Spain has approved a sweeping measure to regularize the legal status of approximately 500,000 undocumented immigrants living in the country, a move that is poised to make Colombians the nation’s largest foreign demographic.
The initiative, approved via Royal Decree to bypass the need for parliamentary validation, allows foreign nationals who arrived in Spain before Dec. 31, 2025, to apply for legal residency and work permits.
Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration Elma Saiz called it a “historic day” and stated the measure was “necessary to respond to the reality that exists in our streets.”
Spain’s mass regularization of immigrants: process and requirements
The regularization process targets immigrants who have been in Spain for at least five months before the cutoff date. Applicants must prove their presence through public or private documents, such as municipal registration (empadronamiento), rental contracts, medical records, or proof of remittance payments. Successful applicants will be granted a provisional residence authorization, allowing them to work legally in any sector.
According to reporting by BBC News Mundo, the state will grant a residence authorization for a period of one year, at the end of which the person may request an ordinary authorization in accordance with immigration regulations.
The application period is scheduled to open in early April and run through June. To protect families, the decree allows for the simultaneous regularization of children, who will receive a five-year permit.
Colombians to become the largest immigrant group in Spain
The regularization comes amid a significant shift in Spain’s migration demographics, driven largely by arrivals from Latin America. Colombians, who already number over 1 million migrants in Spain, will be the largest group of foreigners in that country by the end of the year.
Official data cited in reports indicates that between July and September 2025 alone, more than 32,000 Colombians arrived in Spain, compared to 23,000 Moroccans. While Moroccans have historically been the largest foreign community, the gap is narrowing rapidly due to factors such as cultural affinity, job opportunities, and the ease of obtaining residency and citizenship for Latin Americans.
The increase in the Colombian population has visible effects on Spain’s economy. Their contribution to the labor market helps fill vacancies in strained sectors and supports the social security contribution system.
Political fallout
The government, a coalition including the Socialist Party (PSOE) and Sumar, utilized a Royal Decree to enact the policy, avoiding a likely blockage in Congress. The measure has drawn sharp criticism from right-wing opposition parties.
According to reporting by La FM, the leader of the PP, Alberto Nuñez Feijoo, said that the response of President Pedro Sanchez is “a massive regularization to divert attention, increase the call effect and overwhelm public services,” Santiago Abascal, leader of the far-right party Vox, characterized the decree as promoting an “invasion,” while the PP spokesperson in Congress, Ester Muñoz, argued that residency should be linked to employment rather than time spent in the country.
Conversely, government partners defended the move. Second Vice President Yolanda Diaz assured that it is “a step toward a more just and democratic society.” This is the first major regularization process in Spain in two decades. The last comparable event occurred in 2005 under the left-wing government of Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, which regularized nearly 578,000 people. Previous administrations, including those led by the conservative PP under Jose Maria Aznar, conducted similar processes in 1996, 2000, and 2001.