(Adnkronos) – The Spanish government will today approve the decree to regularize about half a million undocumented migrants. Pedro Sanchez announced this in a letter, published today on social media while the Spanish prime minister is on his official visit to China, in which he explains that with the approval of the decree, “the extraordinary process of regularizing people living in our country” without documents begins. Responding to journalists’ questions during a press conference in Beijing, Sanchez urged the PP to support the measure, following the Catholic Church’s guidelines on migrants, and to show consistency with similar measures adopted in the past by governments led by the Spanish Popular Party.
The socialist prime minister recalled that the regularization process has been requested “by various actors who, certainly, have little or nothing to do with the Spanish government.” “I am talking about the Catholic Church, I am talking about social actors, about employers, who have asked us to recognize the rights of people who are already living with us and are working or could work with companies,” Sanchez continued, “because they need manpower to continue growing and to continue in this direction of intense job creation in which we are moving in Spain.”
Sanchez then emphasized how immigration is contributing “very significantly” to economic growth, job creation, and “keeping the Social Security accounts as healthy as possible for the pensions of today’s retirees” and also for those of the future. Because, he recalled, Spain, “like all Western societies,” is suffering a demographic winter, and this must be addressed “in two ways, which are not incompatible.”
“The first with family policies that this government, for example, the extension of paternity and maternity leave, and two with regular immigration policies, and this is also what the government is doing,” he added, concluding that therefore the amnesty that his government is about to launch has great support “from an economic, social, and religious point of view.” Finally, Sanchez recalled that the former president of the popular government, José María Aznar, “regularized half a million undocumented migrants.”
The measure is aimed at all international protection applicants who have submitted an application by December 31, 2025, regardless of whether it has been rejected or not. As for economic migrants, it will apply to those who have been in Spain since July 31, or who can demonstrate a minimum stay of five months by December 31, 2025.
Regularization applications must be submitted by June 30, and three months are expected for processing the requests, while with the simple acceptance of the application, which will arrive within 15 days from the submission date, people will be able to start working regularly.
