SES.Hospedajes is the Ministry of the Interior's online service where accommodation providers in Spain send booking and guest data. If you let a flat or a house to travellers, you send two things to it: the booking within 24 hours of it being made, and the guests' details within 24 hours of the stay starting. This guide explains both and what to prepare before your first guest.
It is practical guidance, not legal advice.
What SES.Hospedajes is and who has to use it
The obligation comes from Real Decreto 933/2021, which covers hotels, hostels, campsites and holiday rentals alike. The communications go to the SES.Hospedajes service, which replaced the older way of sending a "parte de viajeros" to the police by fax or local systems.
Catalonia and the Basque Country have their own police reporting channels (Mossos d'Esquadra and Ertzaintza). If your property is in one of those regions, check with them which data goes where.
The two communications
The booking communication. When a booking is made or a contract is formalised, and when it is cancelled, you send its details within 24 hours (article 6.3 a). This includes the contract reference, the dates, the number of travellers and how the stay is paid.
The traveller communication. When the stay starts, you send the guests' details within 24 hours (article 6.3 b). This is what most hosts still call the parte de viajeros. Every guest is included. Guests aged 14 or over sign their own registration, and the details of a child under 14 are given by the adult travelling with them (article 4.2).
Professional operators send these communications electronically (article 6.4) and keep a register of them for three years after the stay ends (article 5.3).
Before your first guest: a setup checklist
- Register as an operator. In the SES.Hospedajes portal, register yourself or your company as the operator of the accommodation.
- Register each property as an establishment. Each one gets its own establishment code. You need that code on every communication for that property.
- Choose how you will send. You can fill in the form or upload a file in the portal yourself, or let software send for you. Software uses a separate web service user and password from your operator account.
- Decide how guests will give you their details. A form they fill in before arrival saves time at the door and avoids typing errors. See what guest data you need to collect.
- Put the deadlines in your routine. The booking communication is due within 24 hours of the booking, which can be weeks before the stay. The traveller communication is due within 24 hours of check-in.
A first communication, start to finish
Example data. A couple books "Casa Mirador" on 2 March for a stay starting 20 March.
- On 2 or 3 March, send the booking communication with the contract reference, the dates (20 to 24 March), two travellers and the payment type.
- Before 20 March, collect both guests' details: names, document type and number, nationality, date of birth, address and contact details.
- On 20 March, after they arrive, send the traveller communication for both guests.
- Check that SES.Hospedajes accepted both communications. Sending them is only half of the job; this guide explains how to confirm that SES received them.
Common mistakes in the first month
- Sending only the traveller communication and forgetting the booking one.
- Waiting until the day of arrival to collect guest details, then typing them in a hurry.
- Treating "sent" as "done" and never checking the result.
- Registering one establishment for several separate flats. Each unit you let separately is normally its own establishment; check this in the portal when you register.
Doing it with less manual work
If you manage more than a couple of properties, guest registration software such as Claveo can send guests a form to fill in on their phone and track both deadlines for each stay. Whichever way you send, the obligation and the deadlines stay the same. See how it works with example data.
In short
- Register as an operator and register every property as an establishment.
- Send the booking within 24 hours of it being made, and the guests within 24 hours of check-in.
- Collect guest details before arrival.
- Check that SES accepted each communication.
- Keep the register for three years.