Spain has approved a plan to grant legal status to around 500,000 undocumented migrants, allowing them to formally join the country’s workforce as it seeks to address labour shortages and support its ageing population.
The programme will offer eligible migrants a one-year renewable residence permit. Applicants must prove they have lived in Spain for at least five months and have no criminal record. Applications are scheduled to open from April 16 and run until the end of June.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez described the initiative as both a matter of justice and an economic necessity, saying undocumented migrants already contribute to Spanish society and play an important role in sustaining the country’s economy and public services.
Sánchez added that Spain’s ageing population requires additional workers and noted that the country has its own history of citizens emigrating abroad in search of better opportunities, making the policy both practical and compassionate.
The government believes regularising the status of hundreds of thousands of migrants will help reduce informal employment, improve tax revenues and strengthen key sectors that rely heavily on migrant labour.
However, the proposal has drawn criticism from the opposition People’s Party, which argues that the measure could encourage more irregular migration. The party has vowed to oppose the initiative.
According to Spanish think tank Funcas, Spain is home to an estimated 840,000 undocumented migrants, many of whom originate from Latin American countries.
The regularisation plan comes as several European countries continue tightening immigration controls and expanding deportation measures, highlighting Spain’s contrasting approach to migration management.