The new regulations were approved by the government on Tuesday and are intended to allow for regulating the status of foreigners residing in Spain without the required documents.
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Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's office emphasizes that this decision “strengthens a migration model based on human rights and consistent with economic development”. The authorities argue that controlled immigration is needed for the country's rapidly developing economy.
Spain: concerns about an increase in illegal crossings of migrants
According to the ABC daily, the effects of the new regulations may be opposite to those declared. The newspaper warns that legalization of stay on such a large scale will attract further waves of migrants, increasing the number of people undertaking the dangerous journey from Africa to Spain on makeshift boats.
According to data from the non-governmental organization Caminando Fronteras the number of deaths on the southern migration route in 2025 decreased by 70%. compared to 2024, when over 10,000 died on the way to Spain. people. However, critics fear that the new policy may reverse this trend.
“There are already messages on social media encouraging people to travel to Spain, because… “It is very easy to obtain documents here, and this will lead to an increase in the activities of the mafia involved in human trafficking.” – warns one of the experts in the fight against illegal immigration, quoted by “ABC”.
“You can't favor those who don't follow the law, because it sends a bad signal,” adds another of the newspaper's interlocutors.
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Legalization of migrants' stay in Spain. The scale is larger than the government reports
As “ABC” notes, the real number of people covered by the new regulations may be much higher than the official 500,000.because as a result of family reunification procedures legalization may in practice affect up to 2 million immigrants.
Spain already has experience with similar actions. The largest legalization took place in 2005 during the government of socialist José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and covered over 575,000. people. The current initiative is the first of its kind under the government of Pedro Sanchez, who has led the country since 2018.
According to a report by the Funcas think tank, in 2025 There were approximately 840,000 people in Spain. people without a regulated legal status and access to basic public services.
