Back in May, the PP and Vox parties voted in favour of approving a tourism decree agreed by both parties to curb tourist saturation on the islands and the decree did not include an increase in the eco tourist tax or a new tax on rental cars or private vehicles used for tourist purposes.
But now they have a problem because a large majority of the Balearic population backs the increase in the Sustainable Tourism Tax (ITS), tourist tax. According to an opinion poll conducted by the regional government in 2024, 67.6% of residents are in favour of increasing the tax - 38.7% are ‘strongly in favour’ and 28.9% are ‘in favour’ - compared to 30.1% who disagree or strongly disagree.
Currently, the tax varies in amount depending on the category of accommodation, ranging from 1 to 4 euros per person per night. The funds raised are used to finance environmental projects, improve tourism infrastructure and promote more responsible tourism. By island, only Mallorca is overwhelmingly in favour of this increase. In Mallorca, 74.6% of residents agree (43.9% strongly agree and 30.7% agree).
Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera do not have such a clear majority in favour, with opinions being more divided. Menorca registers 39.1% ‘strongly agree’ and ‘agree’ combined, while Ibiza and Formentera reflect even more scepticism, with support of 46.9% and 26% respectively, in addition to a significant percentage of residents in Formentera, 74%, who oppose the increase, the highest level among all the islands. Another relevant fact is the lack of knowledge about the tax itself: 2.3% of those surveyed admit to not knowing what the tax is.
With regard to the areas that the public consider to be priorities for investing the funds collected by the tax, the vast majority agree that the environment should be the main beneficiary: 89.8% of those surveyed agree with this allocation. This is followed by historical heritage (86.6%), improving tourist inspection and raising awareness of responsible tourism (84%) and training and employment (83.4%).