Catalonia is at the center of a scandal after three dozen parents from Morocco were detained in Tarragona. They are accused of trying to present their children as unaccompanied minors so the kids would receive state guardianship and all the associated benefits. In reality, the adults were present and remained in contact with the children, which completely contradicts the definition of ‘unaccompanied’ minors.
The scheme is simple: families entered Spain on tourist visas, often coming together as a family, and then took teenagers to police stations or youth centers. There, the children claimed they had arrived alone and had no adult support. The state would then take them under its protection, providing housing, food, education, and fast-tracked paperwork for legal residence and employment.
While the children settled into youth centers, the parents stayed in the country illegally, maintaining regular contact with them. Sometimes, the adults even visited their sons in shelters, which clearly doesn’t fit the status of an ‘abandoned’ child. Catalan authorities estimated the losses from such cases at €1.5 million and plan to recover these funds from the parents in court.
The scale of the problem and the authorities’ response
Although the number of families involved is relatively small, authorities note that such cases are cause for concern. Catalonia receives up to 2,200 unaccompanied minors each year, but currently fewer than a hundred cases are under suspicion. Still, the problem is not limited to this region—similar schemes are found elsewhere in the country.
Police have classified the parents’ actions as child abandonment, fraud, and aiding illegal migration. However, not all charges may make it to court, since some require proof of financial motive. There is also another variation: parents bring their children and then return to their home country, leaving teenagers in Spain. In such cases, the children are technically left without guardianship, and the state is obliged to protect them, despite clear manipulation of the system.
Causes and consequences
Many families from Morocco take this step because they see no prospects at home. Teenagers, mostly boys aged 15–17, often take part in discussing the relocation plans. For them, it’s a chance to get an education, find work, and legalize their status in Europe. Catalonia is becoming increasingly popular not only due to its well-established Moroccan community, but also because of its convenient location for further travel, for example to France.
Authorities note that all the suspicious cases have one thing in common: the children entered the country legally, with visas, rather than risking their lives crossing by boat or hiding in trucks. This is what made it possible to uncover the scheme and launch an investigation. As a result, 22 minors have been returned to their parents’ care, while the adults involved may now face serious financial and legal consequences.
A look to the future
Community organizations and representatives of the Moroccan community believe the problem can be solved through stricter border controls. If a family enters the country with children, they should only leave together as a unit. Catalan authorities are already discussing possible changes to the law to prevent similar abuses in the future. For now, this case has sparked a wide debate about how the child protection system should work and where to draw the line between care and manipulation.
