Frequently asked questions
When did RD 933/2021 come into force?+
Royal Decree 933/2021 is dated 26 October 2021. Its effective application through the SES Hospedajes platform became fully operational at the end of 2024.
Does RD 933/2021 only affect hotels?+
No. It affects all types of tourist accommodation — apartments, rural houses, campsites — and also motor-vehicle rental companies.
What happens if I do not comply with RD 933/2021?+
Non-compliance can result in administrative penalties. Automating registration and reporting with a tool like BookCheckin reduces that risk to virtually zero.
Is RD 933/2021 compatible with GDPR?+
Yes. The regulation requires handling data in line with GDPR. BookCheckin stores information encrypted and keeps it only for the legally required period.
How big are the RD 933/2021 fines?+
They are set by Organic Law 4/2015: irregularities in completing the registers are a minor infringement, €100 to €600, and failing to meet the documentary-registration obligations can be a serious infringement, €601 to €30,000. Filing a report late usually counts as minor; not filing at all can be serious.
How long must the traveller register be kept?+
Three years from the report. RD 933/2021 requires keeping the documentary register of reports for that period, available to the authorities. It is precisely one of the points the European Commission questions in its 2026 case — but until the rule changes, the period remains three years.
What data does RD 933/2021 require beyond the guest’s identity?+
Annex I includes, besides identification (name, document, date of birth, nationality, sex), the guest’s contact and residence details and the transaction data: arrival and departure dates, reservation and payment details. Minors are registered too, indicating their relationship to the responsible adult.
Does the European Commission’s case suspend RD 933/2021?+
No. The June 2026 letter of formal notice [INFR(2026)4005] opens a procedure between the Commission and the Spanish State, but does not suspend the rule: the traveller report remains exactly as mandatory and sanctionable as before, while Spain responds or reforms the decree.
Is RD 933/2021 the same as the NRUA?+
No. The NRUA (Single Rental Registry) was created by a different rule, RD 1312/2024, and was annulled by the Supreme Court in 2026. RD 933/2021 governs the traveller report filed with SES Hospedajes and remains fully in force: the NRUA annulment does not affect it at all.
Does RD 933/2021 also apply in Catalonia and the Basque Country?+
The obligation to register and report exists all the same, but the destination changes: in Catalonia the report goes to the Mossos d’Esquadra registry and in the Basque Country to the Ertzaintza, not to SES Hospedajes. BookCheckin currently automates filing to the national SES Hospedajes only and does not serve properties in those two regions.
Comply with RD 933/2021 without paperwork
BookCheckin automates the registration and reporting of your guests.