The Supreme Court proposes to take the regularisation of migrants to the EU Court of Justice after closing with 1.3 million petitions

The Spanish Supreme Court has advanced the possibility of referring the case concerning the exceptional regularisation of migrants to the Court of Justice of the European Union (TJUE), considering that the measure may conflict with Community law.

The Administrative Litigation Chamber has given five days to the Autonomous Communities — Comunidad Valenciana and Aragón — whichappealed against regularization to rule on the possibility of a preliminary question to the TJUE.

According to the Supreme Court, the regularization regime contained in the decree raises doubts as to its compatibility with European rules implementing the Treaty on Migration and Asylum (PMAUE).

European rules

In fact, the judges ask whether, although the Return Directive is in force and Spain has not yet transposed it in its entirety into its law, it is permissible to grant a general temporary residence permitto migrants in an irregular administrative situation simply because they are in Spain.

Both decisions were taken before the Supreme Court decided on the interim measures requested by the Valencian Community and Aragon.

1.3 million applications received

The news has come to light on the same day that the deadline for submitting applications for extraordinary regularisation has expired. The President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, has reported that the process has received around 1.3 million applications, a figure which, according to him, shows that this measure was necessary.

The Government has made these statements during the presentation in Madrid of the Plan for Citizenship and Integration, which will have a budget of EUR 500 million in the first year and which will include as one of its first measures the granting of residence and work permits to persons already residing in Spain through extraordinary regularisation.

Sánchez has explained that the plan hasfour axes, 16 measures and 10 objectives by 2030, including the implementation of a labour mobility strategy to promote legal and safe avenues for migration and the creation of a state agency for human mobility.

With regard to the regularization process, he stressed that behind each application is a person who already resides in the country and who will henceforth be part of society with all rights and obligations, and argued that "there is no integration without a regular administrative situation" and that "exclusion does not protect anyone, but makes newcomers more vulnerable and hinders the work of the host society".