The regularization of foreigners adds 46,839 affiliates to Social Security in Catalonia
Unemployment rises slightly in July, but remains at lows since 2007
BarcelonaThe extraordinary regularization of foreigners promoted by the Spanish government has added 46,839 affiliates to Social Security in Catalonia since the process began last April. This is according to the latest monthly report from the Ministry of Social Security, headed by Elma Saiz. Across Spain, the increase in affiliates linked to the regularization exceeded 262,400 people as of July 30 – the latest date for which data is available. Of these, 81.5% were enrolled in the General Regime; while only 4.8% are registered as self-employed.
With this figure, Catalonia establishes itself as the second territory in Spain with the most significant growth in foreign affiliates as a result of the regularization process, accounting for 17.8% of the total. Above it is only the Community of Madrid, with 51,844 foreigners registered with Social Security, 19.8% of the total base. It is followed by Andalusia and the Valencian Community, with 32,211 and 21,690 people registered on July 30, both around 12%. In the rest of Spain, the increases are substantially more moderate.
According to Saiz, the increase in affiliation among foreigners is "especially dynamic," with an average of approximately 3.5 million affiliates during the month. "Overall, they already represent 15.6% of the total affiliates and continue to play an essential role in the labor market and the sustainability of the Social Security system," the minister stated in a press release.
The new influx of foreigners registered with Social Security has also increased the base of registered job seekers. According to data released by the Spanish Ministry of Labor and Social Economy, Catalonia ended July with 68,058 foreign unemployed individuals, about 5,143 more than in the same month of 2025. This represents an interannual increase of 8.17%. In absolute terms, no territory in Spain surpasses Catalonia in this magnitude: only the Valencian Community, with approximately 58,982 foreign unemployed, and the Community of Madrid, just over 50,000 job seekers from outside Spanish borders, come close.
In all of Spain, the number of unemployed foreign individuals rose to 357,621, an interannual increase of approximately 9.5%, after adding nearly 31,000 foreign job seekers since July 2025.
Unemployment is picking up, but remains at lows
In the population as a whole, unemployment registers an increase of 19,517 people compared to June; a figure, it should be noted, substantially lower than that of new foreign unemployed. However, if the basis for comparison is July 2025, the State can celebrate a reduction of more than 93,100 unemployed people, about 3.9% less than 12 months earlier. In absolute terms, registered unemployment stands just above 2.31 million people, the lowest figure in a July since 2007.
From the ministry led by Yolanda Díaz, they acknowledge the monthly decrease, but attribute it, to a large extent, to the benefits of the labor reform. The labor department of the Spanish executive maintains that July is "increasingly less sensitive to seasonality" and, therefore, the exuberant monthly employment increases that were registered during the last decade have been left behind. Between 2010 and 2019, they recall, registered unemployment was reduced on average by more than 45,000 people during the seventh month of the year; while, since the approval of the reform, the average reduction in job seekers has been below 5,000.
Catalonia is, it should be pointed out, the community that registers the most significant increase in unemployment, with about 7,700 more job seekers than in June. It is followed by the Valencian Community, with about 7,000 more unemployed, and the Community of Madrid, with 3,822 job seekers registered above the previous month's figure. It is worth mentioning that the territorial increase coincides with the regions that have added the most foreigners due to the extraordinary regularization.
