Spain Residency Permits for ‘Gender Violence’ Surge 500%
Spain's residency permits for foreign women reporting gender violence surged 498 percent from 2017 to 2024, with over 60 percent going to Colombian and Moroccan nationals.
According to data from Spain’s Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration released under transparency rules, residency authorisations granted to foreign women citing gender violence jumped from 628 in 2017 to 3,758 in 2024 — an increase of 498.4 per cent, as Brussels Signal reports. The period covered coincides with Pedro Sánchez‘s tenure as Prime Minister, which began in 2018.
More than 60 per cent of the permits were issued to women from just two countries: Colombia and Morocco, which are the top two countries of origin for immigrants to Spain.
Colombian and Moroccan nationals dominate permit grants
Between 2017 and 2024, the Spanish government issued temporary residency permits to 5,403 Colombians (30.7 per cent of the total), 5,270 Moroccans (29.9 per cent), 1,913 Peruvians (10.9 per cent), 1,815 Hondurans (10.3 per cent), and 1,312 Bolivians (7.5 per cent). Women from Brazil, Paraguay, Nicaragua, and Venezuela also featured prominently.
The increase among Colombian women was particularly dramatic: the number receiving permits rose from just 50 in 2017 to 1,620 in 2024 — a staggering 3,140 per cent increase. Moroccan recipients climbed from 166 to 996 over the same period, a 500 per cent rise, while Peruvian women saw a 163 per cent increase.
In total, approximately 42,000 authorisations have been granted since 2005, with the overwhelming majority concentrated in recent years. The year 2024 set a record with 3,235 grants issued.
How the residency pathway works
Spanish law permits the issuance of a temporary residence and work permit to any foreign woman who has been a victim of gender violence in Spain, regardless of her immigration status. Minor children and certain direct relatives may also qualify on humanitarian grounds.
The permit is initially valid for one year and can become permanent if criminal proceedings result in a conviction or final ruling recognising gender violence. Deportation procedures based on irregular status are suspended while the case remains open.
A November 2021 instruction issued by the ministry headed by Elma Saiz removed earlier restrictive interpretations and clarified that the permit applied to women in both irregular and regular situations, including those whose residency was tied to a partner through family reunification.
Low evidentiary threshold raises concerns
Critics have argued that the route has become a relatively accessible path to regularisation, as an initial complaint backed by evidence assessed by a prosecutor or judge is sufficient to obtain the provisional one-year permit. Time spent on the authorisation also counts towards Spanish nationality, which Latin Americans can request after just two years of legal residence.
Official statistics indicate that foreign women filed 38.37 per cent of gender violence complaints in 2025 and accounted for 43.8 per cent of fatal victims in so-called feminicides, with foreign men responsible for 39.6 per cent of those killings. Foreigners represent around 14 per cent of Spain’s total population.
With information from Brussels Signal
