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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 2014
Barcelona Girona Lleida Tarragona Catalonia
Total 714,924 148,408 82,421 139,770 1,085,523
Total European Union (EU28) 235,502 49,454 39,190 58,366 382,512
Romania 44,265 17,558 29,238 32,686 123,747
Italy 54,401 4,384 653 4,242 63,680
France 30,088 7,770 486 3,078 41,422
Germany 19,555 3,377 241 2,431 25,604
United Kingdom 17,158 3,286 271 3,361 24,076
Portugal 13,383 2,514 1,847 1,874 19,618
Poland 12,234 1,869 2,295 2,097 18,495
Bulgaria 7,714 2,321 2,905 2,714 15,654
Netherlands 8,700 2,200 151 1,268 12,319
Sweden 7,174 211 21 128 7,534
Belgium 3,384 1,423 80 891 5,778
Lithuania 1,162 514 232 1,219 3,127
Czech Republic 1,760 372 112 544 2,788
Slovakia 1,207 397 275 707 2,586
Ireland 2,295 228 36 203 2,762
Hungary 1,853 264 50 252 2,419
Austria 2,020 128 57 98 2,303
Rest of European Union 7,149 638 240 573 8,600
Total rest of Europe 23,963 8,407 4,730 6,835 43,935
Ukraine 7,883 3,104 3,343 2,455 16,785
Russia 7,802 3,532 630 1,797 13,761
Moldavia 1,761 575 434 1,295 4,065
Swiss 2,119 738 20 714 3,591
Rest of Europe 4,398 458 303 574 5,733
Total Africa 168,829 57,423 28,741 47,530 302,523
Morocco 131,232 40,931 15,800 40,440 228,403
Gambia 5,477 8,298 1,293 237 15,305
Senegal 9,758 3,099 3,175 2,804 18,836
Algeria 3,267 766 2,717 1,963 8,713
Mali 3,179 1,796 1,704 233 6,912
Nigeria 3,706 429 690 829 5,654
Ghana 4,424 356 323 405 5,508
Guinea 2,186 736 1,242 133 4,297
Mauritania 1,198 419 367 29 2,013
Rest of Africa 4,402 593 1,430 457 6,882
Total America 164,334 21,546 6,630 17,367 209,877
Ecuador 29,285 1,645 675 2,242 33,847
Colombia 15,187 2,449 1,627 3,855 23,118
Bolivia 26,838 2,835 886 1,594 32,153
Peru 16,971 789 495 811 19,066
Dominican Republic 14,045 1,209 688 1,365 17,307
Argentina 10,697 1,933 427 2,026 15,083
Brazil 7,676 1,450 859 1,356 11,341
Chile 5,746 825 172 743 7,486
Uruguay 4,989 1,200 119 775 7,083
Cuba 5,099 814 215 864 6,992
Honduras 5,685 4,914 86 260 10,945
Paraguai 7,441 236 95 367 8,139
Venezuela 4,544 403 129 466 5,542
Mexico 3,130 220 62 250 3,662
United States 3,789 286 43 192 4,310
Rest of America 3,212 338 52 201 3,803
Total Asia 121,602 11,515 3,109 9,643 145,869
China 45,674 4,384 1,990 3,665 55,713
Pakistan 37,376 803 492 3,448 42,119
India 11,821 4,997 327 1,347 18,492
Philippines 9,573 325 13 380 10,291
Bangladesh 5,128 86 104 19 5,337
Georgia 3,094 332 60 361 3,847
Armenia 2,522 197 34 80 2,833
Rest of Asia 6,414 391 89 343 7,237
Total Oceania 479 45 5 18 547
Not stated 215 18 16 11 260
Source: Spanish Ministry of Employment and Social Security.

Last update: September 9, 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 "..".