Spanish Supreme Court rules: Romanians and Bulgarians illegally working in Spain can not be expelled

Romanian and Bulgarian citizens illegally working in Spain can no longer be expelled invoking the Madrid accepted moratorium, the Spanish Supreme Court ruled on Friday. The Court annulled two expelling orders issued in 2001 for a Romanian and a Bulgarian citizen without residence permits.

According to the Court, after Romania and Bulgaria became part of the European Union, on January 1, 2007, their citizens became community citizens, for whom the sanctions do not apply. The decision came despite the fact that Spain adopted restrictions on the labor market for Romanians and Bulgarians in the past two years. The Court says that it is not a severe crime to work illegally, in case one has a residence permit, and the new community citizens have to be considered as having the right to be there.

Estimations indicate some 500,000 Romanians and 100,000 Bulgarians living in Spain, with or without permits.