INE WebInq for Alojamento Local: monthly statistics explained
INE WebInq is the statistical portal that collects the IPHH — Inquérito à Permanência de Hóspedes na Hotelaria — every month from Portuguese accommodation providers. Not every AL is contacted, but those that are must file arrivals, nights and net revenue by nationality, on time, every month, including months with zero bookings. This page explains WebInq/IPHH end-to-end and, at the end, shows how Chave AL keeps the numbers ready to enter.
What INE WebInq is
INE WebInq is the online statistical portal run by the Instituto Nacional de Estatística. Its main return for accommodation is the IPHH — Inquérito à Permanência de Hóspedes na Hotelaria — a monthly form that captures arrivals, overnight stays and revenue by guest nationality for every registered establishment.
The data feeds Portugal's national tourism statistics, EU tourism indicators (Eurostat) and municipal planning. It is a legal obligation under the Sistema Estatístico Nacional, not an optional survey.
WebInq is entirely separate from SIBA. SIBA is a security filing (who slept where) to AIMA. WebInq is a statistics filing (how many, from where, at what price) to INE. They share source data but have different logins, forms and deadlines.
Who must file the IPHH
- Not every AL files the IPHH — INE draws an annual sample of establishments. You are in scope once INE (or SREA in the Azores, or DREM in Madeira) writes to your RNAL address confirming inclusion and your WebInq credentials.
- Larger operators and full-time AL businesses are almost always included; smaller occasional lets may be sampled in one year and dropped the next.
- Mainland is handled by INE, Madeira by DREM, and the Azores by SREA — same IPHH form, different regional statistical office runs your submissions.
- The obligation sits with the AL operator on the RNAL, not with the OTA, the guest or the property owner if different.
- If you are in scope, you must file every month you remain active — including months with zero bookings, which must be filed as a null return rather than left blank.
When and how often to file
Monthly, for the previous calendar month.
Due date is shown on your WebInq dashboard, typically the 10th to 15th of the following month.
Late filings trigger automated reminder letters from INE and, if ignored, statistical fines under Law 22/2008.
There is no annual submission — every month, including zero months, must be filed on its own.
What the IPHH form asks for
- Arrivals in the month, split by guest nationality (Portugal, Spain, France, UK, Germany, USA, Brazil, others).
- Overnight stays in the month, counted on the night they were slept — check-out night excluded.
- Revenue from accommodation, net of VAT and net of the municipal tourist tax.
- Number of units and beds available in the establishment during the month.
- Any days the establishment was closed to guests.
- Occasionally, additional questions on average length of stay and channel mix.
Common WebInq mistakes
- Counting nights by check-in month — IPHH nights are allocated to the month they were slept. Split cross-month bookings — 28 June to 5 July = 3 June nights + 4 July nights.
- Including VAT or tourist tax in the revenue line — Report net accommodation revenue only. Strip 6% VAT (mainland AL) or the applicable Madeira/Azores rate, and remove ecotaxa/municipal tax entirely.
- Skipping empty months — File a zero return — same form, all fields at 0. Empty months without a submission still count as non-compliance.
- Free stays not counted — Guests staying free (comps, friends, owner use for less than 30 days) still generate arrivals and nights for IPHH, at zero revenue. Include them.
- Wrong establishment type on RNAL — If your registration says 'Turismo em Espaço Rural' but you are running an urban apartment AL, WebInq will not accept the IPHH under Alojamento Local. Align RNAL first.
- Nationality mismatches with SIBA — SIBA takes ISO codes (GBR, DEU); WebInq uses a shorter aggregated list. Both must reconcile to the same underlying guest records — Chave AL maps them consistently.
How Chave AL prepares your IPHH
- Bookings already carry the fields WebInq needs — check-in and check-out, nationality, nights, gross and net revenue.
- Nights are split by month automatically, matching the same logic used for SIBA and tourist tax so all three filings reconcile.
- Revenue is stripped of VAT and municipal tax before being fed into the IPHH figures.
- Nationality is mapped from the ISO code you already captured for SIBA into WebInq's aggregated country buckets.
- The dashboard produces a one-page monthly summary — arrivals, nights and revenue by country — ready to copy into WebInq in minutes.
- Zero months are flagged so you never miss a null return.
Frequently asked questions
- Is WebINq the same as SIBA?
- No. SIBA is guest registration with SEF (security). WebINq / IPHH is statistical reporting to INE. Both are required for AL.
- What's the WebINq deadline?
- Monthly, usually within the first weeks of the following month. INE will send reminder letters if you miss it.
- Do I still log in to WebINq myself?
- Yes — INE doesn't expose a public API for AL submissions yet, so the final upload is manual. Chave AL prepares all the numbers so the upload itself is quick.
- What is the deadline for the IPHH form?
- INE asks for the previous month's IPHH by around the 10th–15th of each month. Exact due dates are shown on the WebInq dashboard once you log in. Late filings trigger reminder letters and, eventually, statistical fines under the Sistema Estatístico Nacional (Law 22/2008).
- What if I had zero bookings in a month?
- You still have to file a null return — the row 'nights = 0, guests = 0' in every category. Silence is not compliance for INE. Chave AL flags empty months and generates the zero-return for you.
- How do I count nights when a booking crosses two months?
- Nights are counted in the month they were actually slept. A stay from 28 June to 5 July gives 3 nights to June's IPHH (28th, 29th and 30th) and 4 nights to July's (1st–4th). Check-out night does not count. Chave AL splits automatically.
- Do I include VAT in the revenue figures?
- No. INE wants net revenue — the accommodation charge excluding VAT and excluding the municipal tourist tax. If you invoice through Booking.com or Airbnb, use the net that reached your bank, not the gross the guest paid the OTA.
- Which nationalities do I need to break down?
- INE uses a fixed country list (Portugal, Spain, France, UK, Germany, USA, Brazil, and so on, plus 'Others'). Chave AL maps ISO country codes from your guest records into the exact IPHH buckets.
- Is WebInq the same for hotels and AL?
- The form is the same (IPHH), but AL uses the specific 'Alojamento Local' establishment type in WebInq. If you registered the wrong type, INE may reject the submission — see the AL/RNAL glossary entry.
- Can Chave AL file WebInq automatically?
- No. WebInq accepts either the online form or an XML file built to INE's own schema; Chave AL does not file on your behalf. It prepares every figure — arrivals, nights and revenue by country — so entering them in WebInq takes a few minutes instead of an evening.
Related
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