Renting an apartment, a house or a room to tourists in Cape Verde is not covered by a lease: it falls under a tourism-accommodation regime, alojamento complementar (AC), governed by Decreto-Lei No. 56/2024 of 13 November. The text was published in the Boletim Oficial No. 110, 1st Supplement, Series I, and came into force on 14-11-2024 (art. 60.º). An earlier regulatory text, Decreto-Regulamentar No. 16/2024, had been published on 31-10-2024 in Boletim Oficial No. 103; it was annulled as published "de forma inexata" by Anulação de Publicação No. 15/2024. The applicable text is therefore Decreto-Lei No. 56/2024. Here is, step by step, what this regime requires of an owner or an investor who wants to let a property short-term.
General information: this article is for information only. It does not replace the advice of a lawyer or a notary, nor the official position of the Central Tourism Authority in Cape Verde. The amounts quoted come from the legal text, and no personalised advice is given here.
Alojamento complementar: hosting tourists outside a lease, under conditions
Alojamento complementar is the regime for operating and marketing tourism accommodation establishments in this modality (art. 1.º). Three features define it.
- It applies throughout the national territory, including rural areas (art. 2.º no. 1), and the abbreviation "AC" is mandatory (art. 2.º no. 5).
- It is detached from the urban lease regime: the rules and principles of the legal regime of arrendamento urbano do not apply to the private relationships of AC (art. 2.º no. 4). In other words, this is not a residential rental contract — on that specific point, our guide to long-term renting in Cape Verde covers the lease, which is a different framework.
- The stay is temporary: the service cannot exceed ninety continuous days for the same traveller (art. 6.º no. 2).
The regime also contains two important exclusions. A property that meets the conditions of an empreendimento turístico or of rural-area accommodation cannot be operated as AC (art. 2.º nos. 2 and 3). And the exercise of AC does not benefit from the tourism-utility status (art. 32.º): the advantages attached to that status do not apply here.
Finally, the law establishes a strong presumption: as soon as a property is advertised, made available or intermediated in order to host tourists as alojamento complementar, the activity is presumed to be an AC service (art. 6.º no. 6). Posting a listing online is therefore enough to bring the property within the scope of the regime.
The establishment may also be used for personal or family purposes, provided that the provider notifies the Central Tourism Authority at least ten days before the planned date of occupation (art. 13.º nos. 1 and 2 of Decreto-Lei No. 56/2024).
Vivenda, apartment, rooms: three typologies, three ceilings
The regime recognises three typologies (art. 5.º no. 2): the vivenda (a single-family establishment whose accommodation unit is a self-contained building — art. 4.º subpara. k), the apartamento (a self-contained unit of a building, or part of an urban property capable of independent use — art. 4.º subpara. b) and quartos, meaning rooms or dormitories. Each type has its own ceilings.
- Vivenda: maximum capacity of twenty users (art. 16.º no. 1).
- Apartamento: maximum capacity of ten users and a maximum layout of T5 (art. 17.º no. 1).
- Quartos: maximum capacity of four users, with minimum areas (art. 18.º) — single room 9 m², double room 12 m², triple room 15 m²; these minimum areas also apply to dormitories (art. 21.º).
On top of these ceilings, a general limit applies: an AC's maximum capacity is ten rooms and twenty users (art. 15.º no. 1). Marketing must be carried out "de forma unitária", that is, on the basis of the accommodation unit and not of a fraction of it (art. 16.º no. 4, 17.º no. 3, 18.º no. 6).
Who is entitled to operate — owner, usufructuary, company, diaspora and foreigner
The range of eligible parties is broad: the owner, the usufructuary, management or service-providing companies, intermediaries, agencies and users may all operate (art. 3.º no. 1). But the operator must be "devidamente legalizado" under commercial and tax legislation (art. 3.º no. 3), and remains liable under the principle of unity of operation (art. 13.º nos. 3 and 4).
For a foreign applicant — whether a natural person or a company manager — the application must include a regular residence title in the country, an equivalent, or a copy of the residence application filed with the competent authority (art. 28.º no. 3 subpara. c). And if the applicant is a company, its corporate purpose must include the provision of accommodation (art. 28.º no. 4). The situation of the foreign investor at the time of purchase is covered in our guide to buying property in Cape Verde as a foreigner; here, the focus is the moment of operation.
Minimum requirements: habitability, safety, services and the identification plate
The property must first meet general habitability conditions: continuous and adequately sized water, electricity and sanitation, hot and cold water, waste collection, furniture, means of communication, ventilation and privacy, hygiene (art. 19.º). Safety and fire-prevention requirements are added; however, establishments with a capacity below ten users benefit from reduced obligations, covering signage, a fire extinguisher, first aid, assistance and emergency contacts (art. 20.º no. 6).
Sanitary facilities follow a numerical rule: at least one sanitary installation per four rooms and per maximum of ten users; where shared, one sanitary installation per six users (art. 22.º). The regime also imposes minimum services: reception and key handover, check-in and check-out, emergency assistance, invoicing and complaint handling (art. 23.º).
Finally, an identification plate is mandatory at the establishment's entrance, under penalty of a contravention, and must show the registration number (art. 37.º). The technical specifications appear in Annex V (standardised acrylic material and typeface, with the wording "AC — Registo n.º xxxx/xx").
The 50% ceiling in a building, and the limits per operator and per island
The regime caps the concentration of AC units. A single operator may not hold more than ten AC units in apartments per building (art. 15.º no. 2), nor more than fifty AC units nationally and twenty per island (art. 15.º no. 3). For the purposes of these ceilings, the spouse, descendants and companies with common partners are taken into account (art. 15.º no. 5).
In a divided building, the area occupied by AC units must not exceed 50% of the building's total area (art. 15.º no. 6). This ceiling may be extended by the Central Tourism Authority up to 75% (art. 15.º no. 7), on an express resolution recorded in the minutes of the condomínio's decision-making body; the condomínio itself must be duly registered (art. 15.º no. 8). The rise to 75% is therefore never automatic: it depends on a formal decision by the co-ownership. The workings of horizontal property are detailed in our guide to apartments in co-ownership in Cape Verde and the 2025 law.
Registration and licence via the electronic platform (SGIT): the process
Licensing is carried out simultaneously with registration (art. 26.º). Each establishment receives a four-digit number followed by an island code, chosen from the list SA, SV, SN, SL, BV, MA, ST, FG and BR (art. 26.º no. 3). The register is public (art. 26.º no. 6).
The procedure goes through the electronic platform made available by the Central Tourism Authority (art. 27.º no. 1): the operator registers there and files the documents (art. 27.º nos. 1 and 2). The Authority then issues a Documento Único de Cobrança (DUC) for the fee and assigns a number (art. 27.º no. 3). Once the registration and the number are obtained, the operator is authorised to operate on a provisional basis (art. 27.º no. 4). A fallback procedure at counters or by e-mail is provided for if the platform is unavailable (art. 27.º no. 6).
The Central Tourism Authority is the Instituto de Turismo de Cabo Verde, or any government department that succeeds it (art. 4.º subpara. c). The name of the electronic platform is the SGIT (Sistema de Gestão da Informação Turística), introduced by the Instituto do Turismo de Cabo Verde. Licensing is subsidiarily subject to the general regime for tourism establishments (art. 28.º no. 1), and the licence is issued per property unit (art. 28.º no. 2).
Provisional and definitive licence: 6 months, inspection, 3-year validity, renewal
The provisional licence converts into a definitive licence six months after its issuance, whether or not the vistoria (inspection) has taken place (art. 27.º no. 5). The Authority must carry out inspections within a maximum of sixty days from registration (art. 29.º no. 1). After the inspection, the licence states the establishment's capacity, classification and typology (art. 29.º no. 3) and must be displayed in a visible area (art. 29.º no. 4).
The licence is valid for three years and may be renewed for an equal period (art. 30.º no. 1). The renewal application must be submitted three months before expiry, via the platform (art. 30.º no. 2), and requires proof of registration with the Sistema Automático de Recolha de Boletins de Alojamento (art. 30.º no. 5). Finally, the transitional regime grants one hundred and twenty days for establishments already operating at the time of entry into force to register, with a simplified file (art. 58.º).
Licence fees (Annex II) and the contribuição turística
The registration and licensing fee is calculated on a base value, increased by 15% of that value per accommodation unit (art. 31.º no. 2). It may be paid in two instalments (art. 31.º no. 3), and payment goes through the DUC (art. 31.º no. 5).
The base amounts appear in Annex II, expressed in Cape Verdean escudos ($00).
- Registration and licensing: Vivendas 20,000$00; Apartamentos 15,000$00; Quartos 5,000$00 — each increased by 15% per unit.
- Renewal: the same base values (Vivendas 20,000$00, Apartamentos 15,000$00, Quartos 5,000$00).
- Issuance of certificates, declarations or duplicates: 2,500$00.
These amounts are in Cape Verdean escudos and are not converted into euros here. Note that the Annex II table of Decreto-Lei No. 45/2022, in the part relating to the fee applicable to AC units, has been revoked (art. 57.º).
Finally, the operator must collect the contribuição turística "no valor vigente no país" (art. 39.º). The legal text does not set that amount: it refers to the value in force in the country, which should be checked with the competent administration.
Advertising, platforms, quotas and penalties: what brings a listing down
All advertising must state the brand or designation followed by the expression "Alojamento Complementar" or its abbreviation "AC" (art. 10.º no. 2). It must also identify the registration and licence number, including on e-commerce platforms (art. 10.º no. 3). An online platform may not publish an establishment that is not duly registered with the Central Tourism Authority (art. 14.º no. 2), and intermediaries may not market without a licence issued (art. 43.º no. 5).
The law provides that the Government sets, every two years by portaria, quotas of licences for each island or município, according to criteria linked to the right to housing and to tourism pressure (art. 41.º). This is an open regulatory matter: as at the sources consulted, no published quota has been verified, and no figure can be asserted here.
Failure to comply with these rules is penalised. Contraventions include offering or advertising without a licence, the absence of the plate, improper use of the AC designation, operating without a licence or with an expired licence, and advertising on digital marketing networks with an expired licence (art. 48.º no. 3). The coima (fine) ranges from 20,000$00 to 100,000$00 for a natural person and from 100,000$00 to 1,000,000$00 for a legal person (art. 50.º); in the event of a repeat offence, it is raised to double (art. 51.º). Ancillary penalties may be added (art. 49.º).
Local examples: Sal, Boa Vista, Praia, Mindelo
The legal regime does not differ from one island to another: the applicable law is the same throughout the national territory. What varies locally is three concrete elements: tourist demand, the co-ownership situation of the building concerned and the quotas per island or município provided for by law (art. 41.º). No local market figures are put forward here.
Due diligence steps
Before letting a property short-term, a methodical check is essential. The following points flow from the requirements of the text.
- Verify the property's title and certidão matricial, required in support of the application (art. 28.º no. 3 subpara. d); our guide to the land registry in Cape Verde explains what registration protects.
- Obtain from the município the declaration certifying conformity with the minimum requirements, the precise location, a regular asset situation, compliance with municipal tax obligations — in particular the Imposto Único sobre o Património (IUP) — and the quality of the facade (art. 28.º no. 3 subpara. e).
- If you are the tenant of the property, hold the lease and an authenticated document containing the owner's authorisation (art. 28.º no. 3 subpara. d).
- Confirm that the condomínio is registered and that the area ceiling is respected (art. 15.º nos. 6 to 8).
- Keep the summary memória descritiva of the project (art. 28.º no. 3 subpara. f).
- Plan the timeline: registration, provisional licence, inspection and conversion into a definitive licence (art. 27.º, 29.º and 30.º).
- Do not assume that AC exempts you from other licensing, in particular environmental, urban-planning or construction licensing (art. 28.º no. 5).