Madrid, 28 August 2026 – The Spanish government has Autonomous City of Ceuta called on the to make the outstanding decision on the relocation of 500 underage migrants to mainland Spain. State Secretary Rubén Pérez Correa told radio station Radio Nacional de España, Ceuta, as the competent authority, bore the legal responsibility and had to sign the necessary administrative documents. “It is a decision that has not yet been taken, and it can be made within 24 hours,” he said.
According to the State Secretary, the central government has offered organisational and financial support to move particularly vulnerable minors swiftly to better-equipped care facilities in various regions of the peninsula. However, carrying this out requires the city’s formal consent. Ceuta is responsible in Spain for the reception, accommodation and guardianship of unaccompanied minors on its territory.
The background is the severe pressure on reception facilities in Ceuta. The government had announced that it would speed up the departure of a total of 500 minors to stabilise care provision and enable them to be looked after in smaller units. The UNHCR recently assessed the transfer as a way to create a more appropriate care setting. At the same time, the Ministry for Children and Youth stressed that any measure must uphold the safeguards of child protection law.
The political situation is tense. In recent days, the government has firmly rejected proposals for the collective return of minors, describing them as unlawful. Instead, it is relying on transfers within Spain and support from the regions. Some autonomous communities have indicated that they are willing to take people in; according to the government, the details are being coordinated with regard to capacity and the best interests of the child.
According to the Secretary of State, the authority to decide whether transfers can begin lies with Ceuta. Transport could start at short notice only once the necessary administrative documents had been signed. Pérez Correa reaffirmed that his department had prepared the routes, accommodation and funding arrangements. He gave no further details, such as the precise schedule for the transfers or how they would be distributed among individual regions.
In view of the current overcrowding in Ceuta, rapid relief is considered urgent. On Thursday, it was still unclear whether the city government would agree to the transfer at short notice.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).