The European impulse to self-destruct apparently knows no bounds. A day after the EU celebrated a free trade agreement guaranteeing an influx of cheap Indian labor, the socialist government of Spain announced it was “regularizing” at least 500,000 illegals already in the country.
The decree was issued by socialist prime minister Pedro Sánchez, bypassing the country’s parliament, which had stalled on debating a similar bill. It was issued as a “royal decree,” though Spain’s King Felipe VI is a mere ceremonial figurehead with no real power. The decree allows eligible individuals (those who can prove at least five months of continuous residence in Spain before December 31, 2025, or who applied for international protection before that date, with no criminal record) to apply for one-year residence and work permits. Applications are expected to start in April 2026 and run until June 2026.
The total number of illegal residents in Spain is unknown, though estimates come in around 840,000. About 760,000 (roughly 90%) are from Latin America, chiefly Colombia (290,000), Peru (110.000), Honduras (90,000), followed by Venezuela, Ecuador, and Argentina. The remaining 10 percent are primarily from Africa (Morocco, sub-Saharan countries).
The sudden decree was met with anger by the populist party Vox, whose chief Santiago Abascal wrote on social media that the measure “harms all Spaniards,” arguing that critics of his party are motivated by fear of Vox’s growing influence. He wrote:
They are not worried about the consequences of Sánchez’s criminal policies. They are worried that Vox will gain more strength. The tyrant Sánchez hates the Spanish people. He wants to replace them. That’s why he intends to promote the pull effect by decree, to accelerate the invasion. We must stop him. Repatriations, deportations, and remigration.
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