Renfe rejects Ayuso linking public transport pass to residency: "It generates segregation"

MadridThe latest changes to public transport in the Community of Madrid have sparked a dispute between Renfe and the government of Isabel Díaz Ayuso (PP). Since this Monday, the census registration has become an essential requirement to obtain a public transport pass in the community, something that Renfe rejects. The Spanish railway operator claims that the regulatory change encourages "segregation" among users and "differentiation" when accessing a right and a service like public transport. The issue is that Ayuso's government's decision has caused controversy because it targets irregular migrant populations, who often face difficulties registering in cities, as various social entities or the Ombudsman himself have repeatedly denounced. Furthermore, the change also comes at a time when the PP is embracing the "national priority" promoted by Vox, which involves sidelining irregular foreign populations.

Until now, to obtain the Community of Madrid's Personal Public Transport Card (TTP) – a personal pass that allows recharging subsidized fares based, for example, on age – it was not necessary to be registered in a municipality of the autonomous community. From this Monday onwards, however, residency status must be proven. This not only affects access to urban buses or the Madrid metro, but the pass also allows travel by bus throughout the region or by Cercanías. For this reason, Renfe "regrets" the decision, according to sources from the operator.

registering in cities

, as various social entities or the Ombudsman himself have repeatedly denounced. Furthermore, the change also comes at a time when the PP is embracing the "national priority" promoted by Vox, which involves sidelining irregular foreign populations.

Renfe explains that the decision was adopted "without prior information or consultation" by the Community of Madrid and "outside the institutional coordination mechanisms," the same sources indicate. In fact, the railway operator will request an "urgent" meeting with the Madrid government to analyze the impact of the measure.

In addition to the foreign population that does not have a register, the decision also affects workers displaced to Madrid from other communities who have not registered, but especially thousands of university students who are temporarily in the Spanish capital and who also do not register. In this regard, the Madrid government has opened up to excluding students from other regions of the State from the decision through agreements with the autonomous governments. From Ayuso's government they also explain that the change was already "foreseen" by law, but had not been regulated until now.

A right that is not fulfilled

Only in the city of Madrid, as of January 1, 2026, there were about 3.5 million registered residents, according to City Council data. Although Spanish law obliges to process applications for registration (it is a basic and non-waivable administrative right), various social organizations have long been documenting administrative practices by city councils, for example that of Madrid, which hinder and prevent this process, especially in the case of the irregular migrant population: lack of appointments, denial of these appointments, or the requirement of unnecessary documents. This also happens in Catalonia, and a year ago the Parliament approved guaranteeing universal access to the registry with the votes of PSC, Comuns, ERC, and CUP, while Junts, Aliança, Vox, and PP distanced themselves from it. The federation of Catalan Social Action Entities (ECAS) warned two years ago that at least fifty city councils are failing to comply with the legal obligation to register people who do not have a fixed address, live in rented rooms, do not have a legal contract, or, simply, the owners of the flats do not authorize it.

Coincidence with regularization

The Network of Entities for the Registry, which brings together a hundred entities and will soon be replicated in Madrid, argues that the registry is the responsibility of the administrations to keep an up-to-date record of how many people live in the territory and to have a tool for planning services, such as transport, healthcare, or education.However, the controversy also coincides with the Spanish government's extraordinary regularization process, in which, paradoxically, municipal registration is not a mandatory requirement. Migrants who have started the process must prove that they were in Spain before January 1, 2026 and that they have been there permanently for five months before applying.

Among the documents that could be provided to prove this establishment were, precisely, public transport passes (either through top-up receipts or a certificate of card issuance). While it is true that the Community of Madrid's decision affects the issuance of passes from this Monday onwards and, therefore, these passes would not serve to prove this permanence, it should be remembered that Isabel Díaz Ayuso has openly opposed this regularization.

Is it requested in Catalonia?

In the case of T-Mobilitat, which would be the equivalent of the Madrid personal card, the census is not a requirement to obtain it. However, there are exceptions. For example, to have the T-Jove, you do need to prove that you are registered in one of the 296 municipalities of the integrated tariff system. This also applies to the T-Metropolitana of the AMB.