The subdelegate of the Government in A Coruña, María Rivas, inaugurated this morning in the Penitentiary Center of Teixeiro the summer course of the National University of Distance Education (UNED), entitled “Foreign people in prison. Changes, challenges and proposals in the light of the new Regulation on Foreigners”. The meeting analyzes the effects and implications of the new regulations approved by the Government in November 2024 and which entered into force on May 20, 2025.
During his speech, Rivas stressed the need to treat migratory reality with rigor, responsibility and focus on rights: “The new regulation provides fair, clear and rights-based responses to a complex phenomenon such as migration, which requires firm but deeply humanist policies.”
The new Regulation on Foreigners adapts the Spanish legal framework to the current reality of the migratory phenomenon, to the demands of the labour market, to the ageing of the population and to the recommendations of the European Union. According to official data, more than 7 million foreign people currently reside in Spain, which represents approximately 14% of the total population. Of these, more than 3 million are affiliated to Social Security, with a key weight in the sustainability of the public system. Agencies such as the World Bank and the European Commission estimate that around 250,000 migrants a year will be needed to sustain the Spanish welfare state.
The new regulation introduces substantial improvements:
• simplifies administrative procedures and eliminates duplication,
• strengthens the rights of migrants and the companies that hire them,
• and creates clear, safe and orderly channels for the arrival and regularization of foreign persons.
The regulation also incorporates a Plan of Integration and Intercultural Coexistence, with the objective of promoting a more cohesive, diverse and equal opportunities society, since the reports indicate that 48% of the content on networks against migrants is explicit violence.
Among the most outstanding measures is the possibility of regularizing up to 300,000 people a year during the next three years, through agile mechanisms that favor the social and labor inclusion of those who already reside in Spain.
Rivas explained that, during the six months after its approval and before its entry into force, the Government of Spain launched an intense training and information campaign, including legal talks in 15 cities of 9 autonomous communities —among them, Galicia—, as well as face-to-face and online conferences with third sector entities, jurists, public administrations and migrants.
In addition, the staff in the Immigration offices was strengthened with 250 new additions, six of them in the Subdelegation of the Government in A Coruña, and it is planned to hire 500 more people, with an investment of 2 million euros to ensure an effective application of the new regulations.
The subdelegate thanked the commitment of the UNED of A Coruña, especially its director Ana Novo, and the coordinator of the course, Professor Elena Maculan, for promoting spaces for critical reflection and specialized training in topics of such social relevance. He also acknowledged the work of the director of the penitentiary center, José Ángel Vázquez, to promote a very dynamic management model, based on reintegration and education as a tool for transformation.
“Prison cannot be a space of oblivion or exclusion, but a place where equal rights and opportunities for reintegration are guaranteed,” he concluded.