As anti-migration policies sweep across Europe, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced a plan to regularise the status of 500,000 undocumented migrants and asylum seekers. The time-limited scheme will grant successful applicants a legal residence permit initially valid for one year.
In a video posted on social media, Sánchez defended the move, asking: “When did recognising rights become something radical? When did empathy become something exceptional?” The plan has drawn sharp criticism from the conservative People’s Party (PP) and the far-right Vox party, who argue it will attract more migrants and overwhelm public services.
This is not the first time Sánchez has taken a progressive stance on migration. In 2018, he welcomed the 630 migrants and asylum seekers aboard the rescue boat Aquarius after Italy and Malta refused entry. Speaking to parliament in 2024, he framed migration as an economic necessity, stating that Spain must choose between being “an open and prosperous country or a closed-off, poor country”.
Sánchez has cited data showing that migrants contribute 25% of Spain’s per capita GDP, 10% of social security revenues, and account for only 1% of public expenditure. The regularisation decree, agreed at the behest of the leftwing Podemos party, comes at a politically difficult time for Sánchez, with opinion polls showing Vox gaining support and corruption allegations swirling around his inner circle.
