In short: Royal Decree 556/2026 (published in the BOE on 3 July 2026, in force since 4 July) approves the ordinary capacity of Spain's protection and guardianship system for unaccompanied foreign minors (MENA), broken down by autonomous community. This is an administrative organisation rule between the State and the regions; it creates no new rights or procedures for individuals.
In person or by representative? Not applicable — this rule doesn't regulate any personal procedure; it sets how care-system places are distributed among regional administrations.
Royal Decree-Law 2/2025, of 18 March, had amended Organic Law 4/2000, of 11 January, on the rights and freedoms of foreigners in Spain, adding an eleventh additional provision that allows redistributing unaccompanied minors between autonomous communities when a region exceeds its capacity. That mechanism needs a reference figure for each territory — that's what this Royal Decree sets: the "ordinary capacity," calculated with a population-based formula.
Distribution figures (Annex of the RD, per BOE):
- Andalusia: 3,009 places
- Catalonia: 2,829 places
- Madrid: 2,471 places
- Comunitat Valenciana: 1,903 places
- Canary Islands: 783 places
- Remaining autonomous communities and cities: between 29 and 940 places each (exact figures in the BOE annex)
- National total: 17,081 places
What this means in practice: when an autonomous community receives more unaccompanied minors than its assigned capacity, the State can trigger redistribution to other regions with available places (a mechanism already set out in RD-Law 2/2025). Article three clarifies that previous declarations of capacity being exceeded keep their effects until the ordinary capacity set here is tripled.
What this rule does NOT regulate: it does not set out how the guardianship of a specific minor is processed, reception requirements, or residence/family reunification rights. Those procedures remain governed by Organic Law 4/2000 and its Regulation, managed by each autonomous community's child-protection services.
Official source: BOE-A-2026-14495.
Informational only; check the official source and a professional for your specific case.