Immigration Policies in Spain

Unemployment has been a problem in Spain because of immigration.

Spain has had a traditionally lenient immigration policy but that has changed due to high levels of unemployment, according to the Brussels Journal. As of 2009, high levels of unemployment has caused Spain to re-think its once liberal attitude toward immigrants.

Significance

People who have recently immigrated to Spain have lost their jobs twice as fast as native Spaniards, according to the Numbers USA website. In 2009, Spain had the highest employment rate in the European Union at 17.4 percent.

Effects

Spain has resorted to more draconian measures when dealing with illegal immigrants, according to the "Brussels Journal." Police in major cities are given weekly quotas for rounding up illegal immigrants.

Considerations

The Spanish government also began a new program that pays unemployed immigrants to leave and return to their native country. The program pays them before and after they leave, forcing them to surrender their residency. As of May 2009, only about 4,000 people had taken up the Spanish government on its offer.

References

• Numbers USA: Spain Toughening Immigration Policies
• "Brussels Journal": Immigration Policy a Casualty of Unemployment in Spain