Spain to grant residency and work permits to around 300,000 undocumented migrants per year

Spain says it will grant residency and work permits to around 300,000 undocumented migrants each year for the next three years.

Elma Saiz, Spain's Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, announced the new policy during an interview with Spain's national broadcaster on Wednesday.

"The regulation opens doors that were previously closed by means of three keys: formation, employment and family. Three keys that lead to inclusion, but with high standards in terms of legal requirements and in terms of human rights”, she explained.

The policy is set to come into force in May 2025 and remain in place until 2027. It is part of Spain's attempt to expand its labour force in the face of an ageing population.

Spain needs around 250,000 registered foreign workers a year to maintain its welfare state, Saiz said, explaining that the legalisation policy is not aimed solely at “cultural wealth and respect for human rights, it’s also prosperity.”

“Today, we can say Spain is a better country,” she added.

The reform shortens and simplifies legal and administrative procedures for work and residence permits, allowing migrants to register either as self-employed or salaried workers, and provides them with additional labour rights guarantees.

It also extends a visa previously offered to job-seekers for three months to one year.

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has often described his government's migration policies as a means to combat the country's low birth rate.

Spain is one of the European countries that receives the most irregular migrants each year. From January 1 to November 15 of 2024, more than 54, 000 migrants entered Spain irregularly, up 15.8% from 2023, according to data from the Spanish ministry of Interior.

In August,