Spain Unveils €505 Million Migrant Integration Plan

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced an Integration and Citizenship Plan for migrants, for which 505 million euros will be allocated in the first year. The announcement came on the day the mass migrant legalization program concluded, during which more than a million applications were submitted.

"This is our model of integration: order and discipline, decent work and a clear framework of coexistence, based on effective access to rights and obligations," Sánchez said at the presentation, in the presence of eight ministers of his government, the leaders of the UGT and CC OO trade unions, and the heads of the CEOE and Cepyme business associations.

What does the Migrant Integration Plan include?

The integration plan is divided into four blocks.

State migration agency. The government intends to act in migrants' countries of origin, offering "legal, safe, and orderly" options for entry, so that they cross the border with a contract and a life plan. To this end, a State Agency for Population Mobility is being created, which will bring together functions and resources that are currently fragmented in order to coordinate procedures — whether international protection, residence permits, or border control.

Decent work. A total of 185 million euros will be allocated to this area. Programs for simplified access to employment in high-demand sectors and in rural areas, as well as for supporting entrepreneurship, will receive 35 million euros. Another 50 million will be allocated to 100,000 additional places in vocational training institutions.

Learning the Spanish language and legislation. 30 million euros will go to programs for learning the official languages and Spanish norms and values. "Those who come must respect our laws, our official languages, because integration is not simply living in a neighborhood, but becoming part of a community, and that requires shared rules," Sánchez stressed. The prevention of hate speech and support for victims of discrimination will be strengthened.

Access to rights. The last block is aimed at removing the cultural, social, and administrative barriers that hinder equal access to public services — combating school segregation, countering discrimination in access to housing, and ensuring access to the social security system. More than 260 million euros has been allocated to this initiative.

The program will be managed by an interministerial commission chaired by the Minister for Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration, Elma Saiz.

Political context

Spain has faced criticism from other European Union countries over its mass legalization program. At the most recent meeting of the European Council, representatives of Italy, Denmark, Hungary, and Belgium questioned the consequences of this process for the other member states.

In response to this criticism, Sánchez referred to what he considers support from the Pope, expressed during his recent visit to Spain.

Spain will become better than it is now. We are doing the only decent and morally acceptable thing — extending a helping hand rather than turning away from the reality of migration. No society has ever progressed by building walls. It progresses by expanding rights, strengthening coexistence, and striving for integration.

— Pedro Sánchez

Spain's Supreme Court wants to turn to the EU court to overturn the migrant legalization

In a ruling on June 24, the Supreme Court considered that the mass legalization of migrants in Spain may contradict the pan-European Pact on Migration and Asylum of 2024.

The ruling was issued in response to complaints from the governments of Aragon and the Valencian Community. In the court's view, European law approaches migration and asylum issues in a comprehensive way, requiring a high level of information exchange and coordination between member states and European institutions. The court points out that the Spanish decree represents not an individual recognition of the right to residence, but a general regulatory regime for all third-country nationals who are in Spain illegally and meet certain conditions.

Among the specific possible inconsistencies, the judges name the issuance of residence permits to people who may be subject to deportation or expulsion procedures. The ruling cites European law, according to which the crossing of external borders by a large number of third-country nationals should not in itself be regarded as a threat to public order — however, the entry and movement of migrants across EU territory affects all member states, which requires uniform conditions for entry and refusal of entry, as well as cooperation between states.

The court gave the parties five days to submit arguments on the advisability of turning to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).