4,934 migrants reach Balearics by sea by August
The Balearic Islands recorded 4,934 migrants arriving by sea between 1 January and 31 August 2026, travelling in 261 small boats. The total is 1.7% higher than in the first eight months of 2025, while the number of boats rose by 1.2%.
The Spanish Interior Ministry published the figures on Wednesday. In the same period last year, 4,852 migrants reached the islands in 258 boats.
Arrivals by sea to mainland Spain rose more sharply, climbing 19.7% from 4,722 to 5,654. Taken together, mainland Spain and the Balearics received 10,588 migrants by sea in 591 boats — 10.6% more people than a year earlier, despite 3.9% fewer boats.
The pattern was different in the Canary Islands, where sea arrivals fell 57.4%. The islands recorded 5,163 migrants in 70 boats by the end of August, 6,963 fewer than during the same months of 2025.
Across Spain, 20,417 migrants entered irregularly by sea and land by 31 August, down 14.7% on the previous year.
Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com