The number of Spanish residents born outside the country has exceeded 10 million for the first time, reaching 10,004,581 as of January 1, 2026, according to data from the Spanish Institute of Statistics (INE).
The total population of Spain on that date reached 49,570,725, meaning that the proportion of residents born abroad was close to 20%.
The INE notes that the population growth was mainly due to an increase in the number of people born outside the country, while the number of people born in Spain continued to decline. At the same time, the number of residents with foreign citizenship as of January 1, 2026, was 7,243,561, which is less than the number of “foreign-born” due to the process of obtaining Spanish citizenship.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, Spain’s population increased by 81,520 people, and in annual terms, the increase is estimated at 442,428 people. Among the main nationalities that arrived in the fourth quarter of 2025, INE highlights Colombian, Venezuelan, and Moroccan.
For comparison with Ukrainians: according to Spanish data, as of December 31, 2025, there were 338,576 Ukrainian citizens with valid residence permits in the country, with 73% of such permits granted under the temporary protection mechanism.
