The UK intends to tighten the rules for obtaining permanent residency for most migrants by extending the standard waiting period from five to ten years. The primary source of this initiative is the UK government’s immigration White Paper, “Restoring control over the immigration system.” These documents explicitly mention a transition from the current five-year baseline to a new standard threshold of ten years.
The new model implies that the right to permanent residence will no longer be granted automatically after a fixed period of stay. The authorities want to link it to criteria regarding behavior, integration, and contribution to British society and the economy. The official consultation states that when reviewing applications, the following will be taken into account: the legality and continuity of residence, knowledge of the English language, passing the Life in the UK test, no criminal offenses, and, likely, verified employment and tax contributions.
The consultation on the earned settlement reform ran from November 20, 2025, to February 12, 2026, and the government says it is currently analyzing the feedback received. At the same time, London has already begun to implement related changes: on March 5, 2026, the Home Office announced stricter English language requirements for obtaining settlement, with these changes set to take effect in March 2027.
As of the end of 2025, there were 7,500,944 foreigners in Spain with valid residence permits, which is 4.5% more than a year earlier. These figures were published by the Permanent Immigration Observatory (OPI) under Spain’s Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration.
Of this number, 3,804,191 individuals held an EU or EFTA citizen registration certificate, 3,497,284 resided in the country with a residence permit under the general migration regime, and another 199,469 people were in Spain on a TIE card under the Brexit agreement for British nationals and their family members.
Among holders of EU registration certificates and related documents, the largest groups were citizens of Romania—1,136,518 people, Italy—514,054, and the United Kingdom—382,474. Together, these three nationalities accounted for 51% of this category of foreigners with residence permits.
In the segment of foreigners with residence permits outside the EU regime, the largest national groups, according to OPI, were citizens of Morocco, Colombia, and Argentina. At the same time, the total number of foreigners in this segment increased by 9% over the year, or by 288,253 people.
Separately, Spain updated its statistics on Ukrainians. According to OPI data, as of December 31, 2025, 338,576 Ukrainian citizens with valid residence permits were living in the country. The figure was published in January 2026 in a special report on Ukrainian citizens.
Thus, Spain continues to host one of the largest populations of foreign nationals with legal residency status in the EU, and Ukrainians remain one of the most prominent national groups within this demographic.
From May 1, 2026, France will increase a number of immigration fees and introduce new payments for foreigners, which will increase the cost of moving and legalizing in the country. The changes are provided for in the French budget law for 2026, and the increase in stamp duty on citizenship applications is already reflected on the official Service-Public portal.
According to the updated rules, the cost of the first residence permit will increase from €200 to €300, the preferential rate for certain categories will increase from €50 to €100, and the cost of obtaining a duplicate or making changes to a residence permit card will increase from €25 to €50. At the same time, the renewal of most residence permits will remain at €200, and €50 for preferential categories.
One of the most notable changes will be the increase in the stamp duty for applying for French citizenship to €255 from €55. In addition, a new fee of €100 will be introduced for an autorisation provisoire de séjour (temporary residence permit), as well as a €40 fee for exchanging a foreign driver’s license for a French one.
The increase in fees comes against the backdrop of broader budget consolidation in France. The country’s budget for 2026 is designed to reduce the deficit to 5% of GDP from an estimated 5.4% a year earlier. Against this backdrop, part of the administrative costs are being passed on to applicants.
The Estonian Ministry of Internal Affairs has announced its readiness to review and, if necessary, tighten procedures for issuing temporary residence permits to citizens of Russia and Belarus. This was announced by Estonian Interior Minister Igor Taro in response to a parliamentary question about how individuals with an “unclear past” could obtain temporary residence in the country.
According to the Estonian Ministry of Internal Affairs, as of January 9, 2026, there were 7,797 Russian citizens and 1,476 Belarusian citizens with temporary residence permits living in the country (a total of 9,273 people).
Taro stressed that temporary residence permits are issued “in strict accordance with the law” and include verification of compliance with the conditions and the absence of grounds for refusal, but the process remains subject to assessment “in each specific case.” The minister added that the ministry will conduct an additional assessment of the criteria and practice of issuing temporary residence permits to citizens of the Russian Federation and Belarus and, if necessary, will tighten them.
At the same time, at the end of January, the Estonian Ministry of Internal Affairs announced that it was preparing a bill that would prohibit Russian and Belarusian citizens without permanent/long-term resident status from purchasing real estate in Estonia, as well as restrict transactions through companies acting on their behalf, citing security concerns. The minister said he expects the law to be passed by the summer.
The Government of Catalonia has submitted proposals to the draft Royal Decree of Spain on the extraordinary legalization of migrants, proposing to take into account the study of the Catalan language at the first renewal of the annual residence permit.
According to the initiative, those granted an initial permit will have about a year to start learning, and it is planned to take into account “language progress” when applying for renewal. As proof, it is proposed to accept the completion of courses organized by the authorities of Catalonia, or independent training, confirmed by a certificate.
At the same time, as sources in the Spanish government emphasize, the requirement of knowledge of Catalan or Spanish language is not expected to obtain a primary permit within the framework of legalization. The question of renewal is the responsibility of the autonomous communities and may be based on the integration report of the social services, where among the factors may be taken into account and training in official languages.
According to the Statistical Institute of Catalonia (IDESCAT), on January 1, 2024, there were 1,444,192 people with foreign nationality living in Catalonia, corresponding to 18.0% of the region’s population. The largest groups of foreigners included citizens of Morocco (241,179), Colombia (94,196) and Italy (86,822). There were 44,101 Ukrainians and 33,317 citizens of the Russian Federation. More recent data on the number of foreigners will be released in mid-2026.
The Cabinet of Ministers has set new deadlines for foreigners with expired residence permits to apply for exchange of the document.
According to the decree № 141 from February 5, it is established that foreigners and stateless persons, except for citizens of the Russian Federation, who have a residence permit, the term of application for the exchange of which came after February 24, 2022, should within 90 days from the date of entry into force of this decree to apply for the exchange of such a residence permit.
It is determined that this Decree shall enter into force three months after its publication.
In addition, the State Migration Service is instructed within three months from the date of entry into force of this decree to provide information and awareness-raising work aimed at informing foreigners and stateless persons about the procedure and terms of exchange of temporary residence certificates, the deadline for applying for the exchange of which came after February 24, 2022.
