The guest who will not leave at check-out (or will not pay): what a hotel or holiday rental can do (Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece, 2026)

Updated: 10 November 2026

It is rare, but it happens: a guest does not leave at check-out time, stays on without paying or refuses to go. We read the Andalusian hotel rules, the Andalusian Tourism Act, the holiday-rental decree, the Spanish Urban Leases Act, the Spanish Criminal Code, the Portuguese tourist accommodation law, the Italian public security regulation and the Greek 2025 regulation (links at the end). Where we could not confirm something we say so. This is not legal advice: in a real case, talk to a lawyer.

First: put it in writing before arrival

Almost everything depends on what was agreed. So:

Show the check-out time on your website, in the booking confirmation and in the registration document.
Say what happens if the guest stays longer: late check-out, its price or an extra night.
Include the check-out time and house rules in your internal rules (mandatory for Andalusian hotels).
State when and how payment is made (on arrival, on departure, in advance).

Andalusia, hotels: staying longer is another day

Decree-Law 13/2020 (consolidated text):

Art. 26.1: the room is occupied from 12:00 on the first day to 12:00 on the departure day, unless you agree otherwise.
Art. 26.2: unless agreed otherwise, staying longer means the guest must pay one more day.
Art. 26.3: extra nights by agreement are an extension, recorded in the registration document.
Art. 20.2: the registration document includes arrival and departure dates.
Art. 21.3: payment is due when the bill is presented or by the agreed date. Filing a complaint does not exempt the guest from paying.
Art. 25.3: you may ask the police for help to remove anyone who breaks the internal rules or the usual rules of social behaviour.

Andalusian Tourism Act

Law 13/2011 (consolidated text, BOE):

Art. 22 c): guests must respect the agreed departure date and vacate the unit.
Art. 22 d): they must pay when the bill is presented.
Art. 36.3: you may refuse continued stay to guests who break these duties.
Art. 36.4: police help to remove someone is provided for breaches of social behaviour or internal rules, or staying for a purpose other than normal use. It does not expressly mention late departure or non-payment: another reason to put check-out time in your internal rules.
Art. 24 h): you must have complaint forms and hand them out.

Andalusia, holiday rentals

Decree 28/2016 (Junta de Andalucía text):

Art. 7.4: occupation from 15:00 on the first day to 11:00 on the departure day, unless another schedule is agreed.
Art. 2.5: you may refuse continued stay to a guest who breaks their obligations, especially on behaviour, require them to leave within 24 hours, and ask the police for help.
The decree sets no late-stay surcharge: what you agreed and published before booking applies (art. 8.2).
Art. 6.2: a 24-hour phone line and official complaint forms must be available.

Is the guest a tenant? The Urban Leases Act

Spanish Urban Leases Act, art. 5 e) (BOE, updated 7-10-2026):

The Act does not apply to the temporary use of a furnished, equipped home offered through tourist channels, for profit, and subject to tourism rules.
The maximum duration is set by the authorities and cannot exceed 31 days.
If your property meets these conditions, the guest is not a tenant under that Act. Which court procedure applies if they still refuse to leave we have not confirmed: ask a lawyer.

What not to do yourself

We found no rule allowing you to cut power or water, change the lock or remove the guest's belongings on your own. The Spanish Criminal Code (BOE) punishes:

Art. 455: enforcing your own right outside legal channels with violence, intimidation or force on things (a fine of 6 to 12 months).
Art. 172.1: coercion; the penalty is higher if the aim is to prevent the lawful enjoyment of a home.
We have not read court rulings applying this to hotels or holiday rentals, but the risk is there. The route the rules provide is to ask the police for help.

Portugal

Decree-Law 39/2008, art. 48: access or continued stay may be refused to anyone who disturbs the normal running of the establishment; access rules must be published.
That article says nothing about check-out time, non-payment or police. For local accommodation (Decree-Law 128/2014) we have not confirmed any rule on continued stay.
Complaints book: the electronic one is mandatory, as is the paper one; replies within 15 working days (Turismo de Portugal).
The offence of «burla para obtenção de serviços» (art. 220 of the Criminal Code): not read in an official source, not confirmed.

Italy

Public security regulation (R.D. 635/1940), art. 187: businesses may not refuse service without a legitimate reason to anyone who asks and pays.
We found no national rule on a guest who will not leave the room.
The hotelier's lien on the guest's belongings (art. 2760 Civil Code) and «insolvenza fraudolenta» (art. 641 Criminal Code): not read in an official source, not confirmed.

Greece: the 2025 regulation

Ministerial Decision 4109/2025 (Government Gazette B' 1546/01-04-2025):

Art. 8.3: if the room is not vacated by 12:00, the departure day counts as a full day; if still occupied at 18:00, the guest pays a full night.
Check-out time can be adjusted if your policy says so, and late check-out is optional, with any charge disclosed.
Art. 9.1 e) and 9.2: if the guest does not vacate at the agreed check-out time, you may end the contract and require them to leave immediately.
Art. 10.1: if the bill is not paid on time, you may refuse further stay; you may ask for daily payment.
Art. 13: guest or provider may turn to the police, who must give «every lawful assistance».
It applies to tourist accommodation under Law 4276/2014. Whether it covers short-term rentals we have not confirmed.

If there is a public order problem

If there are threats, violence or danger, call 112: free everywhere in the EU, from landlines and mobiles.
If it is not urgent, call the local or national police and explain that the guest's stay has ended.
Keep the booking, registration document, internal rules and invoice at hand.
If the guest wants to complain, hand over the complaint form (the Livro de Reclamações in Portugal). It does not exempt them from paying.

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Frequently asked questions

Can I charge another night if the guest does not leave at 12?

In Andalusian hotels, unless agreed otherwise, yes: staying longer means paying one more day (Decree-Law 13/2020, art. 26.2). In holiday rentals, it depends on what was agreed and published.

Can I change the lock or cut the power?

We found no rule allowing it, and the Spanish Criminal Code punishes taking the law into your own hands (art. 455) and coercion (art. 172). Ask the police for help.

Is a holiday-rental guest a tenant in Spain?

If the property meets art. 5 e) of the Urban Leases Act (furnished, offered through tourist channels and under tourism rules), that Act does not apply.

Sources

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