Ibiza tourist tax: how much, who pays and when

Ibiza Connects · Updated on October 16, 2026 · 11 min read

If you've booked a hotel, apartment or villa in Ibiza, when you leave you'll be charged a small extra amount: the tourist tax. It isn't a fine or a hotel surcharge, but a Balearic Government tax that applies equally in Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera. Here it is, with the rates used by the government's official calculator in October 2026 and examples of what you'd pay on the most common trips.

What the Ibiza tourist tax is and what it pays for

Its official name is the tourist stays tax (impuesto sobre estancias turísticas), created by Law 2/2016 of 30 March of the Balearic Parliament. In everyday speech and on travel sites it's called the ecotax or tourist tax, and in government communications the sustainable tourism tax (ITS). It has been charged since 1 July 2016, and its rates doubled in 2018 to the ones still in force.

It's not the first time the Balearics has had a tax like this: in the early 2000s there was another ecotax that was scrapped shortly afterwards.

What it's spent on

The money raised goes into a fund for sustainable tourism projects, shared out among the islands through calls for proposals. The official website groups them into seven areas: the environment (which gets the most money, covering water treatment, natural areas and species), improving the destination out of season, social welfare (including social rented housing), research, historic heritage, responsible tourism and training for tourism jobs.

Adding up what the website publishes for each area, there are close to 300 projects and around €800 million allocated. In Ibiza, for example, in 2026 the website highlights an observatory that measures the island's environmental and social health, as well as training projects and work against illegal holiday lets.

Ibiza tourist tax rates in 2026 by type of accommodation

The rate depends on the category of accommodation and the season. High season runs from 1 May to 31 October; low season from 1 November to 30 April. These are the amounts per person per night used by the official government calculator (October 2026). Note: 10% VAT is added to all of them.

With VAT, the highest rate comes to €4.40 per person per night, and the lowest summer rate to €1.10.

Examples of what you'd pay

To give you a real idea, four typical trips calculated with the rates in the table, VAT included:

On a normal trip, the tourist tax costs less than a single dinner. The full budget, broken down, is in how much a trip to Ibiza costs.

Reductions and exemptions: who pays less and who doesn't pay

Low season

From November to April you pay a quarter of the summer rate. What's open and what to expect then is in Ibiza in winter.

Long stays: half price from the ninth night

If you stay more than eight nights in a row in the same accommodation, the rate drops by 50% from the ninth day. The key words are "the same accommodation": if you split your holiday between two hotels, the count starts again at each.

Under-16s

Children under 16 don't pay the tourist tax. In practice, a family only pays for the adults and any children aged 16 or over.

Other cases

According to the Balearic Tax Agency (ATIB), besides children there are three other exemptions, all very specific:

• Force majeure: stays that are extended or happen for reasons beyond your control.
• Health reasons: stays linked to medical treatment or care.
• Social programmes: stays within a programme subsidised by a public authority.

In every case you have to request it and provide proof in the declaration the accommodation asks you to fill in on arrival; if you don't do it then, you'll be charged. If in doubt, check with the ATIB rather than arguing at reception: the hotel can only apply what the rules say.

What doesn't get you out of paying:

• Being Spanish or a Balearic resident. The tax is on the stay in tourist accommodation, not on where the traveller comes from.
• Having already paid for your booking online. Many platforms show it separately as "tourist tax not included", and it's paid at the accommodation.
• Travelling for work. If you sleep in a tourist establishment, it applies just the same.

How and when the tourist tax is paid

It's paid at the accommodation itself, usually at check-out. The hotel, apartment or holiday home owner acts as the collector (the law calls them "substitute taxpayers"): they charge you the amount, itemise it on the bill and then pay it over to the authorities.

How it works, according to the ATIB manual:

1. On arrival you're asked to fill in and sign a declaration with your name, ID document, length of stay and, if applicable, the exemption you're claiming.
2. You pay at any time before you leave, or earlier if the accommodation charged it in advance.
3. You're given proof of payment (the invoice or a similar document), on which the tax must appear clearly separated from everything else.
4. If you extend or shorten your stay, a supplementary declaration is made and the amount adjusted.

Practical details:

• You don't pay it at the airport or on the ferry. Arriving in Ibiza costs nothing; what's taxed is sleeping in tourist accommodation.
• Check the tax line on your bill, even if it's charged to the card you booked with: that way you can see the right category and season have been applied.
• In holiday villas and apartments, the owner or agency collects it. It's usually shown in the contract as a separate amount.

What if I stay with friends?

If you sleep at a friend's or relative's home without paying for a tourist let, there's no tourist tax. The tax only applies to establishments and homes marketed to tourists.

Cruises and Formentera

Cruises

Cruise passengers calling at a Balearic port also pay the tax, at €2 in high season and €0.50 in low season, plus VAT. It isn't paid at the port: the cruise operator collects it, so ask whether it's included in your ticket's port charges. According to the official calculator, passengers on ships whose home port is in the Balearics themselves are exempt.

Formentera

Formentera applies exactly the same tax, with the same rates and rules. If you sleep there, you pay it at your Formentera accommodation; if you go over and back from Ibiza in a day, there's no tax for the trip.

Don't confuse it with two charges specific to Formentera that have nothing to do with it: the vehicle authorisation from June to September and paid car or scooter access to ses Illetes in season. Both are set each year by the Consell de Formentera; if you're going for the day, we cover them in Formentera day trip from Ibiza.

Changes that have been proposed

A summer rise in the tourist tax has been part of Balearic political debate for almost two years, which is why so many figures are floating around. Here's the timeline, with dates:

Some websites reported in 2026 that the tourist tax had already risen by €2 in June, July and August, with figures matching the 2025 proposal that was withdrawn. No rate changes until a law is passed and published in the BOIB, and as of 16 October 2026 that hasn't happened.

Before you travel, the quickest way to check is to enter your dates and accommodation in the official tax calculator, which gives you the amount including VAT. If the rates change, we'll update this guide.

Common tourist tax mistakes

• Mistaking it for a hotel extra. It's an official tax; what you can ask is for it to be itemised.
• Counting the children. Up to and including age 15 they don't pay; if you're charged for them, ask for it to be corrected.
• Using summer rates for a March trip. In low season you pay a quarter.
• Forgetting VAT when doing the sums: the final amount is 10% higher than the rate.
• Thinking no tourist tax means a better deal. A holiday home that doesn't charge it may be illegal, and that saving can cost you dearly. The fines and rules worth knowing are in Ibiza rules for tourists.

How it fits into your budget

In a luxury hotel the tourist tax is higher, but still small: with an average five-star night above €500 in August, €4.40 per person barely registers. What to ask before booking, including whether the tax is included in the price, is in luxury and boutique hotels. On a tight budget, the tourist tax isn't where you save: the season, the area and transport are. That's all in Ibiza on a budget.

Sources and official information

• Govern de les Illes Balears · Official sustainable tourism tax calculator (rates, seasons and exemptions)
• Govern de les Illes Balears · What the sustainable tourism tax is
• Govern de les Illes Balears · Purposes and funded projects
• Agència Tributària de les Illes Balears (ATIB) · Information manual on the tourist stays tax (exemptions, declaration and payment)
• BOIB · Official Gazette of the Balearic Islands (Law 2/2016 and amendments)
• Menorca.info · Government proposal to raise the tax from June to August (8-3-2025)
• Hosteltur · The Government drops the tax rise (9-4-2025)
• Ara Balears · Tax rise debated in the Sustainability Pact (4-2-2026)