Foreigners add €6 billion to the Spanish economy

Foreigners who own a home in Spain and use it as their habitual residence contributed over €6 billion to the national gross domestic product (GDP), according to data from the report ‘The socio-economic impact of residential tourism in Spain’, prepared by PwC at the request of the Association of Developers and Builders of Spain (APCE).

“The contribution of this residential tourism to GDP is triple that of the textile industry, double that of the timber industry and the same as the manufacture of pharmaceutical products in Spain,” said Anna Merino, director of the Economics team at PwC.

Over 100,000 jobs

The document shows that each euro spent by residential tourists has an impact of well over €2 on the economy. In addition to this direct contribution to the economy, the economic activity associated with spending by foreigners generated 105,600 full-time jobs in 2022.

The report was commissioned by APCE in response to the possibility that some communities might limit the purchase of homes in Spain by foreigners. “With this study we want to demonstrate the negative impact that a measure such as the one proposed by some administrations would have on the Spanish economy”, explained Juan Antonio Gómez-Pintado, president of the association.

Although there is no data for 2023 yet, Merino said, “It is very likely that the impact of residential tourism in Spain in 2023 will be even greater than in 2022, due to the increase in spending by visitors during their stay”. During 2023, tourist spending soared by 36 per cent to almost €20 billion.