OVIEDO: Spain set a new record for migrant arrivals in 2024, with 63,970 people entering Spanish territory irregularly by land or sea, according to Interior Ministry data released on Thursday.
This marks the second consecutive year that Spain has broken its record for arrivals.
In 2023, the total was 55,718 — almost double the number recorded in 2022.
In 2024, the vast majority of irregular arrivals — 46,843 — made the treacherous journey by sea from northwest Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands.
A report released in December by the NGO Caminando Fronteras estimated that an average of 30 people lost their lives daily while trying to reach Spain in 2024. Nearly 10,000 died attempting to reach the Canary Islands.
The president of Spain’s Canary Islands has highlighted the region’s inability to handle the influx, particularly when it comes to minors, saying services are saturated and unable to treat them with dignity or in line with human rights obligations.
In an interview with Spanish broadcaster RTVE on Thursday, Spain’s Migration Minister Elma Saiz said the government is working to reach an agreement that would automatically redistribute young migrants to the mainland.
Saiz also highlighted that in 2025, the country’s new immigration law will take effect. It is set to legalize around 300,000 undocumented immigrants annually over the next three years.
The year “2025 will mark Spain as a beacon for inclusion and living in harmony with migrants,” she said.
The minister applauded the EU’s Migration Pact, reached in 2024, which she said will be implemented in 2025.
The other main migration route into Spain was via ships to the Spanish mainland or the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean, which saw nearly 14,500 arrivals in 2024.
A significant spike was also observed in migrants crossing the land border into Ceuta, Spain’s North African enclave, where more than 2,500 people crossed — more than double the number in 2023.
