Faced with the gargantuan task of processing the residency papers of at least 500,000 migrants in just three months, the Spanish government has decided to enlist the help of its Correos post offices and the country’s Social Security department.
In late January, the Spanish government made headlines internationally when it announced that it would give residency and the right to work to at least half a million undocumented migrants already living in the country.
Some sources estimate that the number could be much higher – closer to a million.
This mass amnesty is expected to put a great deal of pressure on Spain’s already understaffed and overworked extranjería or foreigners’ offices, whose civil servants will have to deal with even more residency applications that normal.
READ ALSO – ‘Humanly impossible’: Staff call for more resources to tackle Spain’s mass regularisation
Spanish Immigration staff have warned the government that without extra funding and manpower it would be “humanly impossible” to undertake the amount of work needed for the mass process.
Unions had also previously said that the regularisation could “collapse” immigration offices and would likely to have a knock-on effect and hinder processing times overall for foreigners who are legal residents and are renewing their residency card or carrying out other official processes.
To help ease the workload and make the process quicker, Pedro Sánchez’s government is now saying that migrants can also apply for their papers at Spanish Correos post offices, as well as the country’s Social Security offices.
According to the latest draft of the decree from the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, post offices and Seguridad Social offices will now have their own dedicated counters for this specific purpose.
Last week, Spanish authorities also announced that unions and NGOs would also be able to do residency paperwork on behalf of migrants.
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In the past, mass regularisations such as these have caused holdups and delays at immigration offices, with staff staging strikes last year to protest about their lack of manpower and resources.
This time Spain’s leftist government want to avoid bureaucratic bottlenecks by increasing the number of official buildings migrants can apply at, as well as hiring more staff.
Spain’s Ministry of Migration will still be responsible for reviewing and verifying the documents submitted, according to the draft of the new decree, but the giant queues outside extranjería offices will hopefully be avoided.
This means that anyone wanting to apply to get their legal residency who can meet the requirements will now be able to apply at Correos offices, Social Security offices, through NGOs and extranjerías.
They can also submit online applications via the Mercurio platform.
Those who apply via Social Security offices will also be able provide extra information which will facilitate their immediate registration in the Spanish labour system if they’re successful.
READ ALSO: Spain to allow unions and NGOs to do residency paperwork on behalf of migrants
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The amnesty is only available those who can prove they entered Spain before December 31st, 2025 and currently don’t have any residency papers.
You must also be able prove a minimum stay of five months prior to the application and have no criminal record in either Spain or your country of origin.
The application window is expected to open in early April 2026 and close on June 30th 2026, so if you meet the requirements and want to apply, you have to be able to get all your paperwork together and move quickly.
The objective is to resolve each case within a maximum period of three months. It will grant residency and work permits to undocumented migrants for a period of one year.
Spain’s post office and social security will pass on applications to the country’s Immigration Case Processing Unit (UTEX), which will be responsible for reviewing all applications and making a decision on each case. UTEX reports to the Spanish Ministry of Migration.
IN DETAIL: How Spain’s mass regularisation of undocumented migrants will work
