The COVID 19 pandemic brought challenges and opportunities. It was a challenge for the global hotel industry because it meant the temporary closure of hotels without an opening date in sight, with the usual labor, financial and tax burden.
It was an opportunity for residential tourism. Although affected at the beginning of the pandemic, once the government began to relax the measures, people’s need for recreation was evident and we rediscovered the majesty of nature and the advantages of single-story homes.
This, together with the success of the Airbnb platform allowed “the residential tourism business to be democratized and new entrepreneurs to be launched.”
The World Tourism Organization (“UNWTO”) believes that the rapid expansion of short-term rental platforms may also be related to social changes. Millennials are said to be the active leading generation on these platforms because of their familiarity with the latest technological innovations, the shift of the value system from materialism to experientialism, and their willingness to share with others.”
But not everything is rosy. By increasing the offer via Airbnb, hotel establishments have view it as unfair competition and with good reason. Not only are they not subject to pay taxes in our country, worse still, they are not regulated. This means that any tourist arriving to the Dominican Republic using this model, has no greater guarantees than those offered by the same digital platform.
The debate on taxing such models was recently opened. We draw attention to the fact that the duty of the authorities goes beyond merely setting up the corresponding tax. Their duty is to preserve the good name that the Dominican Republic currently enjoys as a recipient of investments and visitors on holidays.
The World Travel and Tourism Council (“WTTC”) proposes several strategies and recommendations based on the experience of several countries, namely:
-Digital records
-Data collection
-Smart taxation
-Long-term community investment
Recently, Barcelona City Council sent a statement to Airbnb where it warns that there are an estimated “6,000 illegal tourist apartments” that, if not removed from the platform within 15 days, will be subject to a sanctioning file of 60,000 Euros.
Carrying out duties must involve not only MITUR and PRO CONSUMIDOR, but also the corresponding municipality.
The task is ours, tourism is all of us!!!
Source:
Revista Puro Turismo
