Ceuta Survey: 80% support the return of minors to Morocco and only 9% back distributing them among autonomous communities.

As of today, August 8, 2026, there is no legal reform specifically aimed at “facilitating the return of migrant minors to Morocco” underway in the Spanish Parliament. What does exist is: 1) a Non-Legislative Motion (PNL) already approved in the Congress that urges the Government to apply the bilateral agreement with Morocco of 2007 on the concerted return of minors, and 2) another PNL recently filed by Vox with the same political objective in the context of the Ceuta crisis. None of these initiatives have the force of law nor do they themselves modify the current regulations.

1. The clearest initiative: PNL on the Spain–Morocco 2007 agreement

In strictly parliamentary terms, the most direct reference to the “return” of minors and Morocco is the Non-Legislative Motion 161/001936, concerning the issue of unaccompanied foreign minors and the non-compliance with the Agreement between Spain and Morocco on the prevention of illegal migration of unaccompanied minors, their protection, and their concerted return, signed in Rabat on March 6, 2007.

• Chamber: Congress of Deputies
• Type: Non-Legislative Motion (not a law, but a political mandate to the Government)
• Key content: the Congress urges the Government to comply with the Spain–Morocco 2007 Agreement, “thus facilitating the return of all unaccompanied foreign minors to their countries of origin, as well as family reunification.”
• Status: initiative concluded; on 05/28/2025 the definitively approved text was published (BOCG: approved text and initial publication).

It is important to emphasize that a PNL does not change the law: it expresses the position of the Chamber and urges the Executive to act (in this case, applying an already existing treaty with Morocco), but it does not create a new legal framework.

2. New Vox PNL after the latest Ceuta crisis

During the July 2026 Ceuta migration crisis, Vox filed another non-legislative motion in Congress to demand the return to Morocco of the minors who entered on July 30 and 31 and to halt their transfer to the peninsula. The newspaper Demócrata details that the initiative demands the application of the “Agreement between the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of Morocco on cooperation in the prevention of illegal migration of unaccompanied minors, their protection, and their concerted return,” from 2007, recalling that its second article speaks of the “assisted return of minors to the care of their families or to the guardianship institution of the country of origin” (Demócrata article and related piece).

So far, we only know that this PNL has been filed and linked to the Interior Committee; integrated agendas do not yet show a debate or voting date. Again, it is a non-legislative initiative, with no direct effects on the Immigration Law or the minor protection regulations.

3. Ongoing legal reforms: internal distribution, not return to Morocco

At the same time, there is a block of legal reforms affecting migrant minors, but their focus is on internal distribution among autonomous communities, not return to Morocco:

• Royal Decree-Law 2/2025, on migration contingencies and minors, ratified by Congress and processed as a bill (file 121/000055). The amendment period is extended until 09/02/2026, so the initiative is still in an early phase in Congress.
• Regulatory development via royal decrees (ordinary capacity of protection systems, relocation of minors, etc.), approved in the Council of Ministers and published in the BOE, such as the royal decree on the ordinary capacity of autonomous communities (Council of Ministers reference).
• Reform of the Immigration Regulation via Royal Decree 1155/2024 and its modification by Royal Decree 316/2026, of April 14, mainly aimed at extraordinary regularization and migration procedures, not a specific channel for the return of minors to Morocco (BOE 11/20/2024, BOE 04/15/2026 and Moncloa reference).

None of these regulations present themselves, in their title or parliamentary processing, as a reform to “facilitate the return of minors to Morocco”; their logic is redistributive (among autonomous communities) and internal management of reception.

4. Current framework of returns and case law

The return of unaccompanied foreign minors is already contemplated in the Organic Law 4/2000 (Immigration Law) and in the bilateral Spain–Morocco agreement of 2007. However, the case law of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court requires that any return:

• Strictly respects the best interests of the minor.
• Includes hearing the minor and evaluating their family and social situation in the country of origin.
• Avoids collective and unconditional returns, especially in cases of those who may apply for asylum.

Recent analyses, such as those collected by Demócrata on returns and border rejection (explanation on hot returns and guide on rejection, return, and expulsion), emphasize that a political agreement with Morocco or a PNL from Congress cannot override those legal and constitutional guarantees.

In summary: today there is no “law on the return of minors to Morocco” in process. There is an approved PNL urging the Government to comply with the 2007 agreement, another recently filed in the same line, and several Immigration reforms focused on distribution and relocation within Spain, not repatriation.

The Minister of Youth and Childhood does not directly oversee or manage specific migrant minors; that responsibility lies with the autonomous communities. Legally, her role is to direct the state youth and child protection policy, coordinate administrations within the reception system for unaccompanied foreign minors (MENA), propose and execute basic distribution regulations, and certify the system's capacity. Additionally, she channels state funding, chairs the Sectoral Conference on Childhood and Adolescence, and acts as a guarantor of rights against possible violations by other administrations.

General legal framework: State vs. autonomous communities

The distribution of competences is established by the Constitution and two major organic laws:

• Child protection: autonomous communities and cities are responsible for protection and guardianship when a minor is unprotected, including foreigners, according to the Organic Law 1/1996 on Legal Protection of Minors. It recognizes that foreign minors, including unaccompanied ones, have the right to education, healthcare, and basic social services and benefits under the same conditions as Spaniards.
• Immigration and foreigner regime: exclusive competence of the State (art. 149.1.2.ª CE) and articulated through the Organic Law 4/2000 on Immigration. This law regulates the status of unaccompanied foreign minors, the MENA Registry, cooperation with countries of origin, and, after the 2025 reform, the solidarity response plan and redistribution among territories.

The 2014 Framework Protocol on unaccompanied foreign minors coordinates the actions of Police, Prosecutor's Office, autonomous protection services, and the General State Administration from locating the minor to documentation and registration.

What the ministerial structure assigns to Youth and Childhood

The Royal Decree 829/2023, which restructures ministerial departments, establishes that:

• “The Ministry of Youth and Childhood is responsible for proposing and executing the Government's policy on youth and child protection.”
• It has as a superior body a Secretariat of State for Youth and Childhood.

In other words, the minister sets the political line and coordinates state action on childhood, including migrant children, but executes through cooperative frameworks with other ministries (Interior, Inclusion, Territorial Policy) and with autonomous communities.

Specific competences regarding migrant minors and MENA

1. State regulation and planning of distribution

The 2025 Immigration reform (Royal Decree-Law 2/2025, cited in several official notes) modifies article 35 of the Immigration Law to create a solidarity response plan for “extraordinary migration contingencies.” According to the Territorial Policy note on its approval in the Council of Ministers, the plan sets deadlines, distribution criteria, and a stable framework for MENA relocations among autonomous communities (note from 03/18/2025).

The minister participates in this design both in the Interministerial Immigration Commission – where she appears alongside Interior, Migrations, and others, according to this 2024 note – and through her own Sectoral Conference on Childhood.

2. Calculation and certification of system capacity

The eleventh additional provision of the Immigration Law, introduced by that RDL, is developed by Royal Decree 743/2025, which “approves the ordinary capacity of the protection and guardianship system” for MENA in each community. The royal decree establishes that:

• Capacity is calculated with data from the MENA Registry “subject to certification by the Ministry of Youth and Childhood.”
• This capacity must be approved annually by royal decree, after informing the Sectoral Conference.

A subsequent development, Royal Decree 556/2026, described by Demócrata (analysis of the new system), updates those figures (17,081 places) and sets how many MENA each community should be able to host, proposed by Youth and Childhood, to then apply solidarity mechanisms.

3. Coordination with autonomous communities and funding

The minister chairs the Sectoral Conference on Childhood and Adolescence, where criteria are agreed and funds distributed. Official notes show that:

• Specific transfers (22 million) are approved to the Canary Islands, Balearic Islands, Ceuta, and Melilla to attend to MENA, proposed by Youth and Childhood (sectoral conference 06/30/2025).
• It was proposed to increase assistance to unaccompanied children and youth by 15 million (note from 01/29/2024), and another 15 million were approved to strengthen reception structures in the Canary Islands, Ceuta, and Melilla (note from 06/11/2024).
• The ministry periodically requests updated data from the autonomous communities on migrant children and adolescents in unprotection to “obtain a complete picture of the system” and size national capacity (request from March 2025 and from May 2025; technical coordination in note from 04/01/2025).

Demócrata also details that the Council of Ministers approves “at the proposal of Youth and Childhood” the ordinary capacity of the system, with direct effects on when a contingency can be declared and distribution activated (Council of Ministers report).

4. Declaration of contingency and practical activation of distribution

According to a Demócrata report on the new protocol, the relocation procedure from the Canary Islands, Ceuta, and Melilla “began with the declaration, by the Minister of Youth and Childhood, of the extraordinary migration contingency” according to RDL 2/2025 (protocol explanation). That declaration, based on exceeding three times the ordinary capacity, is the political key for the General State Administration to assign minors to other territories.

5. Guarantee of rights and strategic agenda

Besides the normative architecture, the minister promotes a strategic plan for migrant childhood to provide a structural response to these arrivals (plan announcement) and assumes a role of rights defense: for example, the Ministry has reported to the Prosecutor's Office the withdrawal of a weekly allowance to MENA tutored in Aragon for possible discrimination by origin (Demócrata news).

What the minister does NOT do

Neither the Childhood Law nor the Immigration Law assign the minister direct guardianship nor daily management of centers, internal discipline, or repatriation decisions for each minor; these functions correspond to autonomous public entities and the Ministry of Interior, under the control of the Prosecutor's Office and courts. As the newspaper Demócrata explains in its informative piece on what happens when a minor arrives alone, the community where the minor is located assumes guardianship, while the State sets the immigration framework and – since 2025 – the mandatory redistribution and funding scheme (legal analysis).

The return of unaccompanied foreign minors (MENA) in Spain is strongly conditioned by the principle of the best interests of the child, very strict procedural guarantees, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The key regulations are the Organic Immigration Law, its Regulation, and the 2014 Framework Protocol, all interpreted in light of the 1989 Convention. In practice, repatriation can only be agreed if there are adequate family or protection guarantees in the destination country and if the minor's right to be heard and to effective judicial protection is respected. When these conditions are not met, the preferred route is to remain in Spain with residence authorization and child protection.

Specific Spanish regulatory framework

The basic norm is the Organic Law 4/2000 (LOEX), whose article 35 regulates unaccompanied minors. From this provision and its regulatory development derive several essential requirements:

• International cooperation and agreements with countries of origin: art. 35 LOEX orders the Government to promote agreements integrating prevention of irregular immigration, protection, and return of unaccompanied minors, informing autonomous communities.
• Initial intervention: if an undocumented foreigner whose age is uncertain is located, immediate child protection attention is provided and the Public Prosecutor is notified, who orders age determination tests.
• Prior consular report: before initiating a repatriation procedure, the State Administration must request from the diplomatic representation of the country of origin a report on the minor's family circumstances.
• Hearing of the minor and mandatory reports: return can only be agreed after hearing the minor if they have sufficient judgment and obtaining reports from child protection services and the Public Prosecutor.
• Content of the decision: the Administration decides between return to the country of origin, return to the country where relatives are, or stay in Spain, always according to the best interests of the minor. Repatriation can only be done by family reunification or placing the minor at the disposal of protection services in the country of origin if adequate guardianship conditions exist.

The same article 35 LOEX also guarantees:

• Enhanced procedural capacity: minors over 16 and under 18 are recognized capacity to act in the repatriation procedure and in administrative litigation.
• Judicial defender: if minors under 16 with sufficient judgment disagree with their guardian, the procedure is suspended until a judicial defender is appointed.
• Residence authorization when return is not possible: once the impossibility of return with family or to the country of origin is proven, residence authorization is granted, retroactive to the date of placement under child protection.

Regulatory development and specific protocol

The procedure is detailed in the Immigration Regulation approved by Royal Decree 557/2011, especially articles 189 to 198 (chapter III of title XI):

• Definition of MENA: minor under 18 who arrives without a responsible adult and is at risk of unprotection (art. 189).
• Competence and procedure: Government Delegations and Subdelegations instruct the repatriation procedure, request a report from the diplomatic representation on family or protection services, and only initiate the procedure if the return satisfies the best interests of the minor (arts. 191 and 192).
• Full defense rights: the minor, their guardian, and the Public Prosecutor may allege and propose evidence; a face-to-face hearing of the minor with sufficient judgment and interpreter assistance is guaranteed (arts. 193 and 194).
• Execution with accompaniment: the minor must be accompanied by child protection personnel until delivery to the competent authorities of the country of origin (art. 195).
• Impossibility of repatriation: if not possible or advisable, the residence authorization procedure is opened ex officio, and transition to majority age is regulated (arts. 196 to 198).

The 2014 Framework Protocol articulates coordination among ministries, prosecutor's office, autonomous communities, and security forces. It states that policy on MENA must be oriented to family reunification or return to protection services in their country “when this is in their best interests,” and expressly refers to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and Organic Law 1/1996 on Legal Protection of Minors. It also emphasizes prevention of trafficking and use of the MENA Registry as a protection tool.

Additionally, Spain has bilateral agreements on concerted return and protection, such as the agreement with Morocco on unaccompanied minors (agreement with Morocco) or the agreement with Senegal (agreement with Senegal), which can only be applied respecting the best interests and guarantees of LOEX and the Convention.

Requirements of the Convention on the Rights of the Child

The Convention, incorporated into Spanish law through the Ratification Instrument of 1990, sets the material framework conditioning any return of MENA:

• Article 3: the best interests of the child must be a primary consideration in all administrative or judicial measures affecting them (including repatriation).
• Article 12: requires guaranteeing that the minor can express their opinion and be heard in all administrative or judicial procedures affecting them, in line with the hearing provided in LOEX and the Regulation.
• Article 20: recognizes the right to special protection of children deprived of their family environment, basis for the intervention of child protection services in Spain.
• Article 22: requires protecting minors seeking refugee status, alone or accompanied, reinforcing the prohibition of returning a minor to a country where they may suffer persecution or serious rights violations.
• Article 37: prohibits cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, which translates into the requirement not to return when there is a serious risk of such treatment.
• Article 39: imposes recovery and reintegration of children victims of abandonment, exploitation, abuse, or armed conflict, requiring that any return decision favors their rehabilitation and does not worsen harm.

Overall, Spanish regulations and the Convention impose a clear material rule: the repatriation of an unaccompanied minor is not legally admissible if a safe family or institutional environment in the destination is not proven, if there is a relevant risk to their fundamental rights, or if their right to be heard and to the intervention of the Public Prosecutor and protection services is not respected.