Spain’s left-wing government on Tuesday approved an extraordinary plan to grant legal status to illegal migrants by decree, marking a further break with tougher migration policies elsewhere in Europe. The measure, agreed upon between the Socialist-led executive and Podemos with the backing of other left-wing groups, is expected to include around half a million immigrants.
The reform will be implemented via Royal Decree, a route that avoids parliamentary ratification, where the governing coalition lacks a majority. According to the agreement, the objective is to “guarantee rights and provide legal certainty to an existing social reality.”
Eligibility will extend to migrants who can prove at least five months of residence in Spain, have no significant criminal record, and were present in the country before the end of 2025. The regularization will also apply to their children already living in Spain. The application period is expected to open in April and run until the end of June. Filing an application will suspend deportation or return procedures.
Migration Minister Elma Saiz said beneficiaries would be able to work “in any sector, in any part of the country,” stressing “the positive impact” of migration. “We are talking about estimations, probably more or less the figures may be around half a million people,” she said, according to AFP.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has defended the policy as economically necessary in a country facing demographic decline and labor shortages. He has also argued that migration has been a key driver of Spain’s recent economic growth.
Podemos has framed the agreement as a victory for rights and social justice after months of negotiations. Party representatives argued that immigrants in Spain so far lacked basic human rights and were targeted by the police. Criminal records and already substantial benefits for immigrants say otherwise.
The announcement prompted an immediate backlash from the center-right People’s Party (PP) and right-wing nationalist VOX. PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo strongly criticized the move on social media, despite previously siding with the government on pro-mass immigration policies.
“Up to 46 dead. Hundreds injured. Not a single resignation. And Sánchez’s first response is a mass regularization to divert attention, increase the pull factor, and overwhelm our public services,” he wrote, referring to the recent train catastrophe in Spain. “In socialist Spain, illegality is rewarded,” he added.
PP argued that the government had failed to explain how integration would be managed or how the measure would affect housing, healthcare, education, and social services, claiming it would shift the burden to “neighborhoods, municipalities, and regional governments.” “Regularizing immigration without genuine integration benefits doesn’t improve anyone’s life. It fuels the underground economy, increases pressure on public services, and generates social frustration,” the PP said.
VOX leader Santiago Abascal reacted even more sharply. “500,000 illegals! The tyrant Sánchez hates the Spanish people. He wants to replace them. That’s why he intends to create a pull factor by decree, to accelerate the invasion,” he wrote. “This must be stopped. Repatriations, deportations, and remigration,” he added.
Police unions have already spoken out against the decree that might see the largest regularization in its history if it surpasses the figure set in 2005. The National Police union SUP declared in a statement, “It is a mass regularization without resources, it responds to a political calculation and puts security at risk.” The SUP highlighted how the decision will create an immediate pull factor for immigrants trying to avoid deportation. Police forces and other related social resources are not prepared for such an immense pressure, as they are already saturated by dealing with the immigrants already inside their borders.
