Spain to legalize 300,000 undocumented immigrants annually

Spain has announced plans to legalize the immigration status of about 300,000 undocumented migrants a year, starting next May through until at least 2027. 

Hailing it as "the most ambitious comprehensive reform in 13 years", migration minister Elma Saiz said the aim was to provide greater legal certainty for illegal migrants and increasing safeguards for workers and employers." 

Saiz said the added objective was to "combat mafias, fraud and the violation of rights" arising from the unregulated labor market. "Spain has to opt between being an open, prosperous country or being a closed and poor one, and we have chosen the former," she added.

The Spanish economy is expanding at more than three times the pace of the Eurozone as a whole and is on course to reach 2.7 percent growth this year, fueled by a boom in tourism, foreign investment and public spending. That would see the country surpass the U.S. to become the world's fastest-growing major advanced economy in 2024. 

The government of Pedro Sanchez says it believes the nation needs a minimum of a quarter of million tax-paying foreign workers a year to sustain its welfare state and meet job vacancies.

While the exact number of migrants living in Spain without documentation is unclear, last year 1.3 million visas were issued to foreigners. From next May, migrants will be able to register either as self-employed or salaried workers, shortening and simplifying the route to legal residence. Many are already working in Spain's black economy, where the government says they are at risk of abuse and exploitation. 

In August, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited West Africa in a bid to tackle the number of migrants taking the treacherous Atlantic route on small boats to the Canary Islands. Thousands of mainly young men from Mali, Senegal, Mauritania have made the journey seeking better job opportunities abroad and fleeing violence and political instability at home. 

Under the new rules initial residence permits will now last one year, with renewals extended to four years. Waiting times will also be reduced from three years to two, with more flexible terms. Current three-month job visas are to be extended to one year, with a "second chance" residency clause for those whose permits expired in the past two years.