In a move aimed at unclogging Spain’s overstretched immigration offices, the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration has formalised an encomienda de gestión (management delegation) whereby the Ministry of Territorial Policy will assume technical processing tasks for ‘arraigo’ residency applications. The agreement, published on 23 July, covers system data entry, biometric appointment scheduling and preliminary document verification. ‘Arraigo’—literally “roots” permits—allow undocumented foreigners who can prove three years’ continuous presence and labour integration to regularise their status. The scheme has seen a 42 % surge in filings since January, coinciding with Spain’s broader extraordinary regularisation drive. By shifting routine tasks to a ministry that already runs Spain’s digital-services backbone, the government hopes to cut average resolution times from 90 to 45 days, hitting the statutory 60-day cap demanded by the Ombudsman. Territorial Policy will receive €9.8 million from EU Recovery funds to upgrade servers and hire 120 temporary clerks. For employers the upside is potentially faster access to the labour market for candidates coming out of irregularity—especially in agriculture, hospitality and elder-care where labour shortages are acute. Companies sponsoring arraigo laboral candidates should, however, prepare for a short adjustment period as new workflows go live in August, which could temporarily freeze the appointment calendar.
Source: Europa Press – Migración
