As governments around the world tighten migration controls, Spain has taken a strikingly different path. In January 2026, the Spanish cabinet approved a decree opening a pathway to legal residency for hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants who already live in the country. At a time when deportations, detentions and exclusion dominate migration debates elsewhere, Spain has chosen regularisation.
The measure allows migrants without legal status to apply for temporary residence permits, bringing them out of administrative invisibility. The contrast with other countries is sharp. While ICE intensifies its operations in the US and European governments – including the UK – move towards harsher immigration policies, Spain has signalled a willingness to integrate rather than exclude.
