As anti-migration policies sweep the continent, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is going against the tide by announcing plans to regularise the status of 500,000 undocumented migrants and asylum seekers. Under the time-limited plan, successful applicants will be given a legal residence permit in Spain with an initial validity of one year.
“Some say we’ve gone too far, that we’re going against the current,” Sánchez said in a video posted on social media. “But I would like to ask you, when did recognising rights become something radical? When did empathy become something exceptional?” The move elicited swift criticism from the conservative People's party and far-right Vox party, who claimed it would attract more migrants and overwhelm public services.
This is not the first time Sánchez has broken ranks with his political peers on migration. In 2018, he announced Spain would welcome the 630 migrants and asylum seekers on board the rescue boat Aquarius, who had been refused entry to Italy and Malta. Speaking to parliament in 2024, Sánchez argued that taking in migrants was not just a question of human decency but the only realistic means of growing the economy and maintaining the welfare state in a country with one of the lowest birthrates in the EU.
“Throughout history, migration has been one of the great drivers of the development of nations while hatred and xenophobia have been – and continue to be – the greatest destroyer of nations,” he said. “The key is in managing it well.” He made a similar economic case during an interview last September, stating that migration represents 25% of Spain's per capita GDP, 10% of social security revenues, and only 1% of public expenditure.
The regularisation scheme comes at a tricky time for Sánchez, with opinion polls putting Vox's share of the vote at almost 18% and corruption allegations surrounding his inner circle. Commentators suggest the move offers Sánchez an opportunity to differentiate himself from opponents and show his allies that his beliefs align with theirs.
