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Foreigners with residence card. By country of nationality. Provinces

Foreigners with a valid certificate of registration or residence card. By country of nationality. Provinces 2012
Barcelona Girona Lleida Tarragona Catalonia
Total European Union (EU27) 209,808 46,905 36,332 55,525 348,570
Romania 42,515 16,946 27,169 31,801 118,431
Italy 48,259 4,153 597 3,949 56,958
France 25,508 7,083 437 2,784 35,812
Germany 16,972 3,201 219 2,239 22,631
United Kingdom 14,549 3,042 223 3,014 20,828
Poland 12,085 2,438 1,747 1,783 18,053
Portugal 11,371 1,840 2,046 1,974 17,231
Bulgaria 7,314 2,237 2,754 2,572 14,877
Netherlands 7,408 2,073 137 1,178 10,796
Sweden 6,213 197 18 120 6,548
Belgium 2,913 1,323 73 815 5,124
Lithuania 1,036 492 219 1,168 2,915
Czech Republic 1,605 360 103 515 2,583
Slovakia 1,085 387 262 692 2,426
Ireland 1,918 209 27 170 2,324
Hungary 1,608 254 44 194 2,100
Austria 1,738 124 53 94 2,009
Rest of European Union 5,711 546 204 463 6,924
Total rest of Europe 22,015 7,830 4,730 6,546 41,121
Ukraine 7,453 2,946 3,290 2,379 16,068
Russia 6,756 3,112 656 1,558 12,082
Moldavia 1,730 561 449 1,282 4,022
Swiss 1,833 712 20 672 3,237
Rest of Europe 4,243 499 315 655 5,712
Total Africa 180,204 59,270 29,326 49,015 317,815
Morocco 142,381 42,607 16,399 42,265 243,652
Gambia 5,770 8,586 1,319 219 15,894
Senegal 9,298 3,035 3,030 2,580 17,943
Algeria 3,399 760 2,900 1,913 8,972
Mali 3,065 1,725 1,560 212 6,562
Nigeria 3,856 459 777 853 5,945
Ghana 4,344 327 299 364 5,334
Guinea 2,190 715 1,222 128 4,255
Mauritania 1,337 460 372 28 2,197
Rest of Africa 4,564 596 1,448 453 7,061
Total America 209,040 24,823 8,655 21,055 263,573
Ecuador 44,006 2,208 944 2,999 50,157
Colombia 22,243 3,488 2,253 5,138 33,122
Bolivia 33,304 3,265 1,233 1,854 39,656
Peru 24,258 996 688 1,071 27,013
Argentina 16,808 1,386 869 1,567 20,630
Dominican Republic 13,469 2,374 561 2,455 18,859
Brazil 8,778 1,645 1,018 1,443 12,884
Uruguay 7,126 960 205 880 9,171
Chile 6,179 1,507 137 909 8,732
Cuba 5,854 922 259 962 7,997
Honduras 4,639 4,465 75 235 9,414
Paraguai 7,238 248 85 365 7,936
Venezuela 5,244 501 162 511 6,418
Mexico 3,491 238 59 265 4,053
United States 3,439 266 46 203 3,954
Rest of America 2,964 354 61 198 3,577
Total Asia 114,442 11,143 2,928 9,091 137,604
China 42,968 4,158 1,909 3,519 52,554
Pakistan 35,424 747 414 3,255 39,840
India 10,873 4,935 310 1,236 17,354
Philippines 9,513 358 16 354 10,241
Bangladesh 4,898 85 110 26 5,119
Georgia 2,652 307 51 329 3,339
Armenia 2,395 191 27 66 2,679
Rest of Asia 5,719 362 91 306 6,478
Total Oceania 444 40 5 11 500
Not stated 225 15 17 9 266
Total 736,178 150,026 81,993 141,252 1,109,449
Source: Ministerio de Empleo y Seguridad Social. Observatorio Permanente de la Immigración.

Last update: September 4, 2015.

Methodological note

Definition of concepts

Foreign
Person that does not have Spanish nationality, notwithstanding the stipulations of special laws and international treaties signed by Spain (Organic Law 4/2000, of January 11, on rights and liberties of foreigners in Spain and their social integration).
Foreign residents
Number of foreigners, according to the records of the Permanent Observatory of Immigration of the Ministry for Labour and Social Affairs, which on a determinate date reside in Catalonia and have a valid residence permit. The data is stock-type information recorded on December 31 every year.

Methodological aspects

These statistics are obtained from files produced by the Central Register of Foreigners, an administrative record managed by the Directorate General of the Police and the Civil Guard, which is part of the Ministry for the Interior.

The statistical treatment of these files corresponds to the Permanent Immigration Observatory, which is part of the Ministry of Employment and Social Security.

These are stock statistics that are produced quarterly. They count and analyse the number of foreigners with a valid registry certificate or residency card at the end of each quarter.

The legislation applicable to foreigners residing in Spain depends on their residency system and this, to a large extent, on the nationality of foreigners.

These statistics do not include the following foreigners:

  • Those that are only staying temporarily in Spain (three months per half-year).
  • Those that are in Spain with a permit to be in the country for a course, studies, research work, training or volunteering.
  • Trans-frontier workers that do not reside in Spain.
  • Applicants for asylum or persons that have obtained refugee or expatriate status.
  • Foreigners from the European Union that have not applied for inscription to the Central Registry of Foreigners or that have applied for it but have not yet received the corresponding certificate.
  • Foreigners whose documentation has expired and are in the process of renewing it.

Foreigners authorised to remain in Spain must inform the Immigration Office or the police headquarters in the place where they reside or are staying of any changes of nationality, usual abode or marital status.

The country of nationality is considered to be the nationality of the foreigner. In the case of dual nationality, the one counted is that used by the foreigners when making the application for a registration permit, card or certificate.

The province is that in which the foreigner reports that they reside at the moment when their currently applicable registration certificate of residency card is issued.

Data from 2010 onward has been reviewed with the aim of excluding persons who have been granted Spanish nationality and foreigners who have expired, in Spain, and whose residence permits were valid at the time of their death.

Data are on December, 31.

Unavailable information is represented using the symbol ":". When the value is lower than that of the minimum unit to be able to estimate the statistical operation or if it effects statistical confidentiality, the symbol used is "..".