Author
While the increase in arrivals of asylum seekers in recent years has exacerbated difficulties in accessing reception, the actual conditions in asylum reception facilities have not deteriorated since reception capacity was increased. The problem asylum seekers face on some occasions is the long waiting time before they can be placed in accommodation facilities.
Conditions in CAPI and NGO accommodation
The majority of available places for asylum seekers in Spain are in reception centres, during the first phase of reception, which lasts for a maximum of 6 months. As stressed, during the second phase they are placed in private housing, as the final aim is their autonomy within the Spanish society.
In general, there have not been reports of bad conditions of reception. In fact, there are no registered protests or strikes by applicants. Unless they are placed in private housing, asylum seekers are not able to cook by themselves during the first phase of reception, as meals are managed by the authority in charge of the centre.
Hosted applicants have access to several types of activities, which vary from trainings to leisure activities. In general, particular conditions or facilities within the reception centre depend on the authority managing the reception places. As the majority of centres are managed by specialised NGOs, generally the staff that works with asylum seekers during their reception is trained and specialised.
The accommodation of every asylum seeker is decided on case-by-case basis, in order to prevent tensions or conflicts (such as nationality or religious based potential situations), vulnerability or violence. Single women for example are usually placed in female-only apartments, while the same happens for single men. Family unity is also respected, as family members are placed together.
The usual length of stay for asylum seekers inside the reception facilities is the maximum stay admitted, which is 18 months, extendable to 24 months for vulnerable persons. This is due to the fact that the system is divided into 3 main phases that gradually prepare the person to live autonomously in the host society.
Conditions in CETI
Overcrowding in the CETI in Ceuta and Melilla is a serious issue that has persisted in recent years, resulting in poor or substandard reception conditions for asylum seekers and migrants.
The two CETI are reception facilities that have received the most criticism from organisations and institutions that monitor migrants’ and refugees’ rights.[1] Accommodation standards were described as inadequate, and concerns were expressed regarding the exposure of women and children to violence and exploitation due to the continuous overcrowding.[2]
Since 2022, the facilities registered very low numbers of residents, it seems it is due to the increase of transfers of asylum applicants to mainland following the decision of the High Court in 2020 (See Freedom of movement).[3] During 2023, the CETI in Ceuta accommodated a total of 1,093 migrants during all the year, which represents the lowest number since 2010.[4] During 2024 and 2025, some situations of overcrowding were registered following the increase in arrivals, including of Latin American asylum seekers, but migrants were transferred to reception facilities in the mainland to ensure places remained available in those facilities.[5] It is worth noting that the presence of Latin American asylum seekers in the two enclaves is not due to the migratory route they follow to reach Spain, but to the fact that, while they arrived in mainland, they decided to move to Ceuta and Melilla just to apply for asylum, due to the long waiting times to access the procedure in the mainland.[6]
During the summer of 2025, the CETI in Ceuta registered overcrowding by reaching between 900 and 1,000 residents. Despite transfers to mainland being organised,[7] overcrowding continued to be a challenge at the beginning of 2026, when more than 1,000 migrants arrived in Ceuta from Morocco in one month and a half. Authorities warned that the facility was on the ‘brink of collapse’ due to overcrowding and poor hygienic conditions. To alleviate the situation, transfer of big groups of migrants to mainland were organised. [8]
It can be noted that, on top of overcrowding, CETIs do not provide satisfactory conditions for family units and especially for families with minors. As a result, families are separated, and children stay with only one of their parents. In both centres, the shortage of interpreters and psychologists has also been criticised.[9]
In addition, the lack of a specific regulation determining the rules and procedures for the internal functioning at the CETIs has represented a persistent reason of concern. Lack of transparency and arbitrary in the rules accessing the centre have also been denounced during the years.[10]
In March 2025, fourteen asylum seekers were denied access to accommodation at the CETI of Melilla and had to camp outside the facility, following a decision of the police establishing that applications for asylum in Melilla had to be made online and no longer in person. The Bar Association of the City, together with other stakeholders, tried to find accommodation solutions for them, such as accommodating the asylum applicants at an hotel. Following calls by the President of the City of Melilla and the Ombudsperson, the asylum applicants were finally transferred to a reception facility in Málaga.[11]
In April, different organisations denounced that at least nine Moroccan nationals were living in the streets in Melilla after arriving by swimming to the enclave and being denied entry to the CETI. They denounced this fact as a serious discrimination on the basis of nationality, which prevails in the CETI’s admission criteria.[12] In September, the organisations Elín and No Name Kitchen denounced the vulnerability of around 200 persons living outside the CETI of Ceuta due to the poor hygiene and nutrition conditions.[13]
In December, Amnesty International reiterated its call to the Government to guarantee adequate living conditions in the CETIs and to ensure the immediate transfer to mainland of persons in particular vulnerable situations, especially when they cannot receive adequate assistance in the CETI (i.e. persons with disabilities, families with school-age children, pregnant women, people with psychological problems, victims of trafficking, gender-based violence, sexual violence or torture, and LGBTIQ+ persons).[14]
Conditions in other reception facilities
Living conditions on the Canary Islands[15]
In the last years, many challenges in providing adequate reception conditions to migrants and asylum seekers continued to be reported in particular on the Canary Islands. This is due to the significant increase of arrivals as described in Arrivals by sea, but also because of the overall lack of reception facilities and the deficient humanitarian assistance system on the Canary Islands.
In the last years, the Canary Islands lacked the capacity to face the rapid increase in sea arrivals it faced; this also negatively impacted centres for unaccompanied minors, that struggled to provide adequate reception conditions and services.[16]
In order to overcome the lack of appropriate and sufficient reception facilities, starting from 2020, many stakeholders, such as the Spanish Ombudsperson or the NGO CEAR, repeatedly called upon the authorities to transfer migrants and asylum seekers from the Canary Islands to appropriate reception facilities on the mainland.[17] For this purpose, CEAR called on the Autonomous Communities for more solidarity among them in sharing the welcoming and reception of the migrants who arrive to the Canary Islands.[18]
Besides, since 2021, the Government adopted plans and increased the budget for expanding the reception system for migrants and asylum seekers in the Canary Islands, as well as to increase transfers of people to reception facilities in mainland.
The deterrence policy followed by the Government on the Canary Islands was similar to the one applied for several years in Ceuta and Melilla, whereby only a minority of transfers were carried out to mainland.[19] Contrarily to this longstanding policy, since 2023 transfers to mainland have increased consistently, even though transfers from the Canary Islands were not considered sufficient compared to the number of arrivals.[20]
The challenges of the reception system in the Canary Islands persisted in 2025.[21] It has been underlined that the emergency approach adopted in dealing with the situation on the islands leads to severe delays in procedures such as age assessment, access to residence permits for children, enrolment in training and vocational courses.[22] Lack of accommodations places targeting ageing out adolescents has caused a great vulnerability of youth migrants when leaving minors protection centres when aging out. Coordination with the other Spanish autonomous communities is needed, and support by the central government is vital to deal with the situation in the long term.
Moreover, as already mentioned above, the EUAA started to support Spanish asylum authorities, after having agreed upon an operational plan mainly focused on support to reception. This includes providing enhanced capacity to reception services in the Canary Islands. In January 2021, the EUAA carried out a needs’ assessment mission at six sites in the Canary Islands, which have received a high number of persons with international protection needs in recent months. The mission was carried out in order to enable the Agency to tailor its support to the specific needs in the region, and the results were discussed with the State Secretary for Migration of Spain.[23] The Operation Plan on Special Support to reception agreed between the EUAA and Spain foresees a set of areas where the EU agency can support the Spanish Government, including assessing ‘the need for actions in support of emergency reception facilities with a specific focus on the Canary Islands’.[24] As mentioned above, a new operational plan for 2023-2026 has been agreed between Spain and the EUAA, with foresees measures also aimed at strengthening the reception system in the archipelago.[25]
The budget allocated by the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration for the transfer of migrants and refugees (especially from the Canary Islands) to mainland for the period covering 2025 and the first half of 2026 amounts to €7.4 million. The estimated expenditure is for the relocation of 30,860 people, with an estimated average cost per person relocated of €240.[26]
In October 2025, the State Secretary for Migration informed that the asylum and migrant reception system assisted more than 100,000 people who have arrived in the Canary Islands over the last three years.[27]
Living conditions in Cañada Real of Madrid
An informal settlement of Cañada Real has been set up in Madrid where many migrants and other persons live. The living conditions are extremely poor and, since the last quarter of 2020, there is no electricity available. This situation affects around 4,600 persons, including 1,800 children, many of them of a young age. In October 2025, the Cañada Real continued to be without electricity after 5 years.[28]
The responsible authorities have not taken any measures to address this issue yet.
Since 2020[29] different relevant national and international stakeholders (i.e. the Spanish Ombudsperson[30] and different UN Rapporteurs[31]) have denounced the seriousness of the situation and its impact on the health of children, as well as the violation of the conventions ratified by Spain.[32]
Detailed information on the issue can be found in previous updates of this report.
Living conditions in other informal settlements
The situation in informal settlements across Spain (especially in Andalucía) continued to be a concern in 2025. Many migrants, asylum seekers/refugees/persons in need of international protection and seasonal migrant workers live in these settlements in poor living conditions and with no access to basic services.[33] Many of them are victims of trafficking, forced labour and forced prostitution.[34]
In August 2023 the First Strategic Plan to eradicate informal settlements and substandard housing and to foster the social inclusion of persons (basically migrants) living in agricultural areas in Andalucía was approved by the Autonomous Community’s Government.[35]
In its 2025 annual report on Southern borders, the NGO ‘Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos de Andalucía – APDHA’ denounced the serious violations of the human rights of migrant workers in the informal settlements of Almería and Huelva. It reported that migrant workers live in substandard housing conditions without electricity and water, far away for city centres, at risk of suffering fires, with difficulties in accessing health care and schooling for their children and are victim of any kind of abuses in the workplace.[36]
Following the death of a migrant in the informal settlement in Lucena del Puerto (Huelva), in January 2025 the political party Sumar registered a parliamentary request at the Congress regarding the situation in the informal settlements in Almería and Huelva, highlighting the inactivity of the Regional Government of Andalucía and the inefficiency of the Strategic Plan for the eradication of Informal Settlements adopted in 2023.[37] In October, the central government indicated that the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda, in collaboration with the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, was working with the municipalities of Moguer, Palos de la Frontera and Lucena del Puerto to define actions to end informal settlements in their municipalities.[38]
Following the fire in an informal settlement close to Moguer (Huelva) in May 2025, the Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos de Andalucía – APDHA underlined that the incident demonstrates the extreme vulnerability of persons living in the informal settlements of the area.[39]
In July, the Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos de Andalucía – APDHA claimed institutional accountability for the death of a migrant by electrocution in the informal settlement of Níjar (Almería). The organization complained that, despite the well-known substandard and precarious living conditions in informal settlements, the public administration does not act to solve the situation.[40]
[1] Human Rights Watch, ‘Spain: LGBT Asylum Seekers Abused in North African Enclave’, 28 April 2017, available at: http://bit.ly/2oS5jTD. See also The Guardian, ‘In limbo in Melilla: the young refugees trapped in Spain’s African enclave’, 10 May 2017, available at: http://bit.ly/2pyuTxb; Amnesty International, El asilo en España: Un sistema de acogida poco acogedor, May 2016, available at: https://goo.gl/G1YtPi, 37; UNICEF, Acogida en España de los niños refugiados, 2016, available at: https://goo.gl/SaBZgo; Defensor del Pueblo, El asilo en España: La protección internacional y los recursos del sistema de acogida, June 2016, available at: https://goo.gl/rJrg3k, 64
[2] Council of Europe, Report of the fact-finding mission by Ambassador Tomáš Boček, Special Representative of the Secretary General on migration and refugees, to Spain, 18-24 March 2018, SG/Inf(2018)25, 3 September 2018, available at: https://bit.ly/3SFhUJV, para 5.1.
[3] Melilla Hoy, ‘El CETI, bajo mínimos: solo hay 3 migrantes acogidos’, 13 March 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3Z8dwTF; El Faro de Melilla, ‘El CETI bate su récord histórico: cierra 2022 con solo 5 migrantes acogidos’, 10 January 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/407FgJn.
[4] Ceuta Actualidad, ‘Descenso histórico: CETI de Ceuta acoge el menor número de inmigrantes desde 2010’, 26 February 2024, available at: https://tinyurl.com/5yee56sa.
[5] Andalucía Información, ‘Embarcan hacia Algeciras 17 migrantes para distribuirlos por Andalucía y liberar el CETI’, 18 July 2024, available here; La Vanguardia, ‘Asocian el colapso del centro de inmigrantes de Ceuta al aumento de las entradas a nado’, 1 August 2024, available here; El Faro de Melilla, ‘El CETI cuenta actualmente con 800 migrantes’, 31 January 2025, available here; Melilla Hoy, ‘El CETI acoge actualmente a 400 usuarios, la mayoría latinoamericanos’, 22 August 2024, available here.
[6] ABC, ‘El CETI de Melilla cambia de color por el “atajo” del asilo sudamericano’, 7 July 2024, available here.
[7] Ceuta Actualidad, ‘43 migrantes salen del CETI rumbo a la península para aliviar la saturación’, 11 September 2025, available here; La Verdad de Ceuta, ‘Otros 42 inmigrantes abandonan el colapsado CETI de Ceuta’, 18 September 2025, available here.
[8] Europa Press, ‘Una treintena de migrantes parte hacia otras comunidades autónomas desde un CETI de Ceuta ya descongestionado’, 2 January 2026, available here; Info Migrants, ‘Ceuta migrant center overwhelmed as arrivals from Morocco increase’, 20 February 2026, available here; Europa Press, ‘Un grupo de 126 migrantes deja el CETI de Ceuta, la salida más numerosa de los últimos años’, 17 February 2026, available here
[9] Sira, ‘Las condiciones de acogida en Frontera Sur agravan el sufrimiento psíquico de las personas migrantes que llegan a España’, January 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3lxGsqH.
[10] Amnistía Internacional, ‘Qué son los CETI en España y por qué vulneran derechos humanos’, 19 December 2025, available here.
[11] El Faro de Melilla, ‘Imbroda califica de “inhumana” la negativa del Gobierno a acoger a 14 solicitantes de asilo en el CETI’, 4 March 2025, available here; Melilla Hoy, ‘La CAM lleva a un hotel a los migrantes acampados ante el CETI por la lluvia’, 7 March 2025, available here; Melilla Hoy, ‘El Colegio de Abogados de Melilla deja claro que los migrantes acampados cerca del CETI “tienen derecho a ser acogidos” en el centro’, 7 March 2025, available here; El Faro de Melilla, ‘Migrantes en Melilla: el Gobierno promete medidas tras la polémica por su rechazo en el CETI, 10 March 2025, available here; La Vanguardia, ‘El Defensor del Pueblo insta al Ministerio a acoger a los migrantes acampados en Melilla’, 13 March 2025, available here; El Faro de Melilla, ‘Los solicitantes de asilo dejan el campamento y son trasladados a Málaga’, 14 March 2025, available here.
[12] Amnistía Internacional, ‘Los derechos al asilo y de acceso al CETI reducidos a un QR’, 3 April 2025, available here.
[13] El Faro de Ceuta, ‘Asociaciones denuncian la “vulnerabilidad” de los inmigrantes fuera del CETI’, 5 September 2025, available here.
[14] Amnistía Internacional, ‘Qué son los CETI en España y por qué vulneran derechos humanos’, 19 December 2026, available here.
[15] It has to be noted that migrants and asylum seekers/persons in need of international protection can be hosted in the same facilities at the Canary Islands, and in many occasions the sources do not distinguish properly between the two categories. Maybe sources speak about migrants, but also asylum seekers/persons in need of international protection can be included in such label.
[16] El Confidencial, ‘Canarias, sin plazas para acoger menores: el próximo niño deberá quedarse en comisaría’, 1 February 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/365KHBz.
[17] ABC, ‘El traslado de migrantes desde Canarias, una ‘sacudida’ política a nivel nacional’, 27 October 2023, available at: https://shorturl.at/kMPW6; La Vanguardia, ‘Trasladan a unos 200 migrantes más desde Canarias a un hotel de Almería’, 27 October 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3OkTbs0; Hoy Aragón, ‘140 migrantes serán realojados en Zaragoza y Tarazona tras la llegada de otros 200 a Huesca’, 28 October 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/57y2a252; Diario de Almería, ‘Llegan 200 inmigrantes más desde Canarias, ahora a un hotel de Aguadulce’, 27 October 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/2s3m8m4f; Onda Cero, ‘El gobierno de España prepara un campamento para 300 migrantes en una explanada en Cartagena’, 27 October 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/yc6r4esp; La Vanguardia, ‘CyL acoge a 395 inmigrantes procedentes de Canarias en seis provincias’, 25 October 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/mre82exk; La Razón, ‘El Gobierno planea habilitar en terrenos militares nuevos centros de acogida para migrantes’, 20 October 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/47mysvun.
[18] El Diario, ‘La Comisión Española de Ayuda al Refugiado pide solidaridad entre comunidades para un reparto equitativo de migrantes’, 7 November 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/23zkmn2y.
[19] El Diario, Un gran campamento de migrantes llamado Canarias: “Quieren convertir las islas en Lesbos”, 21 November 2020, available at: https://bit.ly/3bOoZD5; El Día, ‘José Antonio Moreno Díaz: “Canarias es una válvula del Estado para medir el acceso de migrantes”, 14 November 2020, available at: https://bit.ly/2KuqURQ; El Día, ‘“Están utilizando todas las herramientas para que nadie salga del Archipiélago”’, 19 January 2021, available at: https://bit.ly/34ojXvJ.
[20] Information provided by Accem in April 2024; CEAR, ‘INFORME 2024. Las personas refugiadas en España y Europa’, June 2024, p. 97, available here.
[21] CEAR, ‘INFORME 2024. Las personas refugiadas en España y Europa’, June 2024, p. 98, available here.
[22] Information provided by Save the Children on 11 February 2022.
[23] EASO, ‘Spanish State Secretary for Migration visits EASO following launch of new operation in the country’, 1 February 2021, available at: https://bit.ly/3rgJkFA.
[24] EASO, ‘Operating plan. Special support on reception agreed by EASO and Spain’, 2021, available at: https://bit.ly/32HvuFI.
[25] EUAA; ‘Operational Plan 2023-2026 agreed by the European Union Agency for Asylum and Spain’, 12 June 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/m23pjfm7.
[26] Newtral, ‘El Ministerio de Migraciones prevé un gasto de 240 euros por cada inmigrante trasladado desde Canarias’, 20 September 2025, available here.
[27] Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones, ‘Pilar Cancela subraya que Migraciones ha atendido a más de 100.000 personas llegadas a las costas canarias en los últimos tres años’, 8 October 2025, available here.
[28] El Diario, ‘Resistir en la Cañada Real, hogar del eterno apagón: “Cuando al resto se les fue la luz, me buscaron. Ya sabía qué hacer”’, 11 May 2025, available here. El Salto, ‘Cinco años condenadas a la oscuridad: más de 4.000 personas sobreviven sin luz en la Cañada Real’, 3 October 2025, available here.
[29] For more detailed information, see AIDA, ‘Country Report: Spain – Update on the year 2022’, April 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3SaHE0K.
[30] Defensor del Pueblo, ‘El Defensor exige a la Comunidad de Madrid y a la Delegación de Gobierno una solución urgente para restablecer la luz en la Cañada Real’, 21 December 2020, available at: https://bit.ly/3qDSxHK.
[31] United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, ‘Spain: Power outages put children’s lives at risk in informal settlement – UN experts’, 22 December 2020, available at: https://bit.ly/2M3hz3Y.
[32] El País, “Dejar a familias en esta terrible situación es una violación de convenios que España ha ratificado”, 9 January 2021, available at: https://bit.ly/3p5TaJF; El País, ‘La ONU insiste: España incumple el derecho internacional en la Cañada Real’, 18 February 2021, available at: https://bit.ly/2OX01rT.
[33] Público, ‘Sin casa, sin trabajo y sin comida: migrantes al límite en Andalucía’, 22 May 2020, available at: https://bit.ly/3iD9xLj.
[34] Revista la Mar de Onuba, ‘Nuevas detenciones en el entorno agrario por explotación laboral de trabajadores en condiciones de esclavitud’, 27 May 2020, available at: https://bit.ly/3sHpB3g.
[35] Iustel, ‘I Plan Estratégico para la erradicación de asentamientos informales y la inclusión social de personas residentes en zonas agrícolas de Andalucía conformados por población migrante’, 1 August 2023, available at: https://rb.gy/i85kb.
[36] Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos de Andalucía – APDHA, ‘APDHA constata en su Informe Frontera Sur 2025 “graves vulneraciones de los Derechos Humanos en los asentamientos de trabajadores migrantes de Almería y Huelva”’, 21 January 2025, available here.
[37] Gente Digital, ‘Sumar registra una pregunta en el Congreso sobre los asentamientos tras la muerte de un migrante en Lucena’, 27 January 2025, available here.
[38] Andalucía Información, ‘El Gobierno trabaja con Moguer, Palos y Lucena en la definición de proyectos para acabar con los asentamientos’, 19 october 2025, available here.
[39] Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos de Andalucía – APDHA, ‘APDHA señala que el incendio del pasado 26 de mayo demuestra la extrema vulnerabilidad de las personas migrantes que residen en los asentamientos informales de Huelva’, 27 May 2025, available here.
[40] Europa Press, ‘APDH ve “responsabilidad institucional” en la muerte de un migrante por posible electrocución en Níjar (Almería)’, 2 July 2025, available here.