Moroccan Workers Lead Non-EU Foreign Labor Force in Spain, Ministry Reports

As of the end of June 2022, there were 285,501 of them registered with the social security system, ranking second among non-EU foreigners who contribute the most in Spain, while in December last year there were around 300,000. According to data from the Spanish Ministry of Labor, Romania currently occupies the first place on the list of the largest groups of foreign workers in Spain (339,053). It is followed by Morocco (285,046), Italy (163,826), Colombia (122,192) and Venezuela (118,147).

Non-EU workers contributing to social security currently represent about 1,606,752 people, while those from the European Union number 856,138. According to the supervisory authority, the number of foreign workers has slightly decreased in the last six months. To reverse the downward trend, Spain is considering facilitating the entry of immigrants into the labor market. The government would also be studying a project aimed at facilitating the granting of work permits to migrants already residing on Spanish territory.

The project also plans to offer students employment opportunities and regularize the legal status of foreigners in an irregular situation on the territory, if they agree to receive training in sectors that are most in need of employees. These include transport, construction, hospitality or the digital sector.

According to the National Institute of Statistics (INE), despite the difficulties, Moroccans are still at the top of the list of legally established foreigners in Spain. They numbered 879,943 as of January 1, 2022, an increase of 0.8% (7,184 people) compared to January 1, 2021.