SPAIN OFFERS AMNESTY TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MADRID 000517

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR EUR/WE, CA/EX AND CA/FPP; ALSO FOR
CA/OCS/ACS/EUR/WE, CA/VO

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL SMIG CMGT CASC CVIS KFRD SP
SUBJECT: SPAIN OFFERS AMNESTY TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

REF: 04 STATE 3701


1. (SBU) Spain's illegal immigrant population has multiplied
three-fold over the last five years, from 300,000 to nearly
one million. Now, new Spanish immigration measures taking
effect February 7 through May 7 could grant amnesty to as
many as one million illegal immigrants currently working in
Spain. The new measures require that illegal aliens be
registered in a Spanish municipality, have no criminal
record, and present a job contract for a time period
determined by their occupation. The Government has already
agreed to waive the requirement that embassies authenticate
police records for some nationals. It also faces deporting
massive numbers of unsuccessful immigrant applicants.
Several EU members, including Germany, Holland, France and
the UK have criticized the GOS for not discussing its
immigration reform within the European Union. The opposition
Popular Party slammed the amnesty program, accusing President
Zapatero of encouraging more illegal immigration. The new
immigration policy promises to raise immigration challenges
that reach far beyond Spain's borders, but the GOS believes
this measure is a necessary solution in the short term. End
summary.

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Spain Proposes Immigration Reforms
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3. (U) Since 1986, Spain has reformed its immigration laws
six times. Approximately 631,000 immigrants have obtained
residence or work permits since the first amnesty program in
1986, according to government statistics. In December 2004,
the Spanish government passed legislation drafted by the
Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MLSA) that modified its
Foreign Alien's Law and opened an amnesty period for
immigrants who are currently in Spain illegally. Officials
developed these new immigration laws after meeting with
business and workers unions in October 2004 (reftel). The
government's goal was to eliminate Spain's black market
economy for immigrant labor and to reduce the flow of illegal
immigration into Spain by facilitating legal immigration for
those already in the country.

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The New Immigration Requirements
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4. (U) Spain's new immigration measures open a three-month
legalization process between February 7 and May 7, offering
amnesty to illegal immigrants who fulfill certain residence
and employment requirements. Under the measures, illegal
aliens must show that they were registered in a Spanish
municipality prior to August 7, 2004 (six months before the
implementation of the law) and have no criminal record in
Spain or in their country of origin. Most applicants are
also required to present a job offer assuring a minimum of
six months employment. Agricultural workers require a
three-month contract; construction and hotel service workers
qualify with aggregate work experience over a period of one
year; and domestic workers must show proof that they work a
minimum of 30 hours per week.

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Concerns About The New Process
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5. (U) The GOS has enlisted 160 social security offices to
help implement the new law, and Spanish immigration
authorities have tried to manage the anticipated high demand
for immigrant petitions. Director General of Consular
Affairs Miguel Angel de Frutos told Emboffs January 28 that
the GOS expects only a relatively small number to qualify
successfully. Managing those illegal aliens who apply but do
not qualify for amnesty is also problematic. By law, illegal
immigrants should be deported within fifteen days after their
petition for permanent residency is denied. De Frutos said
the MLSA was discussing how to deal with family members of
those who do not qualify under the new program. Because
employers must petition, and subsequently pay full salary and
benefits to currently undocumented workers, there are
economic disincentives to petitioning for undocumented
employees.


6. (U) Angel de Frutos acknowledged that other diplomats at
foreign missions have told him that they have been unable to
handle the large number of nationals who have requested
police records and other documents. De Frutos said that the
Ecuadorian ambassador pleaded with him to revise the
requirements before the large crowds became unmanageable.
(According to government statistics, Ecuador has the largest
immigrant population in Madrid (175,515 residents),followed
by Colombia (71,693) and Morocco (61,108). On the first day
of program, immigration officials collected 1,500 petitions
nationwide, falling far short of their expectation of 12,000
applications per day. The low turn-out was likely due to
delays in processing foreign police records and in obtaining
full local documentation.


7. (U) The opposition Popular Party has criticized the
Socialist-led government's immigration plan as ill-advised
and likely to stimulate further illegal immigration to Spain.
The amnesty issue could become a more important political
issue as Spaniards begin to take greater notice of the
growing immigrant population.

EU concerns
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8. (U) Spain's immigration plan reportedly was criticized at
the EU Justice and Interior Minister's meeting held February
4 in Luxembourg as creating a pull factor for illegal
immigration into Europe. According to Spanish press reports,
German Interior Minister Otto Schilly and Dutch Immigration
Affairs Minister Rita Verdonk commented that the Spanish
Government should have considered the consequences of its new
immigration policy within the EU and consulted with its
partners before implementing the amnesty program. France
warned that Spain's immigration policy could increase
criminal mafias in Europe. Interior Ministry State
Secretary for Security Antonio Camacho, who attended the EU

SIPDIS
meeting, responded to the EU critics by stating that Spain's
immigration plan was "intelligent" because it could guarantee
quality employment and adequate living conditions for those
illegal aliens who currently lacked them.

Effect on U.S. consular services
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9. (U) All eight U.S. consular offices in Spain are
receiving an increase in calls from American citizens
inquiring how to apply for amnesty under the new process.
Embassy Madrid has been getting numerous calls per day on the
program from Amcits. There are no firm figures on the number
of Amcits who may qualify for residency permits under the
program. However, on the first day of the program alone, ACS
Madrid received 120 inquires. Since then the Madrid consular
staff drafted talking points on how to respond to American
callers and distributed these points to ConGen Barcelona and
all six consular agencies in the country. Requests for
fingerprints and inquiries about obtaining criminal/police
records and Hague apostilles abound.
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The Changing Face of Spain
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10. (U) Increased immigration continues to change the
dynamics of Spanish society. Between 2001 and 2005, the
population of illegal immigrants has increased from 300,000
to nearly one million. EU statistics show that in 2003 alone
Spain's population grew by about 650,000 to 42.2 million,
with 92% percent of the growth due to immigration.
Immigrants now make up approximately 7.5% of the Spanish
population, and statistics from the National Institute of
Statistics (INE) project the percentage could reach 10% by

2008. According to the INE, in 2003, the number of children
born to foreign mothers accounted for 12.2% of all births in
Spain. Since 2000, birth rates among Spanish immigrants have
increased an average of 28% per year while the birth rate of
Spanish natives was 2% per year.


11. (U) Spain's economic growth in recent years has created
a new demand for immigrant labor, especially in construction
and agriculture. The Center for Sociological Investigation
noted in November 2004 that Spaniards placed immigration
issues third in the list of concerns they had about Spain's
future, behind unemployment and terrorism. However, the
director of the MFA's Cabinet of Analysis and Policy
Planning, Fernando Sendagorta, said that controlling the
influx of new immigrants would be Spain's number one concern
in the coming years. Enclaves of illegal immigrant workers
have so far co-existed peacefully beside native Spanish
communities. However, as the numbers of immigrants increase,
Spain could expect to see social and economic clashes between
immigrants and natives come to the fore.

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Comment
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12. (SBU) The GOS will be challenged to manage one of the
most ambitious immigration amnesty programs in its history.
Clearly, managing a nationwide immigration process with an
estimated one million illegal petitions will tax the GOS's
immigration administration. Foreign embassies with large
illegal immigrant communities in Spain, such as Ecuador,
Colombia, and Morocco, are also confronting concerns about
increased workload associated with the amnesty program.
Should the GOS offer a "second" amnesty to immigrants who do
not qualify, it could raise further concerns among Spain's EU
partners on the issue. Spain's new immigration policy is
likely to encourage dramatic changes in the country's
demography and economy and also have consequences on
immigration controls in many other EU countries over the long
term. This is likely to trigger friction between Spanish
citizens and the growing immigrant community, especially if
there is a downturn in the economy.
MANZANARES