The Extraordinary Regularization of Migrants in Spain

In 2005, Zapatero regularized the legal status of half a million people. Since then, no government has promoted any similar initiative, until the citizen movement Regularización Ya (Regularization Now) came on the scene. “Regularization was achievable, and it has been achieved. This progress demonstrates something fundamental: regularization was not only necessary, but possible, and it was the sustained pressure of the organized migrant movement that managed to break years of institutional inaction.”

These words concluded a statement by the Regularización Ya movement on 26 January 2026, celebrating the recently announced historic agreement between the PSOE and Podemos parties to grant extraordinary regularization to over 800,000 undocumented migrants who were already in Spain, but who were living on the margins due to their undocumented status.

But before we tell the end of this story, we must start at the beginning and analyze how this situation came about. Why are there over 700,000 undocumented people in Spain? The answer lies in traditionally restrictive migration policies. Both Socialist and Popular Party governments have looked the other way when it comes to the adverse effects of their own restrictions. Meanwhile, the powerful oligarchies have exploited undocumented people’s labour rights, gaining cheap labour with impunity. Institutional racism has thus created a parallel structure of clandestine work holding up vital activities like primary and care sectors. At the same time, the security forces have hunted down undocumented people in raids, and governments have built detention centres for foreigners (CIE) to hold them while they await possible deportation.

“These people — in legal limbo for years — have worked in the informal economy to survive.”

This story began on 11 January 2000, with the passing of the Immigration Law, which established the requirements for legal residence in Spain. The law states that the authorities may grant temporary residence permits. This gave rise to the concept of ‘social roots’, a legal figure that authorizes non-EU citizens to live in the country. The problem: the regulations require proof of a three-year residence in the country to qualify.

Over time, this has created a large pool of people living in Spain who cannot legally work until they have been in the country for three years or more, as another requirement in addition to length of stay is to have a minimum one-year employment contract. This employment contract, especially in the toughest times of the economic crisis, was very difficult to find. As of 1 January 2025, there were 840,000 undocumented people in Spain, according to the latest data from the economic and social research think tank Funcas. This represented 17.2% of the non-EU foreign population.

These people — in legal limbo for years — have worked in the informal economy to survive. Sectors such as intensive agriculture and domestic work have relied on them. While working under the plastic sheets of Almeria’s greenhouses, or serving as live-in maids in wealthy homes, they have sought to achieve the much-desired goal of three years’ registered residence.

Meanwhile, alternating governments of the two major parties of this democratic era have approved piecemeal extraordinary regularizations of migrants. Five have been passed by the Popular Party, and four by the PSOE. The most recent was approved by the government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero in 2005, regularizing the status of more than half a million people.

“Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and an extraordinary regularization approved by the Portuguese government, the Regularization Now collective began to take shape in April 2020.”

“From 1986 to 2005, governments of different political colours have resorted to regularization processes. When social reality is ahead of bureaucracy, the responsible state acts to bring order, not look the other way.” Migration Minister Elma Saiz said this last week on announcing the new extraordinary regularization. But the truth is that since 2005, no government had lifted a finger in this regard. More than twenty years went by without a response to social reality. This issue had to be brought to the table by the people in the streets.

Regularization Now Takes the Floor

Faced with this lack of action by the institutions, an anti-racist citizen movement led by migrants began to form. Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and an extraordinary regularization approved by the Portuguese government, the Regularization Now collective began to take shape in April 2020. This was a platform bringing together more than a hundred civic organizations. The first step was to write to the government demanding urgent regularization. More than 1,200 groups urged the government to recognize that migrants occupied jobs which, with lockdown in place, were more essential than ever. This was followed by the presentation of a Non-Legislative Motion (NLM) — a parliamentary initiative that seeks to position the Chamber on an issue or urge the government to act. This was drafted entirely by migrant groups, anti-racist organizations and the Coordinadora Obrim Fronteres (Workers’ Border Coordination Group) and was supported by eight parties, including Unidas Podemos, ERC, Bildu and Más País. Despite being non-binding, the NLM was rejected by Congress in September 2020, with opposition votes from the right and also from the PSOE.

“In less than a year, by December 2022, they had delivered more than 700,000 signatures to the legislative chamber, far exceeding the required number.”

Undeterred, Regularización Ya took another step forward, putting forward a Popular Legislative Initiative (PLI) for mass regularization in July 2021. These initiatives are citizen participation mechanisms that, on gaining signatures of over 500,000 people, can begin their legislative journey in the Congress of Deputies. The campaign to collect signatures was launched simultaneously in over 30 cities in February 2022. The platform grew and, to obtain the required signatures, 18 Territorial Committees were set up across Spain. It was a historic movement that reached a scale rarely before seen.

In less than a year, by December 2022, they had delivered more than 700,000 signatures to the legislative chamber, far exceeding the required number. However, the ILP was halted by the general elections in July 2023. The campaign did not let up, though, and the ILP was able to continue when a new government was established. On 9 April 2024, the ILP was approved for consideration, the first step in the initiative’s journey through Parliament. This time, it was stalled by the lack of a left-wing majority in Congress.

At this point, Regularización Ya decided to change its strategy. They reminded the political parties that there are other ways, citing Zapatero’s regularization, which was enacted directly by the government through a Royal Decree: This bypassed Parliament, preventing the right-wing parties from blocking it. Therefore, they proposed to the more left-wing parties that they put pressure on the PSOE to get the regularization through by these means. The PSOE went from voting against the original non-legislative motion to approving the Royal Decree for fear the government would fall if it lost the support that had brought it into office. This is how Victoria Canalla, spokesperson for Regularización Ya, explained it to the newspaper El Salto:

“We had called on all the political parties to push for the ILP to be approved in Congress, but they did not have the necessary votes. The Royal Decree was the best measure, so we called on all parties to push for it. Podemos offered us the opportunity to draft the joint text and we managed to get it in.”

Requirements For the New Regularization

Regularización Ya welcomes the fact that the requirements established for this extraordinary regularization are oriented to ensure protection “with a rights-based approach”. It is aimed at people who entered the country before 31 December 2025. Applicants will only have to prove that they have been living in the country for five months and that they have no criminal record. An example of this guarantee-based approach is that to prove five months of residence in the country, it is not necessary to show a document proving registration in the municipal register. Any documentary evidence — such as a money transfer receipt from a call shop or a medical appointment — will suffice as proof. This is very important because undocumented migrants do not always register with their local town hall. To do so, they would need a rental contract, which is extremely difficult to get due to the housing crisis. In many cases, flats are shared by several families and only one is the contract holder. In other cases, it is the local councils themselves that put barriers in the way of registering undocumented migrants.

“Left-wing political parties have to learn to be challenged by groups, otherwise we will not make any progress.”

In fact, the difficulties in getting onto the municipal register have been questioned by the Supreme Court in its ruling 1591/2022 of 25 April, in which it reiterates that the register cannot be used as a mechanism for ascertaining the legality of people’s residency.

Returning to the requirements, applicants must choose one of the following three options: 1) having worked or having an employment contract, 2) staying with family, provided that there are school-age children or older children with disabilities who require support, or 3) being in a vulnerable situation. Being in an irregular administrative situation is understood to be a vulnerable situation. Thus, all undocumented persons would fall into one of these categories.

Those seeking asylum — a form of protection that allows a person to seek protection in another country when their life, freedom or safety is threatened by persecution or violence in their country of origin — will be eligible for regularization without renouncing their asylum application and without the asylum process being suspended.

Those who meet these requirements will be able to obtain a legal residence permit in Spain, initially valid for a year. The dependent children of these individuals will obtain a five-year permit. Subsequently, “they will be able to join the categories provided for in the regulations of the Immigration Law, which will allow for progressive integration into the system,” said Minister Elma Saiz on announcing the initiative.

The Movement Sets the Agenda

While outlining the commencement of administrative processing of this extraordinary regularization, Saiz acknowledged that the initiative “is following in the path set out by a citizens’ initiative backed by over 700,000 signatures and a substantial majority in Congress,” which had been stalled for several months.

She concluded that, at this point, the regulatory route is “the fastest, most effective and most secure way to provide an immediate, effective response that is fully compliant with the legal framework”.

As the minister announced the measure, anti-racist activists celebrated reaching their goal at a rally filled with joy and satisfaction. “We have set the political agenda and changed the narrative. Spain is now a little more democratic,” said Canalla, praising the most progressive initiative of the current coalition government’s entire term in office; a measure also brought into being by migrant groups.

Regularización Ya highlights that, in an international context of border closures and the criminalization of migrants, the Spanish state is distancing itself from the policies of exclusion that are advancing in Europe and around the world and is committed to state recognition of migrants.

“Left-wing political parties have to learn to be challenged by groups, otherwise we will not make any progress,” says Canalla. “We have put them there to work for social movements. We have been very hard on Podemos and Sumar when they were not paying attention to us,” she warns. Canalla concludes with the emphatic assertion: “Now we are aiming even higher.”