Spain fines Airbnb $75 million for unlicensed rental listings

Adds Airbnb comments in paragraphs 5-8

MADRID, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Spain has fined vacation rental firm Airbnb ABNB.O 64 million euros ($75 million) for advertising unlicensed tourist rental homes, the Consumer Rights Ministry said on Monday, as the government cracks down on excessive tourism that is driving up housing costs.

Spain's leftist government, along with some city councils and regional authorities, has been seeking to curb tourism rentals that use sites such as Airbnb and Booking.com BKNG.O, which many in Spain blame for driving up housing costs by limiting the supply of homes available to residents.

Airbnb in July withdrew 65,000 listings that the ministry said violated its rules.

The fine is equivalent to six times the profit Airbnb gained from the illegal listings, the ministry said in a statement, and is the second largest the ministry has imposed for breaching consumer rights, Consumer Rights Minister Pablo Bustinduy told reporters.

Airbnb said it would appeal.

"Airbnb is confident that the ministry actions are contrary to applicable regulations in Spain and we intend to challenge this fine in court," a company spokesperson said.

Airbnb said short-term rental rules changed in July and that it is working with Spain's Ministry of Housing to enforce a new registration system.

"More than 70,000 listings have added a registration number since January," the company added.

In 2024, Ryanair RYA.I was fined 108 million euros in Spain for charging extra fees on cabin bags.

The European Commission said earlier this year that the fines imposed by Spain on Ryanair and other budget airlines breached regulations.

The ministry said the Airbnb fine was aimed at helping tackle Spain's housing crisis.

"There are thousands of families living on the edge because of housing, while a few get rich from business models that drive people from their homes," Bustinduy said in the statement.

($1 = 0.8517 euros)

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo and Jesús Calero. Editing by Charlie Devereux, Mark Potter and Susan Fenton)

((emma.pinedo@tr.com))