Residential properties will pay €59 per year, businesses according to their type and square footage, and hotels by number of stars, beds, and location. Yaiza’s household waste tax is the lowest in Lanzarote and now includes holiday homes as a distinct category.
The Yaiza Town Council has initially approved the modification of the fiscal ordinance regulating the tax for domestic, commercial, and industrial waste collection. This revision updates the domestic and commercial fees to reflect the actual costs of the service, in compliance with Law 7/2022, dated 8 April, on waste and contaminated soils for a circular economy. This law mandates local administrations to review their municipal ordinances, a process currently underway across various Canary Islands municipalities.
The primary change regarding commercial and industrial waste categories in the ordinance, compared to the current text, is the inclusion of holiday homes and other non-hotel accommodations as a distinct category, considering their unique operational characteristics and potential impact on waste generation.
Holiday homes accommodating up to two guests will incur a base fee of €59 annually, with an additional €15 for each extra guest based on the property’s capacity. In assessing properties for this economic activity and determining maximum occupancy, the Yaiza Town Council uses the Registry of Holiday Homes published by the Government of the Canary Islands, which currently lists 2,973 non-hotel accommodations of this type.
Residential properties that previously paid €23.80 annually will now pay €59 per year starting in 2026. The fees for businesses will be set according to their type and occupied square footage. For hotels, the waste tax will depend on the number of stars, tourist beds, and the complex’s location. A hotel with three or more stars could pay up to €55.27 annually per bed.
Mayor Óscar Noda emphasises that “Yaiza’s household waste collection fee is the lowest in Lanzarote, as is the road tax. This fee should have been updated in 2022, meaning we have gone three years without reflecting the actual service costs.”
Regarding the tender for the new waste collection service, the mayor informed political groups that “we are finalising the viability report for submission to the Canary Islands Council, as the tender has been challenged several times. Meanwhile, we continue with the emergency service contracted from Valoriza, which has significantly improved the quality compared to the underperforming service previously provided by Urbaser.”
The amendment to the ordinance, approved by Unidos por Yaiza with abstentions from CC and PP, will now undergo a public consultation period, allowing various social agents to submit objections. Once the objection period has concluded and responses have been reviewed, and following its final approval in the Council, the new ordinance will come into effect on 1 January 2026.
Payment Facilities
Taxpayers in Yaiza who set up direct debit for their bills will receive a 5% discount. This discount also applies to those who join the new Personalised Payment Plan for future years, which allows for monthly, quarterly, or semi-annual payments. The Yaiza Virtual Tax Office, in operation for a year, is a platform where residents can access their tax information, pay fees and taxes, set up direct debits, obtain certificates, divide debts, and manage any related procedures or requests online, conveniently and securely without visiting municipal offices.
More than a hundred taxpayers have already signed up for the new Personalised Payment Plan, and the institution has noted an increase in requests for debt divisions over the past year, resulting in an 81% rise in granted divisions.
