|Home| Info| Community| Business| Beaches| What to do?| Rentals| News| Forum| Blogs| Finance| History| FAQ| Contact|
yet even more on tourist property licences:
yet even more on tourist property licences:
another update from the Regiao sul newspaper...seems from the article that some might decamp to other places to run their firms.
here is the article -
Non-classifed hotel-type accommodation in debate
Journal Região Sul to hold Forum on 21st April
The initiative will take place on 21st April, in the Hotel Ampalius, Vilamoura, and brings together more than a dozen entities, officials, associated managers, property owners, travel agents and other interested parties, turning once more to the problem of the legality of non-classified hotel type accommodation in the Algarve, which includes touristic properties, the rental of second homes etc., also commonly known as «parallel beds.
Since July 2005, the IGAE - Inspecção-Geral das Actividades Económicas (Inspector General of Economic Activities), now the ASAE - Autoridade de Segurança Alimentar e Económica (Authority of Economic Food and Safety), have effected inspections of this type of accommodation in beachside areas, from the north to the south of the country. As a result, 210 processes of infractions have been taken out. In August and September, the inspections centred on the Algarve, where more than 200 processes were taken out and respective fines applied, of between 2.500 and 30.000 euros per apartment. In the last few months of last year, the ASAE began inspecting tourist operators, confonting them with the inexistence of the necessary Licença de Utilização Turística (Touristic Utilisation Licence) for non-classified beds.
In the meantime, the deputy Social-Democrat, Mendes Bota, also a businessman connected to the sector, said that there are touristic operators who have been fined "more than 40.000 euros", an "inadmissible" situation in the parliamentarian's opinion, who has since taken a number of actions to alert the Government. After a first meeting with local authorities and with the Secretary of State for Tourism, Bernardo Trindade, where he made known the current scenario, Mendes Bota took the matter to the Assembly of the Republic on 10th March, explaining the situation and requesting an extension for fulfilment of the Law to the end of 2007, but the Government defended that already in 1997 two years had been given in which the property owners could conform to the requirements of the Law and that a new extension would "only benefit the infractor".
Meanwhile, the question remains to be resolved and asks: How to resolve the situation so that many companies do not leave the region and begin operating from offshores and by the Internet, or simply close their doors and put their employees out of work?
Various meetings have already taken place, namely by the Associação Empresarial de Almancil, but it is considered that there is still much to say, as a way of clarifying this whole situation along with public opinion. It is important, therefore, to note that during around nine years, the Law has not been fulfilled by many property owners and agents who operate this type of accommodation (also described as parallel beds) and nothing has happened to them... Only more recently have the inspections begun to make sense, and all began to want to legalise the properties. However, it appears that there is nobody to make the surveys and so the problem is further complicated.
It is, therefore, in this context that the Jornal Região Sul proposes to hold this forum/debate, seeking to mediate wherever possible so that from the clarification it may also be possible to find a solution to the problem.
Various responsible parties have been invited to take part in this forum, namely the President of AMAL, President of the Council of Loulé, President of the ASAE, President of the CCDR of the Algarve, President of the RTA, Deputies from the PS and the PSD, President of the AEA, President of NERA (the ex-Secretary of State for Tourism), President of the AHETA, specialists in the subject and others who may contribute so that a solution of consensus may be found. The definitive programme will be published in the next edition.
The Secretary of State for Tourism has also been invited to this forum, sepcifically for the closing ceremony.
This is an initiative by the weekly paper Região Sul, to be undertaken within the scope of the commemoration of its 14th anniversary, is open to the public and will begin at 10.30hrs on 21st April.
here is the article -
Non-classifed hotel-type accommodation in debate
Journal Região Sul to hold Forum on 21st April
The initiative will take place on 21st April, in the Hotel Ampalius, Vilamoura, and brings together more than a dozen entities, officials, associated managers, property owners, travel agents and other interested parties, turning once more to the problem of the legality of non-classified hotel type accommodation in the Algarve, which includes touristic properties, the rental of second homes etc., also commonly known as «parallel beds.
Since July 2005, the IGAE - Inspecção-Geral das Actividades Económicas (Inspector General of Economic Activities), now the ASAE - Autoridade de Segurança Alimentar e Económica (Authority of Economic Food and Safety), have effected inspections of this type of accommodation in beachside areas, from the north to the south of the country. As a result, 210 processes of infractions have been taken out. In August and September, the inspections centred on the Algarve, where more than 200 processes were taken out and respective fines applied, of between 2.500 and 30.000 euros per apartment. In the last few months of last year, the ASAE began inspecting tourist operators, confonting them with the inexistence of the necessary Licença de Utilização Turística (Touristic Utilisation Licence) for non-classified beds.
In the meantime, the deputy Social-Democrat, Mendes Bota, also a businessman connected to the sector, said that there are touristic operators who have been fined "more than 40.000 euros", an "inadmissible" situation in the parliamentarian's opinion, who has since taken a number of actions to alert the Government. After a first meeting with local authorities and with the Secretary of State for Tourism, Bernardo Trindade, where he made known the current scenario, Mendes Bota took the matter to the Assembly of the Republic on 10th March, explaining the situation and requesting an extension for fulfilment of the Law to the end of 2007, but the Government defended that already in 1997 two years had been given in which the property owners could conform to the requirements of the Law and that a new extension would "only benefit the infractor".
Meanwhile, the question remains to be resolved and asks: How to resolve the situation so that many companies do not leave the region and begin operating from offshores and by the Internet, or simply close their doors and put their employees out of work?
Various meetings have already taken place, namely by the Associação Empresarial de Almancil, but it is considered that there is still much to say, as a way of clarifying this whole situation along with public opinion. It is important, therefore, to note that during around nine years, the Law has not been fulfilled by many property owners and agents who operate this type of accommodation (also described as parallel beds) and nothing has happened to them... Only more recently have the inspections begun to make sense, and all began to want to legalise the properties. However, it appears that there is nobody to make the surveys and so the problem is further complicated.
It is, therefore, in this context that the Jornal Região Sul proposes to hold this forum/debate, seeking to mediate wherever possible so that from the clarification it may also be possible to find a solution to the problem.
Various responsible parties have been invited to take part in this forum, namely the President of AMAL, President of the Council of Loulé, President of the ASAE, President of the CCDR of the Algarve, President of the RTA, Deputies from the PS and the PSD, President of the AEA, President of NERA (the ex-Secretary of State for Tourism), President of the AHETA, specialists in the subject and others who may contribute so that a solution of consensus may be found. The definitive programme will be published in the next edition.
The Secretary of State for Tourism has also been invited to this forum, sepcifically for the closing ceremony.
This is an initiative by the weekly paper Região Sul, to be undertaken within the scope of the commemoration of its 14th anniversary, is open to the public and will begin at 10.30hrs on 21st April.