Spain’s Congress has approved a legislative measure that establishes a special pathway to Spanish nationality for individuals born in Western Sahara during the period of Spanish administration. The bill passed with 168 votes in favor, 31 against, and 145 abstentions, and now requires Senate approval before becoming law.
The proposed legislation allows people born in the disputed territory before September 29, 1977, to apply for citizenship without meeting standard residency requirements. First-degree descendants are also eligible. Additionally, Sahrawis already legally residing in Spain would see their residency requirement reduced from the usual ten years to just two years.
Proponents frame the measure as a correction of historical injustice stemming from Spain’s colonial rule, which ended in 1976. Western Sahara remains a contested territory: Morocco considers it an integral part of its sovereignty, while the separatist Polisario Front seeks independence.
Morocco’s concerns stem not from changes to territorial status—since the bill does not recognize an independent Sahrawi state—but from the new diplomatic ties the law could forge between Spain and individuals with direct links to Western Sahara. Reuters estimates that between 70,000 and 110,000 people could qualify, with beneficiaries gaining EU citizenship and its associated rights.
Potential applicants include Sahrawis living in the territory as well as refugees in the Tindouf area of Algeria, where the Polisario Front is headquartered. For Rabat, this raises the prospect of a growing community of Spanish and EU citizens with personal or political connections to a central issue in Morocco-Spain relations.
The timing is significant given Spain’s recent policy shift. In 2022, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s government endorsed Morocco’s autonomy plan as the most credible basis for resolving the dispute, helping to repair relations after a diplomatic crisis. Madrid maintains that supporting autonomy and addressing colonial legacy are distinct matters, though Morocco views them as interconnected.
Inside Spain, the bill has divided political parties. The governing Socialist Party and Sumar supported it, while the conservative People’s Party abstained and Vox voted against. The debate reflects broader discussions about Spain’s colonial past and its contemporary relationships.
The measure also revisits a precedent set in 2015, when Spain granted nationality rights to Sephardic Jews based on historical ties dating back to their expulsion in 1492. This comparison has intensified Morocco’s diplomatic sensitivity, particularly regarding the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla on Morocco’s northern coast. Morocco considers these cities integral to its territory, while Spain maintains their sovereignty is non-negotiable.
Morocco could argue that if historical connections justify special nationality routes for Sahrawis and Sephardic Jews, then its own centuries-long historical and geographical ties to Ceuta and Melilla should carry similar legal weight. Muslim dynasties, including the Almoravids and Almohads, ruled parts of the Iberian Peninsula for eight centuries.
While the bill does not alter the territorial status of Western Sahara or Spain’s official support for Morocco’s autonomy proposal, it injects colonial history into domestic Spanish politics and complicates the delicate relationship between Madrid and Rabat.
Seventy thousand new EU citizens overnight could change everything for the region. I’m curious how Spain handles the fallout.
If historical ties grant citizenship, what about Ceuta and Melilla? The hypocrisy is glaring when you look at it that way.
Isn’t this just diplomatic theater? Morocco will likely ignore it, but it certainly complicates things for Madrid right now.
Finally, Spain is reckoning with its colonial past. This is long overdue justice for the Sahrawi people.