Giuridico e Amministrativo

🏠 Spain officially closed its Golden Visa program on April 3, ending the chance for non-EU citizens to gain residency through financial investments. Operational since 2013, the program issued 14,576 residencies, 95% of which were for real estate purchases with a minimum investment of €500,000. The closure was primarily due to housing cost increases in major cities like Madrid and Barcelona, influenced by foreign investment. Top beneficiaries were from China, the USA, and the UK.

🚩 Antonio Barreca, director of Federturismo, remarks no concern over potential impacts of Trump's tariffs on Italian tourism economy. A decline in arrivals for the Jubilee is noted, but spring bookings look promising, with expectations to recover by June and grow in the summer. The effects of tariffs on tourism will be clearer post-summer.

💸 London Heathrow Airport experienced a blackout last month, forcing a one-day closure. Following criticism of the emergency response, Heathrow introduced a plan including more airport partners for assistance and backup mobile phones.

📌 Federalberghi Veneto welcomed the extension of the deadline for mandatory catastrophe insurance policies for businesses, approved on March 28 by the Council of Ministers. President Massimiliano Schiavon praised the delay but criticized the current wording of the law for increasing costs without actually improving coverage for tourism businesses. The association highlighted the need for policies to cover actual natural disasters that might occur in specific Veneto locations, noting the inadequacy of current provisions, especially for sea-caused disasters, and the lack of clarity regarding insurance costs between landlords and tenants. Schiavon calls for a revision of the law to ensure it is effective without burdening entrepreneurs.

✈ Russian airlines are set to decommission at least 200 Airbus and Boeing aircraft, which is about 30% of their roughly 700 Western-made planes, due to a lack of spare parts resulting from sanctions after the Ukraine invasion. These aircraft also require mandatory modifications as per FAA and EASA directives, but sanctions prevent the import of the necessary parts. Currently, only 10% of Russian flights are operated with local aircraft, with hopes to increase the production of MS-21 and SJ-100 models, though none have been received by airlines yet.

💸 Starting on April 2, the UK requires EU citizens to use the Electronic Travel Authorisation (Eta) for entry, with stays up to 6 months. Applications are exclusively online or through the UK government's website and are confirmed within 3 working days. Eta, linked digitally to the passport, costs 10 pounds, rising to 16 pounds from April 9, and allows multiple trips for 2 years or until the passport's expiry if sooner.

🏘 Campania aims to increase tourism from 21 to 40 million yearly, focusing on vacation rentals to achieve this. Naples alone has 9,200 registered short-term rental businesses. Confesercenti's president, Vincenzo Schiavo, targets to double these numbers throughout the Naples province and expand entrepreneurial access to vacation rentals across Campania's provinces, potentially supporting over 100,000 families.

🚨 Ryanair lost its legal battle against the EU's grant of €650 million (€400 million loan and €250 million capital injection) to LOT Polish Airlines to recover from the Covid crisis. The European Court of Justice upheld the EU Commission's decision, ruling that the Commission did not make a manifest error in assuming LOT couldn't find accessible market financing.

✈ Ita Airways is set to join Star Alliance by early 2026, following a positive verdict from the alliance's executive council. Theo Panagiotoulias, CEO of Star Alliance, expressed strong confidence in Ita Airways, enhancing the network's global reach. Joerg Eberhart, CEO of Ita Airways, is excited about integrating Made in Italy excellence into the alliance. Ita Airways will add 360 daily flights to Star Alliance's network, boosting its European presence, particularly in Rome and Milan. Dieter Vranckx, Lufthansa Group's CCO, committed to a smooth integration process.

📌 Alessandra Priante, Enit president, reflects on the narrative surrounding the Jubilee event and its impact on tourism. Her comments came alongside easyJet's opening of a new base in Rome. Enit admits to overemphasizing crowd estimates for the Jubilee year, creating a panic effect that deterred regular tourists. Early spring data from Roman hoteliers indicate a slight decline in arrivals compared to 2024, despite expectations of significant tourist inflows.