The Council of Ministers used its 14 September meeting to give the green light to two long-awaited draft bills that will completely reshape Spain’s immigration and asylum landscape. According to the Expat- and immigration-law specialists at Tradelex, the government has opted for a full replacement—rather than a patch-up—of the 2009 Asylum Act, arguing that the law is obsolete and out of step with the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum (PEMA) that became operational last June. Key innovations include a three-month accelerated procedure, strengthened safeguards for vulnerable applicants, and codification of gender- and disability-based persecution. The companion draft partially amends the Organic Law on the Rights and Freedoms of Foreigners. It transposes the PEMA’s mandatory “screening” stage—medical checks, vulnerability assessment, biometrics and security inspection—while keeping Spain’s maximum detention under that procedure at 72 hours (extendable only by court order) versus the EU’s seven-day ceiling. The bill also embeds an expedited 12-week border-return process for people who arrive irregularly and do not qualify for protection, seeking to balance due-process guarantees with swifter removals. For employers, the overhaul promises greater clarity on when foreign nationals may start working; the new asylum bill, for example, grants work authorisation earlier in the process, potentially easing skills shortages in sectors such as IT and healthcare. HR teams will, however, need to revise onboarding check-lists, because the bills introduce new documentation rules, including updated biometric residence cards and digital-only communication with applicants. The bills will now be sent to Parliament, where the minority government will have to negotiate support from regional and opposition parties. Given that the deadline to transpose several EU regulations is June 2027, observers expect brisk legislative timetables. Companies that move staff into—or out of—Spain should therefore map transition scenarios and budget for new compliance costs, particularly around accelerated decision deadlines and mandatory vulnerability screenings at external borders. Practical takeaway: multinational mobility programmes should track the bills’ progress and start updating standard operating procedures. Recruiters may soon benefit from quicker work permissions, but stricter front-line checks and the possibility of integrated return decisions could complicate short-term assignments.
Source: Tradelex
