Organisations helping migrants in Spain: CEAR, Accem, Cruz Roja and others

Information checked on 2 November 2026.

In an emergency in Spain, dial 112. For an asylum claim, papers, housing, health care or discrimination, there are many organisations helping migrants in Spain, all over the country: CEAR for asylum, Accem and Fundación Cepaim for reception and integration, the Red Acoge network, Cruz Roja Española and Cáritas in every province, Médicos del Mundo for health, SOS Racismo for racism. If you cannot afford a lawyer, free legal aid (justicia gratuita) goes through the legal guidance service of the bar in your city.

This guide presents these organisations helping migrants in Spain: what each does, for whom, where, and the link to reach it. It points you in the right direction; it does not give legal advice. Compatri has no link with any of them. For the steps of a legal stay (TIE, padrón), first read our guide to arriving in Spain: TIE, NIE and empadronamiento.

Organisations helping migrants in Spain at a glance

Opening hours and addresses change: they are not listed here. Follow each organisation's link before you go.

Before a first visit, gather your passport (or any ID), letters received from the authorities, your padrón certificate if you have one, and a written list of your questions. Say straight away if you have a deadline: an appointment, an appeal deadline, a summons. Drop-ins often see people in order of arrival, and a complete file is dealt with in one go.

Asylum claims: CEAR first

CEAR (Comisión Española de Ayuda al Refugiado) is the reference organisation for asylum in Spain. Its legal service is free and organised by territory, in its branches, with priority given to access points to the procedure (airports, ports, coasts) and 24-hour duty services. It advises applicants for international protection, applicants for stateless status and people already protected, including at border posts and in detention centres. For an appointment, CEAR asks you to contact its nearest branch.

Accem also offers legal advice, psychological support, reception and temporary housing. Fundación Cepaim runs reception and international protection pathways towards independence. Cruz Roja Española also supports migrants.

Papers and residence: what to know in 2026

The extraordinary regularisation is closed

Real Decreto 316/2026 of 14 April 2026 opened an extraordinary regularisation. Applications could be filed until 30 June 2026 (BOE). It is over. Be wary of anyone offering to « get you in » for a fee today. If you filed an application, Cruz Roja says you can track its status with the ministry's online tool.

Who can support you

• Cruz Roja Española: advisers reachable through the Migrar portal form, and in person at the nearest Cruz Roja office.
• Cáritas Española: 70 diocesan Cáritas, one per diocese, whose work is based on welcoming and supporting vulnerable people. It ran an information campaign on the regularisation.
• Red Acoge: a federation of organisations in 20 territories. Contact the federation to find the member organisation in your region.
• Accem: 50 offices in 49 municipalities, in all 17 autonomous communities, Ceuta and Melilla.

Free legal aid (justicia gratuita)

This is not an association but a right organised by the bar. Every Colegio de la Abogacía has a Servicio de Orientación Jurídica (SOJ). Its lawyers tell you whether you qualify, help you fill in the application, list the documents needed and decide provisionally. If aid is granted, a lawyer is assigned (the turno de oficio).

According to the General Council of Spanish Lawyers:

• foreigners who are in Spain can apply if they prove insufficient means;
• for procedures that may lead to refusal of entry, return or expulsion, and for all asylum procedures, a lawyer's assistance is provided even without legal residence;
• you apply at the SOJ of the bar where you live, or at the court where you live, which forwards it.

The aid is free, except for some costs (notarial deeds, registries), which are themselves covered below an income threshold.

Housing, jobs and integration

• Accem: reception and temporary housing, social inclusion, language classes, jobs and training.
• Fundación Cepaim: about forty centres and offices. Jobs and training (guidance, training, entrepreneurship), « La Ruta » programme for young people aged 16 to 29, housing and residential inclusion.
• Cáritas: local support in every diocese; it also supports homeless people.

Health

Médicos del Mundo works to make migrants' right to health real. In 2024, the organisation saw 23,173 migrants. Its SHINE programme offers social, health and psychosocial care to migrant women, girls and LGBTI+ people in precarious situations, including those with irregular status. It works in 17 Spanish regions, from Andalusia to the Basque Country, and in Melilla.

Racism and discrimination

SOS Racismo is an anti-racist federation active since 1995. It runs advice and reporting offices (oficinas de asesoramiento y denuncia) and has a form on its website to report a racist act, as a victim or a witness. It publishes an annual report on racism in Spain. For rental refusals, also read our guide on housing discrimination.

Public bodies to know

Beware of scams

A serious organisation never promises a residence permit. Be wary of « gestores » or « abogados » who ask for money for an appointment (the government's cita previa is free), promise a result or a new regularisation, or cannot prove bar membership. In Spain, a lawyer is registered with a Colegio de la Abogacía: ask which one and check. The organisations in this guide sell no result.

Keep a copy of every document you hand over, never give away your passport, and sign nothing you do not understand.

Compatri: fellow nationals in Spain

An organisation sorts out a file; a community surrounds you. On Compatri, the Spain page gathers cities and meetups, such as Madrid and Barcelona. Diaspora pages lead to your community: Senegalese in Spain, Moroccans in Spain, Malians in Spain. Those who arrived before you know which branch answers and which bar sees people quickly. Read how mutual aid between fellow nationals works and browse all communities. The directory of diaspora associations mainly lists associations in Belgium for now.

To compare, see organisations helping migrants in Europe and the Americas, then in Portugal and in Italy.

Sources

• CEAR: legal service
• Accem: home
• Accem: where we are
• Fundación Cepaim: home
• Red Acoge: home
• Cruz Roja Española: regularisation and support
• Cáritas Española: home
• Médicos del Mundo: migration and health
• SOS Racismo: home
• BOE: Real Decreto 316/2026 of 14 April
• Abogacía Española: free legal guidance services
• Abogacía Española: FAQ on justicia gratuita