Spain's Bold Move: Unprecedented Plan to Regularize 700,000 Undocumented Immigrants

Wednesday 02 October 2024 - 11:50

Spain is poised to embark on an ambitious plan that could reshape its immigration landscape. The coalition government, led by the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) and Sumar, has proposed a sweeping regularization of undocumented immigrants, potentially affecting up to 700,000 individuals who arrived in the country before the end of 2023.

This initiative, if approved, would mark the largest regularization effort in Spain's history, surpassing previous expectations and earlier programs. The proposal aims to grant legal residency to a significant portion of Spain's undocumented population, estimated at 686,000 by Funcas, a figure that represents 17% of the non-EU foreign population in the country.

The scope of this proposal is noteworthy, especially considering Spain's history of extraordinary regularizations. Since 1985, the country has undergone six such processes under various administrations. Former Prime Ministers Felipe González, José María Aznar, and José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero collectively regularized over 1.2 million immigrants during their tenures.

This new initiative builds upon a citizens' campaign known as #RegularizaciónYa, which garnered over 700,000 signatures and support from more than 900 NGOs. Initially, the campaign sought to regularize about 500,000 undocumented foreigners who had been living in Spain prior to November 1, 2021. The Spanish parliament took its first legislative step towards approving this initiative in April 2024.

The implications of this policy are far-reaching. Gaining legal residency in Spain opens the path to citizenship, granting access to full rights and obligations, including the right to vote. Typically, citizenship can be requested after ten years of continuous legal residence, with shorter periods for certain groups.

This move could particularly benefit Moroccans, who led in acquiring Spanish citizenship in 2023 with 54,027 individuals naturalized, marking a 32% annual increase. The proposed regularization could significantly impact this trend, potentially altering the demographic landscape of Spain.

As the parliamentary process unfolds, the final scope and details of the regularization program remain to be determined. However, the proposal represents a bold step in addressing the complexities of immigration and integration in Spain, with potential ripple effects across Europe.

This unprecedented move by Spain raises important questions about the balance between humanitarian considerations and economic implications. As the country moves forward with this initiative, it will likely face both challenges and opportunities in integrating a large number of newly regularized residents into its social and economic fabric.