Spain’s left-wing government has approved a fast-track plan that could allow up to 500,000 undocumented migrants to obtain legal residency, marking one of Europe’s largest regularization efforts in recent years and setting Madrid apart from a continent trending toward tighter migration controls.
Migration Minister Elma Saiz announced that the measure applies to individuals who had been in Spain for at least five months as of December 31, 2025, and who can demonstrate a clean criminal record. Applications will open in April and remain available until June 30.
Successful applicants will receive a one-year renewable residency permit, while children will be granted permits valid for five years. Beneficiaries will be allowed to work in any sector and anywhere in the country, dw.com reports..
Describing the move as “historic,” Saiz said the government was strengthening a migration model rooted in human rights, integration, and alignment with economic growth and social cohesion.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has repeatedly linked migration to Spain’s economic momentum, arguing that it contributed to roughly 80% of growth over the past six years and about 10% of social security revenues.
Spain’s unemployment rate fell below 10% in late 2025, with foreign nationals accounting for a majority of new hires during the final quarter of the year.
The plan was adopted through a royal decree, enabling the minority government to bypass parliament, where it lacks a stable majority. The measure received backing from the far-left Podemos party, which framed the step as a moral response to rising anti-migrant rhetoric.
However, the initiative has drawn sharp criticism from opposition parties. Alberto Núñez Feijóo, leader of the center-right Popular Party, accused the government of attempting to divert attention from a recent rail disaster that claimed 45 lives in southern Spain. He labeled the migration policy “reckless.”
The far-right Vox party announced it would challenge the decree before the Supreme Court, seeking to suspend its implementation. Vox argued that sidelining parliament on an issue of such magnitude was unacceptable and called for a firm response from European institutions.
Spain has a population of about 49.4 million, including 7.1 million foreign nationals. Economic research institute Funcas estimates that approximately 840,000 people were living in the country without authorization at the start of 2025.
The last large-scale regularization in Spain occurred in 2005 under then–Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.
While migrant advocacy groups and the Catholic Church have welcomed the new plan as a step toward social justice, critics say it isolates Spain from a Europe increasingly focused on restricting migration.
