- Spain’s socialist government has gone against the prevailing Western tide with a highly controversial move.
- As per a decree passed by the Spanish cabinet, legal residency has been granted to nearly 500,000 undocumented migrants through temporary residence permits.
- The government argues that thousands of undocumented migrants currently residing in Spain neither contribute to the formal economy nor to the tax structure.
- At the end of July 2026, more than 70,000 migrants crossed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta from Morocco in an unprecedented mass border crossing.
- Spain therefore continues to remain an exception in an increasingly restrictive Europe, but the events of 2026 have made the experiment much more complicated.
At a time when immigration and the control of immigrants have become a major international issue, where detention and deportation have become increasingly common, countries across the world are effectively leading a war against illegal immigration. States are rushing to protect their borders, arguing that without protected borders a country cannot be sovereign. Interestingly, this shift is most visible in the Euro-Atlantic world. Yet, within the same Euro-Atlantic space, there exists an exception in the form of Spain.
Spain’s socialist government has gone against the prevailing Western tide with a highly controversial move. As per a decree passed by the Spanish cabinet, legal residency has been granted to nearly 500,000 undocumented migrants through temporary residence permits. This decision gives legal status to undocumented migrants who have arrived in Spain from different parts of the world.
However, the scale of the programme has now turned out to be much larger than initially expected. When the application process closed on June 30, 2026, Spain had received 1,174,978 applications, more than double the government’s initial estimate. Of these, 609,737 applications had already been processed by July 2.
Responding to the criticism, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stated that he does not consider this move extreme. According to him, it is only perceived as extreme because the world is not accustomed to such measures anymore. He argued that this step would help the country. This decision has been enabled through the Popular Legislative Initiative mechanism enshrined in the Spanish Constitution, which allows the government to regularise undocumented migrants.
This is not the first time Spain has adopted such a policy. In 2005, under former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, a similar move was undertaken, granting legal status to around 570,000 undocumented migrants.
As per the recent cabinet order, any immigrant who has been living in Spain before December 31, 2025, and can prove at least five months of continuous residence in the country, will be eligible for legal status. It is important to note that this is not permanent citizenship. Instead, migrants will receive the right to reside in Spain for one year, after which the permit may be extended under domestic laws. This status does not grant voting rights or assure permanent citizenship.
One of the primary justifications offered by the ruling Socialist Party, PSOE, is economic. The government argues that thousands of undocumented migrants currently residing in Spain neither contribute to the formal economy nor to the tax structure. As a result, the state does not benefit directly from their presence. This policy is an attempt to bring these individuals under the tax umbrella. By granting legal status, the government aims to collect taxes, increase revenue, and strengthen social security contributions.
There is now some evidence that this is already happening. By the end of June, around 159,097 additional foreign workers had been registered with Spain’s Social Security system as a result of the regularisation process. The government has argued that this shows how regularisation can bring undocumented workers into the formal economy and increase their contribution to the social security system.
From the migrants’ perspective, this move provides protection from detention and deportation. In exchange, the Spanish government expects increased fiscal contributions. However, the decision has faced sharp criticism from right-wing parties across Europe. In Spain, the far-right party VOX has strongly opposed the move, calling it a political distraction. VOX has claimed that the Sánchez government is using this policy to divert attention from the recent train incident that claimed 46 lives on January 18, along with other governance failures.
The conservative People’s Party has also criticised the decision, arguing that it could undermine national security. In response, the government has assured that strict due diligence will be conducted and that migrants with criminal records or security risks will be excluded from the regularisation process.
This policy comes at a time when Spain is experiencing political deadlock. No single party holds a clear majority in Parliament, and coalition arrangements remain fragile. The Socialist government survives with the support of the Sumar party. Meanwhile, the People’s Party, PP, emerged as the largest party in the 2023 general elections, while VOX emerged as the largest far-right party but failed to secure a majority or form alliances with other right-wing groups.
The Sánchez government is also facing mounting domestic pressure. The Socialist Party has performed poorly in recent regional elections, and anti-incumbency sentiment is rising. Public dissatisfaction is growing over security concerns, unemployment, and limited job opportunities. Native Spaniards increasingly express fears that illegal immigration strains public order and security.
And somehow there is a sense of truth in the concerns raised by Spaniards. Official crime data from Spain’s National Statistics Institute for 2024 suggests that people of foreign nationality have a higher conviction rate per 1,000 inhabitants compared with Spanish nationals. The conviction rate for foreign persons is about 16 per 1,000, compared with around 6 per 1,000 for Spaniards.
However, recent research has also pointed out that these figures need to be looked at carefully. A study published in July 2026 found that differences in crude crime rates between foreign-born and native-born populations are substantially reduced when age and sex are taken into account, suggesting that demographic composition accounts for a significant part of the difference.
Similarly, EU integration data shows that the unemployment rate among the foreign-born population in Spain is close to 20 per cent, while unemployment among Spaniards stands at around 10 per cent.
Additionally, there is strong public resistance to increasing defence spending to 5 per cent of GDP under the new NATO defence plan. Many Spaniards oppose taking greater responsibility for Ukraine’s security amid Spain’s own economic struggles. However, Spain has since negotiated with NATO over its defence spending target, with Sánchez arguing that Spain can meet NATO capability requirements without reaching the full 5 per cent target. This has continued to create tensions between Madrid and some of its NATO allies.
Corruption allegations have further weakened the government, with two close allies of the Prime Minister having been imprisoned over corruption charges.
This development also coincides with a broader ideological shift across Europe. Right-wing politics are gaining momentum as progressive and liberal parties struggle. European societies are increasingly questioning the impact of immigration on cultural identity and social cohesion.
Against this backdrop, Spain stands out as an exception. It has taken a fundamentally different stance not only on immigration but also on broader geopolitical issues. Spain has emerged as one of the strongest pro-Palestinian voices in the West, has openly opposed Israel, and has refused to increase defence spending to NATO’s proposed levels. It has also developed visible differences with the United States, with President Trump repeatedly criticising Spain and questioning its role within NATO.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is therefore under immense pressure domestically and internationally. This comes at a time when President Trump has been vocal about immigration, repeatedly stating that Europe has changed and that cities like London, Madrid, and Paris are no longer the same due to open-border policies. In the United States, immigration enforcement actions by ICE have intensified, generating controversy and criticism, particularly following recent incidents in cities such as Minneapolis.
But the Spanish government has now faced a new and unexpected challenge to its migration policy. At the end of July 2026, more than 70,000 migrants crossed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta from Morocco in an unprecedented mass border crossing. At least 72 people died during the attempt, while thousands remained in Ceuta even after most of those who entered were returned to Morocco.
The incident has created a major political and humanitarian challenge for Spain. Ceuta is home to around 83,000 people, meaning that the sudden arrival of tens of thousands of migrants placed enormous pressure on the city’s infrastructure and public services. Hundreds of migrants who remained in Ceuta later protested, demanding asylum and opposing their return to Morocco.
The Ceuta crisis has also taken the Spanish migration debate beyond domestic politics. Italy temporarily moved to suspend its Schengen arrangement with Spain following the mass crossing, while European leaders expressed concern over the situation. The crisis once again raised the question of how one country’s migration policy can affect the wider European border system.
Interestingly, the Ceuta crisis came only months after Spain’s announcement of its mass regularisation programme. Critics have attempted to link the two developments, arguing that Spain’s regularisation policy could create a perception that the country is more open to migrants. The Spanish government, however, has maintained that the regularisation applies to people who were already living in Spain before the cut-off date and does not provide legal status to those who have entered irregularly afterwards.
At this critical moment, Spain has chosen a completely different path by not only accepting undocumented migrants but granting them legal status. While the government’s intention is to improve fiscal health, it remains to be seen whether Spain can balance security, national identity, and economic sustainability, or whether this decision will lead to deeper political and social challenges in the long run.
The developments of the last few months have made this question even more important. Spain has received nearly 1.2 million applications for regularisation while simultaneously facing one of the most serious border crises in its recent history. The government now has to demonstrate that regularising migrants already inside Spain can coexist with strong border controls and that one does not necessarily undermine the other.
Spain therefore continues to remain an exception in an increasingly restrictive Europe, but the events of 2026 have made the experiment much more complicated. Whether Spain can prove that regularisation can bring migrants into the formal economy without creating new security and political pressures will determine whether its model becomes an example for other European countries or a warning for them.
Aayush Pal is a freelance writer on contemporary geopolitical developments. The views expressed in his work are entirely his own.
Anusreeta Dutta 
Archita Gaur