The 5 March 2026 edition of the Official Bulletin of the Spanish Congress (Serie D N.º 489) records a motion tabled by the centre-right Partido Popular (PP) calling on the government to withdraw its decree regularising undocumented migrants and to overhaul Spain’s immigration framework. The proposal urges the abolition of the arraigo residence category, reinstatement of tougher family-reunification checks and an end to what the PP labels “open-border pull factors.” Among eleven points, the motion seeks to: suspend all future mass regularisations, impose a ‘national-priority’ principle for social benefits, create a points-based temporary-work visa tied to labour-market needs and introduce a special tax on foreign real-estate buyers to ease Spain’s housing crunch. It also demands suspension of development aid to third countries that fail to cooperate on returns. Although opposition motions are non-binding, they can shape public debate and, if adopted, oblige the government to present a formal response. For global-mobility stakeholders, the text signals that any future change in parliamentary majority could yield a sharp policy swing—from the current pro-regularisation stance to a system more akin to Australia’s skills-points model. Multinationals should therefore stress-test workforce-planning scenarios under both policy directions. In the short term, the PP’s motion is unlikely to derail the April regularisation window, but it may slow related implementing regulations if administrative agencies aim to ‘future-proof’ rules against potential legal revisions.
