Spain grants legal status to 500,000 undocumented migrants under new plan

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s decision to grant an estimated 500,000 undocumented migrants legal status has sparked a lively debate about migration across Europe, but also opened the door to a series of misleading claims.

In an X post on 14 April, Jordan Bardella, leader of the French far-right National Rally party, claimed that newly documented individuals “will tomorrow be able to travel freely in France and even settle there, attracted by the generosity of our social system, which is open without conditions.”

Bruno Retailleau, the candidate from France’s conservative Republicans party, also called for the closure of borders within the Schengen space — a zone of 29 European countries with open borders and freedom of movement — in response to Spain’s regularisation plan.

However, the Spanish government has made it clear exactly how the system will work and what rights will be granted to those benefiting from it.

Under Sánchez’s programme, undocumented migrants who have lived in Spain for at least five months can apply for a one-year temporary residence permit.

They must have a clean criminal record and have until 30 June to apply for a renewable working visa.

Therefore, contrary to Bardella’s claim, the Spanish government’s plan does not mean that newly documented individuals will be free to move to France or other EU countries on a one-year work permit.

They will be able to reside and work solely in Spain, but not in any other EU member state.

Can Spain’s regularised migrants settle in other EU countries?

With Spain’s work permit, given that the country is in the Schengen area, newly documented individuals will be able to travel to other European countries for up to 90 days within a 180-day window.

However, they will not be able to stay there long-term, and much less put down any roots.

Monique Pariat, migration policy advisor at the Institut Jacques Delors, told EU News’ fact-checking team, The Cube, that third-country nationals in the EU “can settle in a country only if you are permitted to do so by the authorities.”

“If these individuals have a student status or received a job contract in France, then yes, they could stay,” she said. “But it is highly unlikely in any case that France would offer them a visa, while they have a one-year work permit in Spain.”

Can the regularised migrants access other EU healthcare systems?

Bardella also claimed that individuals holding a Spanish work permit would be able to gain access to France’s social security system, “which is open to all without conditions.”

However, newly regularised migrants will be covered by Spain’s social security system, not France’s.

“Either Spanish social security will be billed [for medical treatment], or if they are not covered, they will pay for the cost themselves”, said Pariat.

“This means that these individuals can’t come to France and say, ‘Oh, I want to change all of my teeth’,” she continued. “There is no sense in them doing that, because they will be covered in Spain. What would be the point of travelling to France?”

Conservative think tank Funcas estimated that around 840,000 undocumented migrants lived in Spain in early 2025, with the majority hailing from Latin American countries.

In 2025, Spain also stood out as one of the eurozone’s top-performing economies.

“France is not as attractive as some politicians might think or claim, especially for people who speak Spanish, have ties to Spain or already work there”, Catherine Wihtol de Wenden, senior researcher fellow at France’s National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), told us.

“In any case, these are people who have transnational ties between their country and Spain”, she added.

Spain is not the only country addressing its labour shortage through visas. Italy’s new three-year decree on migration will see 500,000 new arrivals between 2026 and 2028.