Fresh figures released to Parliament reveal that Spain deported just 20,682 people between 2019 and 2025—under 7 % of the roughly 305,000 who entered the country irregularly during the same period.(euroweeklynews.com) Even a rebound in 2025 to 3,398 expulsions has left Madrid far short of its stated enforcement goals.
Multiple hurdles explain the gap. Legal safeguards require individualised procedures, and many migrants arrive without identity documents, making returns dependent on slow-moving readmission deals with origin countries. Charter-flight capacity and detention-centre space also limit how many removals can be carried out each month.(euroweeklynews.com)
Navigating these evolving rules can be daunting, but services like VisaHQ offer streamlined help for securing Spanish visas—whether for work, study, digital-nomad stays or family reunification—by providing real-time guidance and application support (https://www.visahq.com/spain/).
![Official Data Show Spain Expels Less Than 7 % of Irregular Arrivals]()
For businesses, the statistics underscore a delicate policy balance. Spain needs foreign labour—almost 20 % of its workforce was born abroad—but faces political pressure to tighten borders. Employers sponsoring work and intra-company transfer permits should not expect a sudden crackdown; administrative resources remain focused on processing new legal pathways rather than mass removals.
Human-rights NGOs argue that low expulsion rates highlight humane standards, pointing to alternatives such as regularisation campaigns. Yet opposition parties accuse the Sánchez government of ‘de facto amnesty’ and vow tougher measures. With a general election looming in late 2026, corporate mobility teams should watch whether enforcement funding rises or whether regularisation becomes the preferred tool.
For now, the data suggest continuity: Spain will continue to prioritise legal migration channels—digital-nomad, highly-skilled and family reunification visas—while enforced removals remain the exception, not the norm.
Multiple hurdles explain the gap. Legal safeguards require individualised procedures, and many migrants arrive without identity documents, making returns dependent on slow-moving readmission deals with origin countries. Charter-flight capacity and detention-centre space also limit how many removals can be carried out each month.(euroweeklynews.com)
Navigating these evolving rules can be daunting, but services like VisaHQ offer streamlined help for securing Spanish visas—whether for work, study, digital-nomad stays or family reunification—by providing real-time guidance and application support (https://www.visahq.com/spain/).
For businesses, the statistics underscore a delicate policy balance. Spain needs foreign labour—almost 20 % of its workforce was born abroad—but faces political pressure to tighten borders. Employers sponsoring work and intra-company transfer permits should not expect a sudden crackdown; administrative resources remain focused on processing new legal pathways rather than mass removals.
Human-rights NGOs argue that low expulsion rates highlight humane standards, pointing to alternatives such as regularisation campaigns. Yet opposition parties accuse the Sánchez government of ‘de facto amnesty’ and vow tougher measures. With a general election looming in late 2026, corporate mobility teams should watch whether enforcement funding rises or whether regularisation becomes the preferred tool.
For now, the data suggest continuity: Spain will continue to prioritise legal migration channels—digital-nomad, highly-skilled and family reunification visas—while enforced removals remain the exception, not the norm.
