Contratos de Temporada (Mid-Term Rentals): The Legal Alternative to Vivienda Vacacional in 2026

With the Canary Islands aggressively capping short-term holiday lets (Vivienda Vacacional or VV) under the new Sustainable Tourist Use regulations, many foreign investors in Costa Adeje are pivoting to mid-term rentals. Governed by the Spanish Urban Tenancy Law (LAU) as Contratos de Temporada, these contracts allow you to rent your property for several months without committing to a restrictive 5-year long-term lease.

However, landlords attempting to use mid-term contracts as a loophole to continue operating unlicensed holiday lets have just hit a massive legal wall. On August 15, 2026, the new Canarian Law 7/2026 officially went into effect, radically changing the requirements for temporary rentals. If you are renting out your property for a few months at a time, using a generic downloaded contract will now result in devastating fines.

Here is the new legal reality for mid-term landlords in Tenerife.

1. The 31-Day “Tourist Presumption” Trap

The most aggressive change in the 2026 Canarian legislation is the establishment of an objective time threshold.

• The Rule: Any rental contract with a duration of 31 days or less is automatically legally presumed to be a tourist activity (actividad turística).
• Zero Tolerance: This presumption applies even if you only rent the property out for less than a month a single time during the entire year.
• The Risk: If you sign a 3-week contract and do not hold a valid VV license, the tourism inspectors will classify it as an illegal holiday let, entirely ignoring your claim that it was just a temporary rental.

2. The Mandatory “Causa Real” (Motivation Clause)

For a Contrato de Temporada to be legally valid and immune to tourism inspections, it is no longer enough for the contract to simply state the start and end dates. The new law shifts the burden of proof entirely onto the landlord.

The contract itself must act as undeniable proof of why the tenant is there.

• The Justification Requirement: According to Article 12.2, you must explicitly detail the tenant’s motivation for needing temporary housing (e.g., a specific temporary work contract, academic studies, or a scheduled medical procedure) and clearly connect that motivation to the exact duration of the stay.
• Generic Excuses Fail: Simply writing “for work purposes” (por motivos laborales) is explicitly insufficient under the new law and will be rejected by inspectors. You must append proof, such as the tenant’s employment contract or university enrollment, directly to the lease.

3. The “Pre-Contract” Request Protocol

The bureaucracy now begins before you even draft the lease. Under the 2026 law, landlords must formally request the reason for the stay from the prospective tenant before signing any documents.

• The “Requerimiento Previo”: You must have written, dated proof that you asked the tenant about their temporary need prior to finalizing the agreement.
• The Penalty: Failing to secure this preliminary written request is classified as a minor infraction (infracción leve), carrying an immediate fine of up to €1,500.

4. Severe Financial Penalties for Defective Contracts

The Canarian government is using these strict formatting rules to instantly spot disguised holiday lets. If you sign a mid-term contract without the highly specific, proven motivation clause (causa), the law dictates that the agreement is legally defective.

• Automatic Reclassification: A defective temporary contract is instantly reclassified under Article 12.3 as an illegal tourist rental.
• The Fine: This is classified as a serious infraction (infracción grave), and the landlord faces a fine ranging from €1,501 up to €30,000. Crucially, even if the tenant’s reason for being there was genuine (e.g., a real traveling nurse), if the motivation was not properly written into the contract, the fine still applies. The law punishes the documentary defect, not just the fraud.

Navigating the 2026 Canarian rental landscape requires absolute documentary precision; relying on generic contract templates is a high-risk liability, making it essential to have your mid-term leases drafted and audited by local legal professionals before any funds change hands.