The Port Authority of A Coruña has requested that the Xunta de Galicia introduce an adjustment in the accompanying law to the 2026 regional budgets, so that cruise ships that do not overnight in the city are exempt from paying the tourist tax.
The A Coruña City Council has begun applying the tax to hotels and tourist accommodations, with an ordinance that includes its extension to cruise ships starting January 1, 2026. The City Council’s decision was based on the fact that the regional Law 5/2024, accompanying the 2025 budgets, included cruise ships in the application of the levy, whether they overnight or not in the city, hence the port authority’s request to modify the law.
As stated in a press conference by the president of the port authority, Martín Fernández, “it seems logical that cruise passengers pay the tax only if they overnight in the city, in the same way as any other traveler who arrives in A Coruña by plane, bus, train, or private vehicle and leaves the city the same day, without staying overnight, and who for this reason does not pay the tourist tax. Furthermore, it must be taken into account that a percentage of cruise passengers do not even get off the ship.”
The Port Authority had already submitted objections to the municipal ordinance, understanding that the application of the tourist tax could be “very detrimental” to the arrival of cruise ships to the city, with a “very negative” impact on economic activity and employment. Given that the ordinance is based on the regional Law, it is considered that the proposed adjustment in the law corresponding to the 2026 budgets would also render the tax ineffective for cruise ships that do not overnight.
In the case of cruise ships, the tourist tax would not be paid by the passengers, but by the shipping company of each vessel. For this reason, the municipal levy, with a rate of 1.5 euros per passenger per day, even if they do not overnight in the city, “would jeopardize the port’s competitiveness compared to other destinations in our area, in addition to impacting the budget planning of the shipping companies that are already marketing for the years 2026 and 2027,” claims the A Coruña port.
The port facility recalls that the Port Authority applies a 40% discount on its fees, “precisely to incentivize the arrival of cruise ships.” If the planned tourist tax is implemented, “this incentive, which has managed to attract shipping companies, becomes ineffective.”
A Coruña asserts itself as the leader in cruise traffic on the Cantabrian-Atlantic coast, with a forecast of reaching 169 calls and 480,000 passengers in 2026. The economic impact of the sector is estimated at 40 million euros annually in the city and the metropolitan area. Its impact includes not only local commerce and hospitality but also encompasses a broader business network that includes port companies providing services to cruise traffic.
