The number of refugees using visa-free travel rights to enter the EU, especially from Latin America, is on the rise. Over the entire bloc, the number of new refugees has fallen to pre-2014 levels.
The economic turmoil in Venezuela has led to an exodus from the country. Those who are able to do so travel to Europe. In Spain, Venezuelan asylum-seekers have come to outnumber applicants from everywhere else.
The Workers' Commissions (Comisiones Obreras) trade union reported that the number of migrants without a regular permit in Catalonia rose 54.6 percent in 2017 compared to the previous year. The union said one of the main reasons for the rise is that migrants have a hard time renewing their work permits.