How to Setup and Manage the Online Check-in Feature

This comprehensive guide explains how to set up and manage the Online Check-in feature from your Holidu host portal. The feature is built on local regulatory expertise, allowing you to stay compliant with regional requirements without learning each authority's process independently.

Step 1: Register with Your Local Government Authority

Before activating the Online Check-in feature in Holidu, you must first register your accommodation with the relevant local authority in your region. Registration requirements vary by country and region.

Supported Countries and Regions

Here are the authorities you need to register with, based on your property location:

Country/Region	Authority Name	Registration Link
Spain (except Catalonia and Basque Country)	SES.Hospedajes	SES.Hospedajes Registration Portal
Catalonia (Spain)	Mossos d'Esquadra	Mossos d'Esquadra Registration
Basque Country (Spain)	Ertzaintza	Ertzaintza Portal
Portugal	SIBA	SIBA Registration Portal
Germany	AVS	Contact your local authority for AVS registration details
Italy	Alloggiati Web	Guest Check-in Feature in Italy

Once you complete registration with the appropriate authority, you will receive credentials including a username, password, and in some cases a renter code or accommodation ID. You will need these credentials to connect your property to Holidu's Online Check-in feature.

Step 2: Connect Your Property Using the Online Check-in Feature

After registering with your local authority and obtaining your credentials, follow these steps to connect your property in Holidu:

Accessing the Online Check-in Section

1. Open your Holidu host app and navigate to the left side menu
2. Click on "Tools" option
3. Select "Online Check-in" from the available tools

You will see a screen displaying your list of properties with connection status information.

Configuring Your Property

1. Locate the property you wish to connect to the police or local authority
2. Click the "Configure" button next to that property
3. Review the list of your properties and their current connection status
4. Click on the specific property name to open its configuration page

Entering Authority Credentials

1. On the property configuration page, complete the form with details about your property's country location
2. Scroll down to find the section "Activate automatic sending to police"
3. Select the correct authority for your region from the dropdown menu
4. Enter the username and password you received from your local authority in the designated fields
5. Fill in all other required credential fields as specified by your authority (such as fiscal code, ID number, or accommodation code)

Important Security Note: Do not use your Holidu login credentials in these fields. Enter only the credentials you received directly from your local government authority.

Validating and Saving

1. Click the "Validate" button to verify your credentials with the authority's system
2. If validation is successful, click "Save changes" at the bottom of the form
3. You should see a confirmation message indicating successful activation
4. The connection status should now display as active

Credential Entry Best Practices

To avoid common errors during setup, ensure you:

• Use your correct host fiscal code (your identification number or NIE if you are not Spanish)
• Enter your full ID or NIE number including all leading zeros
• Use only the login credentials received from your local authority, never your Holidu account details
• Double-check all entries for accuracy before clicking validate

Step 3: How the Online Check-in Feature Works

Once your property is successfully connected to your local authority, the Online Check-in process operates automatically with minimal host intervention required.

The Guest Check-in Process

Here is what happens from the guest's perspective:

1. After a booking is confirmed, your guest receives an email or in-app message containing a secure link to the online check-in form
2. The guest accesses this link and fills out required information for all travelers in their party
3. For each guest, document verification is required, typically involving a scan or photo of a passport or national ID
4. All guests in the party must complete this process individually
5. Once complete, the guest submits the form securely

If a guest does not complete the check-in form, automatic reminder messages are sent. If the guest continues not to respond, you have the option to manually complete the check-in information on their behalf.

Automatic Submission Timing: At 11:00 PM on the day of check-in, all complete guest data is automatically submitted to the relevant local authority.

Reading the Check-in Status in the Booking Section

In your Holidu host app, you can monitor the check-in status for each booking. The status indicators show you exactly where each booking stands in the process:

Status Condition	What It Indicates	Action Needed
Started, but missing data (Incomplete)	Your guest has begun the check-in process but has not completed all required information for every person in their party	Contact the guest to remind them to complete all fields. They will also receive automatic reminders 5 days before check-in
Guest data complete but not yet transferred	All guest information has been entered correctly, but the automatic submission to authorities has not yet occurred because the check-in date is in the future	No action required. Data will be sent automatically on the day of check-in at 11:00 PM
Guest data successfully transferred to authority	The complete guest information has been successfully submitted to the local authority as required	No action required. Compliance requirement is satisfied
Error in reporting the data (Failed)	An error occurred during the automatic submission of guest data to the authorities	Review troubleshooting steps below. You may need to verify your authority credentials or attempt manual submission

Troubleshooting Common Issues

If you encounter problems with the Online Check-in feature, here are the most common issues and their solutions:

Issue	Cause	Solution
Data incomplete or missing from guest form	Guest has not filled out all required fields or has not submitted the form	Contact the guest directly to request completion. You can also manually fill in the guest information through the booking details. Automatic reminders are sent 5 days before check-in
Error in data transfer to authorities	Invalid credentials, incorrect information, or connection issues with the authority system	Verify that the credentials you entered match exactly what you received from the authority. Check that all guest data is complete and accurate. If the error persists after correcting credentials and data, contact Holidu support for assistance
Guest continues to not respond to check-in requests	Guest has not seen or is ignoring check-in reminders	Manually complete the check-in form on the guest's behalf using the information from their booking. See section 5 below for detailed instructions

Step 4: How to Download the Guest Book

You can download a record of all guest check-in information for your records or for local authority inspection. Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the Online Check-in feature page in your Holidu host portal
2. Find the property you need the guestbook for and click the "Details" button next to its name
3. A popup window will open displaying your bookings
4. Find the booking you need by locating the name of the main guest
5. Click on that booking to select it
6. Click the "Download all" button to download the complete guestbook record

The downloaded file will contain all guest information for that booking and can be stored for your records or provided to authorities if requested.

Step 5: How to Manually Fill Out Guest Data

If a guest does not complete the online check-in form, or if you need to update their information, you can manually enter the guest data. Here is how:

Accessing the Guest Data Entry Form

1. Open the Online Check-in feature from your Holidu host app Tools menu
2. Click on the "Bookings" tab to view your list of reservations
3. You will see a list of bookings identified by the main guest's name
4. A status column shows the current check-in status for each booking
5. If you want to understand the status icons better, click "Status info" for a legend of what each color and icon represents

Entering Guest Information

1. Click on the name of the guest whose information you need to enter or update
2. The guest details page will open
3. Fill in all required information fields for that guest
4. If multiple guests are in the party, you may need to repeat this process for each individual
5. Save the information once all fields are complete

Once you manually enter all required guest information, you can then attempt to submit this data to the authorities using the manual submission option described in section 7.

Step 6: Understanding Basic Status Colors and Indicators

The Online Check-in feature uses color-coded status indicators to quickly show you the state of each guest's check-in. Understanding these colors helps you identify which bookings need attention:

Status Name	Color Indicator	Meaning	What You Should Do
All Guests Registered	Blue - Completed	Every guest in the party has entered all required information and their data is ready for submission to authorities	No action required. Verify details if your local regulations require host review before submission
Guest Check-in Pending	Gray - In Progress	The guest has started the check-in form but has not filled in all required fields for all party members	Contact the guest to remind them to complete the form. Automatic reminders are sent 5 days before check-in
Police Submission Successful	Blue - Submitted	The guest information has been transmitted successfully to the local authority as required by law	No action required. Your compliance obligation for this booking is complete
Police Submission Failed	Red - Failed	An error occurred when attempting to send guest data to the authorities. The submission was not successful	Review the guest data to ensure accuracy and completeness. Verify your authority login credentials are correct. Attempt manual submission. Contact support if the issue persists

Important: If data transfer failed because the connection to the authorities was not set up correctly initially, you must first fix the connection by verifying