Spain’s much-debated extraordinary regularisation of undocumented migrants is suddenly far larger than previously understood. A 29-page “risk analysis” by the National Centre for Immigration and Borders (CNIF) – leaked to the press on 17 February – estimates that between 750,000 and 1 million people already living in Spain could qualify for the new one-year renewable residence-and-work permit the government plans to issue from 1 April. Earlier government talking points had centred on about 500,000 beneficiaries.
Under the draft decree, applicants must prove they were physically present in Spain for at least five months before 31 December 2025 and hold a clean criminal record. Crucially, the text also lets asylum-seekers with still-pending cases switch tracks, adding a further 250,000–350,000 potential applicants. Police analysts warn that the comparatively light documentation requirements – a sworn statement may replace a home-country police certificate – could push approval rates close to 100 percent.
Companies and individuals grappling with Spain’s shifting immigration rules don’t have to do it alone. VisaHQ’s dedicated Spain portal (https://www.visahq.com/spain/) offers streamlined document checking, appointment scheduling and end-to-end application support, making the regularisation process—and any future visa need—far less daunting.
![Police Leak Shows Spain’s Mass Regularisation Could Benefit Up to One Million Migrants]()
Supporters in government say regularising long-term residents will curb labour exploitation, boost tax revenues and ease chronic recruitment gaps in hospitality, agriculture and elder care. Business groups, from hotel associations in the Balearics to farming cooperatives in Andalusia, broadly welcome a measure that would bring large parts of the shadow workforce onto the books. Yet the CNIF report highlights operational headaches for extranjería offices, predicts a spike in document fraud and fears “secondary movements” of irregular migrants from other Schengen states once news of the scheme spreads.
Politically, the numbers have reset the debate. The conservative Partido Popular accuses the Socialist-led coalition of under-estimating the pull factor, while the far-right Vox party has vowed legal action, arguing that mass regularisation violates EU returns policy. The European Commission reiterated on Tuesday that regularisation is a national competence but urged Madrid to ensure it does not jeopardise Schengen integrity.
For corporate mobility managers the take-away is timing. HR teams with dependent spouses or other staff in precarious status now have a three-month window (April–June) to obtain full work authorisation, but they should brace for appointment bottlenecks and heightened scrutiny of document authenticity as the largest scheme of its kind in modern Europe rolls out.
Under the draft decree, applicants must prove they were physically present in Spain for at least five months before 31 December 2025 and hold a clean criminal record. Crucially, the text also lets asylum-seekers with still-pending cases switch tracks, adding a further 250,000–350,000 potential applicants. Police analysts warn that the comparatively light documentation requirements – a sworn statement may replace a home-country police certificate – could push approval rates close to 100 percent.
Companies and individuals grappling with Spain’s shifting immigration rules don’t have to do it alone. VisaHQ’s dedicated Spain portal (https://www.visahq.com/spain/) offers streamlined document checking, appointment scheduling and end-to-end application support, making the regularisation process—and any future visa need—far less daunting.
Supporters in government say regularising long-term residents will curb labour exploitation, boost tax revenues and ease chronic recruitment gaps in hospitality, agriculture and elder care. Business groups, from hotel associations in the Balearics to farming cooperatives in Andalusia, broadly welcome a measure that would bring large parts of the shadow workforce onto the books. Yet the CNIF report highlights operational headaches for extranjería offices, predicts a spike in document fraud and fears “secondary movements” of irregular migrants from other Schengen states once news of the scheme spreads.
Politically, the numbers have reset the debate. The conservative Partido Popular accuses the Socialist-led coalition of under-estimating the pull factor, while the far-right Vox party has vowed legal action, arguing that mass regularisation violates EU returns policy. The European Commission reiterated on Tuesday that regularisation is a national competence but urged Madrid to ensure it does not jeopardise Schengen integrity.
For corporate mobility managers the take-away is timing. HR teams with dependent spouses or other staff in precarious status now have a three-month window (April–June) to obtain full work authorisation, but they should brace for appointment bottlenecks and heightened scrutiny of document authenticity as the largest scheme of its kind in modern Europe rolls out.
