Greece’s new Special Spatial Planning Framework for Tourism lays the groundwork for targeted restrictions on short-term rentals, depending on the level of tourism and housing pressure in each area. For the first time, short-term rentals are being incorporated so explicitly into spatial planning policy, allowing for the creation of geographical zones where the activity may be restricted or prohibited, limits on the number of days a property may operate each year, and curbs on new properties entering the market, including newly built homes.
This marks a significant shift, as Airbnb and other short-term rental platforms will no longer be approached solely through the lens of taxation, property registration or operating standards. The new framework connects the activity to a destination’s capacity to accommodate further tourism development, the needs of permanent residents and the availability of housing.
The Special Spatial Planning Framework was enacted on 7 August 2026 through a Joint Ministerial Decision and published in Government Gazette D 658/7.8.2026. It constitutes the national framework setting out the basic rules for the spatial development of tourism, while also serving as a guide for lower-tier planning instruments, such as Local and Special Urban Plans.
Where restrictions may be introduced
The main change affecting short-term rentals is the ability to differentiate the rules from one area to another. The Ministry of Environment and Energy outlines four key policy directions: establishing conditions under which properties may be offered as short-term rentals, particularly in relation to their use as primary residences; regulating the annual duration of the activity; creating geographical zones in which short-term rentals may be prohibited or restricted; and controlling the development of new supply in areas facing increased pressure or displaying particular geographical characteristics.
The final point is especially significant for the property market, as the framework explicitly refers to newly built homes. This means that, provided these policy directions are translated into the appropriate planning tools and regulations, the creation of new short-term rental stock could be restricted in a high-pressure area even when it involves newly constructed properties.
No blanket ban takes effect immediately
It should be made clear, however, that the new framework does not automatically impose a single nationwide cap on rental days, nor does it introduce an across-the-board ban on new short-term rentals throughout Greece.
According to the Ministry of Environment and Energy, the Special Spatial Planning Framework defines the parameters within which short-term rentals may be regulated and sets out specific directions for their organisation and control. The enactment of the spatial planning framework is therefore one thing; the introduction and implementation of specific restrictions in a particular area is another.
This distinction is crucial for the market. Nothing in the new framework indicates that an owner who currently operates a property legally as a short-term rental automatically loses the right to continue doing so.
Housing pressure enters the equation
The connection between short-term rentals and primary residences is particularly important. The Ministry provides that the terms and conditions governing the use of properties for short-term rentals may be assessed in relation to their use as primary homes.
The impact of short-term rentals on the available housing stock will therefore become a consideration within spatial planning. In areas where the tourism use of residential properties is expanding rapidly while the supply of homes for permanent residents remains limited, the framework creates the basis for more targeted interventions.
The issue is not confined to major urban centres. It is particularly relevant to islands and popular tourism destinations, where strong seasonal demand may coexist with a limited supply of housing for permanent residents and tourism workers.
The tourism “map” will determine the intensity of interventions
The new Special Spatial Planning Framework divides Greece into five categories based on the intensity of tourism development: Controlled Development Areas (Category A), Developed Areas (Category B), Developing Areas (Category C), Early-Stage Development Areas (Category D) and Special Development Support Areas (Category E).
The classification is based primarily on indicators such as the number of tourist beds relative to the size and permanent population of each municipal unit. A separate, additional classification system is provided for the islands.
The underlying principle is that the greater the pressure on a destination, the more carefully any further tourism development should be managed. This approach is already reflected in the requirements governing new hotels. In Controlled Development Areas, the minimum land plot required for a new hotel outside designated planning zones increases to 16,000 square metres. The minimum rises to 12,000 square metres in Developed Areas and is set at 8,000 square metres in Developing and Early-Stage Development Areas.
These rules apply to tourist accommodation establishments and not automatically to homes listed on Airbnb. They nevertheless illustrate the central philosophy of the new planning framework: tourism development should not be treated in the same way in an already saturated destination as in an area where tourism remains at an early stage.
Particular emphasis on islands and coastal areas
The new approach carries even greater significance for the islands, where the Special Spatial Planning Framework provides for further classification according to their size and introduces stricter policy directions for smaller island destinations.
At the same time, the new framework strengthens the protection of coastal areas. New structures and alterations are prohibited within the zone extending from zero to 25 metres from the shoreline, subject to specific exceptions, while greater emphasis is placed on the carrying capacity of coastal destinations.
Here, too, this particular prohibition does not constitute a restriction on short-term rentals. It does, however, demonstrate that islands, coastal areas and destinations experiencing intense tourism pressure lie at the heart of the new spatial planning policy.
The example of urban planning schemes
The potential practical significance of linking the Tourism Spatial Planning Framework with Local and Special Urban Plans can already be seen in discussions concerning popular tourism destinations.
For example, proposals submitted through the Ministry of Environment and Energy’s public participation platform for the Special Urban Plan of Thira call for a halt to the creation of new short-term rental accommodation, citing the island’s housing shortage.
These are proposals submitted as part of the planning process and not restrictions that have already been enacted. They are nevertheless indicative of the direction in which the debate may move in destinations experiencing particularly high levels of pressure.
Similarly, planning material prepared for the Special Urban Plan of Mykonos has examined the possibility of imposing limits on “shared tourism accommodation” based on a percentage of the bed capacity of licensed mainstream tourist accommodation. It has also considered restrictions on new building permits linked to short-term rental use.
Once again, these are planning proposals rather than generally applicable rules that have already entered into force.
What it means for the property market
For the property market, the most significant change concerns the predictability of a property’s future use. Until now, an investor purchasing a home in a major tourism destination could generally include short-term rental use among the main scenarios for generating a return.
Under the new framework, that assumption will require closer scrutiny. The property’s location, the category in which the area is classified, local housing pressure and the more detailed provisions resulting from urban planning may all become increasingly important in determining whether—and under what conditions—new short-term rental activity may be developed.
For property developers planning new residential projects in tourism destinations, the explicit possibility of restricting new supply, including newly built homes, introduces an additional factor that will need to be taken into account.
The new Tourism Spatial Planning Framework does not, therefore, close the door on short-term rentals. It does, however, change the way in which the activity may be regulated—not necessarily through a single rule applying across the entire country, but through interventions tailored to the conditions prevailing in each destination.
That is the key new development for property owners, investors and the housing market.
