Madrid, Feb 9 (IANS) Spain’s decision to reform its immigration system has sparked a question that European Union has long avoided instead of resolving it – how regularisation policies in a nation operate in a borderless continental space and the implications it produces beyond the state that implement them.
Spain has taken the decision as it faces labour shortages, demographic ageing and backlog of unresolved asylum and residency applications. Enhancing legal pathways, regularising undocumented migrants already present in Spain and simplifying administrative procedures are seen as pragmatic responses to economic and social realities, a report in the ‘European Times’ detailed. These measures can be defended in the nation, however, its consequences extend far beyond Spain.
“Spain’s immigration reform, and its likely impact on large migrant communities and on the security and cohesion of other EU states, illustrates the broader dilemma confronting Europe. Free movement without common governance is not openness; it is drift. And drift — at a moment when Europe is already under political, social and institutional strain — is a risk the Union can no longer afford,” the European Times report stated.
After legal residence is granted in a Schengen country, internal borders do not function as meaningful barriers. Mobility in much of Europe becomes frictionless even when legal status has been granted under national criteria that is different between EU nations. This is an important part of European integration and one of its most persistent governance blind spots.
Criticism of Spain’s reform is not opposition to migration. However, it has sparked concern that national regularisation decisions cause effects across Europe without corresponding coordination at the European level. After residency is approved under eligibility criteria, mobility does not remain confined to Spain’s labour market or integration system. However, it extends to France, Germany, Italy and other nations due to lack of harmonised standards, shared monitoring mechanisms or consistent enforcement.
“Government announcements indicate that the reform could regularise up to 500,000 undocumented migrants nationwide, subject to conditions such as proof of continuous residence and the absence of a criminal record. The scale of interest is already evident. This reflects both the size of the community and the perception that Spain’s reform offers not only legal stability, but also potential onward mobility within Europe,” the European Times report mentioned.
European interior ministries have admitted that migrants regularised in one EU nation later relocate to another, where they find stronger labour markets, higher salaries or more generous welfare systems, resulting in policy fragmentation.
“Spain’s reform also exposes a deeper tension between humanitarian intent and governance capacity. Regularisation can reduce illegality and labour exploitation. Yet without EU-level alignment on background checks, security screening, data interoperability and post-regularisation monitoring, it can also create significant blind spots — particularly when migrants originate from regions affected by instability, informal economies or transnational criminal networks,” the report concluded.
–IANS
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