The Spanish commission for refugee aid (CEAR) publishes an annual report analysing the situation of migrants and refugees in Spain. This most recent report also looks at the situation for refugees globally and in the European Union.

The report addresses important issues in the field of asylum and refuge in 2020, such as the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the increase in arrivals to the Canary Islands, obstacles in the reception of migrants, and new global and European pacts. The report is divided into eight chapters and finishes with a series of proposals.

Key findings

Spain approved only one in twenty asylum applications over the course of 2020, a far cry from the average recognition rate of 33% among EU countries. At the same time it granted residence authorisation for humanitarian reasons to nearly 41 000 people, almost all of them from Venezuela.

In addition, Spain maintained scant recognition for victims of persecution by non-state actors (gangs, criminal gangs, etc). Director of CEAR, Estrella Galán, said on this: "it is necessary to advance in their protection and remove obstacles so that people from countries in conflict such as Syria, Yemen or Palestine can come here safely due to the transit visa requirement".

Despite a decrease in arrivals to Spain via Ceuta and Melilla, throughout the year there were still at least 212 "hot returns". With reference to this CEAR points out that both the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg and the Spanish Constitutional Court have already demanded that legal guarantees be upheld, and that in these cases - as well as in more recent cases in Ceuta - this has not happened.

The organisation also draws attention to the fact that pandemic-related restrictions have served to further restrict movement, leaving thousands of people trapped in unsafe countries. In the face of this situation, it is more urgent than ever for Spain to activate such legal and safe routes as resettlement, humanitarian visas, asylum requests at embassies and consular representations, and family reunification.

More than 23 000 people arrived in the Canary Islands in 2020. In order to prevent overcrowded and under-supported situations such as the Arguineguín dock, or the increase and worsening of macro-camps, says CEAR, migration policies with a different perspective are needed. The report recommends that these policies should:

• not focus solely on the protection of borders;
• be better planned and coordinated;
• include a flexible, transparent system of transfers to the peninsula without discrimination based on nationality;
• promote fair distribution of individuals throughout Spain, to avoid turning the island and peripheral territories into large holding areas;
• modify existing protocols for the care of minors.

On a positive note, the organisation celebrates the fact that - after decades of demands - the Supreme Court has recognised freedom of movement for asylum seekers residing in Ceuta and Melilla throughout Spain.

Find an accessible version of the report online here, or view the PDF document below.