With the storm-whipped Strait of Gibraltar impeding deportation flights and voluntary returns, Ceuta’s temporary migrant centre (CETI) has burst past its designed 512-bed capacity, hosting more than 700 people. On Saturday the Interior Ministry authorised an emergency transfer of 61 asylum-seekers – primarily from sub-Saharan Africa and Morocco – to reception facilities in mainland Andalucía and Valencia to ease conditions ahead of further arrivals expected once maritime rescues resume.
Police sources say the recent surge stems from two factors: improved sea conditions in late January that enabled multiple small-boat landings, and a bold overnight fence jump during storm “Leonardo” that saw dozens scale the twin 6-metre barriers. The overflow has forced authorities to erect tents on the centre’s basketball court, raising sanitary and security concerns flagged by NGO staff.
Whether you’re an NGO coordinator shuttling staff to Spain’s North African enclaves or a business traveller needing last-minute permits, VisaHQ can simplify the paperwork maze. The agency’s Spain portal (https://www.visahq.com/spain/) aggregates visa requirements, digital applications, and courier services, offering timely guidance when policy changes or unexpected transfers—like those now unfolding in Ceuta—upend travel plans.
![Ceuta Transfers 61 Migrants to Mainland Spain as CETI Occupancy Tops 140 %]()
While the Sánchez government’s January decree to regularise long-term undocumented migrants promises medium-term relief, border municipalities are struggling in the interim. The Ceuta business chamber warns that overstretched social services could deter foreign investors eyeing logistics projects linked to the EU-funded MidCat hydrogen corridor.
From a global-mobility perspective, the episode underscores Spain’s dependence on rapid inter-regional transfer mechanisms to manage sudden spikes in irregular arrivals. Employers with staff on assignment in Ceuta have been reminded to carry NIE cards or passports at all times amid reinforced identity checks on ferry departures.
The Interior Ministry says it will dispatch additional processing officers next week and insists the relocations are voluntary, but NGOs argue that a structural increase in reception capacity – not ad-hoc bus convoys – is needed to guarantee humane conditions.
Police sources say the recent surge stems from two factors: improved sea conditions in late January that enabled multiple small-boat landings, and a bold overnight fence jump during storm “Leonardo” that saw dozens scale the twin 6-metre barriers. The overflow has forced authorities to erect tents on the centre’s basketball court, raising sanitary and security concerns flagged by NGO staff.
Whether you’re an NGO coordinator shuttling staff to Spain’s North African enclaves or a business traveller needing last-minute permits, VisaHQ can simplify the paperwork maze. The agency’s Spain portal (https://www.visahq.com/spain/) aggregates visa requirements, digital applications, and courier services, offering timely guidance when policy changes or unexpected transfers—like those now unfolding in Ceuta—upend travel plans.
While the Sánchez government’s January decree to regularise long-term undocumented migrants promises medium-term relief, border municipalities are struggling in the interim. The Ceuta business chamber warns that overstretched social services could deter foreign investors eyeing logistics projects linked to the EU-funded MidCat hydrogen corridor.
From a global-mobility perspective, the episode underscores Spain’s dependence on rapid inter-regional transfer mechanisms to manage sudden spikes in irregular arrivals. Employers with staff on assignment in Ceuta have been reminded to carry NIE cards or passports at all times amid reinforced identity checks on ferry departures.
The Interior Ministry says it will dispatch additional processing officers next week and insists the relocations are voluntary, but NGOs argue that a structural increase in reception capacity – not ad-hoc bus convoys – is needed to guarantee humane conditions.
