Expat workers on the rise, say Spanish Social Security figures

MONTHLY statistics are up for expatriates registered with Spain’s Social Security system, with 55,334 new foreign members in May, an increase of 3.44 per cent since April. The increase in new foreign workers is the largest seen since 2005. Year-on-year statistics are also up, with an increase of 3.42 per cent compared to May 2014, the equivalent of 54,996 new members.
In monthly terms, registered foreign members increased in all 17 autonomous communities, except for the Canary Islands, which dropped 1.05 per cent, and Andalucia, which fell 0.21 per cent. The largest monthly increases were seen in the Balearic Islands (19.84 per cent), La Rioja (11.99 per cent) and Extremadura (10.69 per cent.)
In year-on-year terms, all autonomous communities increased the number of registered foreign workers, except for Galicia, which dropped 0.66 per cent. The largest yearly increases were seen in Andalucia (5.58 per cent) and La Rioja (5.41 per cent.)
According to data from the Ministry of Employment and Social Security, foreign members total 1,403,860 workers, 972,017 of which come from outside the European Union. The largest numbers of registered foreigners come from Romania (300,055), Morocco (210,017), China (92,905) and Ecuador (72,166.) Registered foreign workers are distributed throughout Spain, with the largest concentrations in Catalonia (374,862), Madrid (333,793), Andalucia (222,515) and Valencia (174,924.)