Spain’s leftist government is often accused of being soft on foreign criminals, and the upcoming regularisation of 500,000 undocumented migrants has brought these beliefs back into the spotlight. Does Spain really allow felons from overseas to stay?
Immigration is becoming an increasingly divisive topic in Spanish politics and society. This has been emphasised by reactions to the Spanish government’s plan to regularise over 500,000 undocumented migrants this year.
There have been many misconceptions about the mass amnesty, and The Local has broken down the main myths about the migrant regularisation here.
One of the points of contention about the regularisation has been whether or not undocumented migrants benefiting from the measure will have to provide criminal records.
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The claim that the Sánchez government is giving residency to criminal migrants living illegally in the country has gained ground on the Spanish right.
In Spain, the legal system is sometimes seen as too lenient on repeat offenders for supposedly low-level crimes like pickpocketing, as felons know that if they steal under certain amounts it doesn’t count as serious crime and prosecution is unlikely.
“Serious crimes will automatically result in the loss of the right to residence, and repeat offences, even if they are minor, will not be rewarded with continued residence in Spain,” said opposition PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo about what he would do if he became prime minister.
However, under current regulations, foreigners can already be expelled for certain offences and serious crimes, and a criminal record can also mean the loss of legal residence.
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Does Spain expel foreign criminals?
Yes, it does. In fact, a total of 3,398 foreigners were deported from Spain in 2025 alone, 12 percent more than the previous year, according to data from the Interior Ministry.
The figures also show a 67 percent increase in expulsions processed compared to 2021.
Spanish lawyer Carlos Arce told Spanish news outlet Newtral that “the general rule, as set out in Article 89 of the Criminal Code, is that any foreigner, whether legal or illegal, who commits a crime punishable by between one and five years in prison, will have that sentence in Spain replaced by expulsion from the territory”.
Such a foreigner would not be expelled in exceptional cases provided that the judge considers it preferable they are imprisoned in order to ensure public order.
In such cases, “it may be agreed that part of the sentence (in Spain) be served, which may not exceed two-thirds of its length, and that the rest be replaced by the expulsion of the convicted person from Spanish territory.”
This means that “the foreign national will be expelled once they have served their sentence or even before, as soon as they are granted the third or fourth degree (or parole),” adds Arce.
Newtral notes that in this case, their expulsion from Spain is the criminal consequence of their crime, meaning that they do not have to serve any specific sentence abroad.
If a foreigner in Spain commits a crime punishable by five years or more, however, the Criminal Code does stipulate that the sentence must be served in Spain because expulsion from the country alone is not considered sufficient punishment, and therefore the foreigner will serve their sentence in Spain.
Arce also points out that criminal records can have an impact on those living legally in Spain, as one “one of the reasons for losing your residence permit or not being allowed to renew it is having a criminal or police record,” as outlined in Spain’s Immigration regulations.
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When considering deportation, there are several other criteria the authorities may consider.
According to legal experts Balcells, Spanish police weigh up the following questions when considering the deportation of a foreigner:
- “Firstly, the foreigner has been arrested in connection with the commission of a criminal offence or at the same time the foreigner has a criminal record
- Secondly, the foreigner claims a false nationality instead of the nationality of his or her country of origin
- Thirdly, the foreigner with a previous expulsion order from a previous entry and within this period re-enters Spain, will also be expelled from Spanish territory
- Fourthly, the lack of address or documentation. In this case, it is very important to be documented (either with an expired passport or NIE) in order to be able to prove your domicile in Spain and not be expelled
- Finally, the impossibility of proving how and when you entered Spanish territory is determined by the foreigner’s lack of documentation or the absence of an entry stamp”.
