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The number of illegal immigrants arriving by boat to Spain fell by fifty percent in 2010, according to Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba.
Last year, 3,632 people were detained by Spanish immigration control.
Arrivals in the Canary Islands, the most widely used route for illegal immigration from Africa, fell by ninety percent to 196 people. Over the last decade, the number of people illegally crossing into Spain from Africa has dropped by 80 percent.
According to Rubalcaba, the number of people illegally arriving by road or air also fell in 2010.
The number of people who were barred entry to Spain also fell from 12,226 in 2009 to 9,453 in 2010.
The minister said the decline could be attributed to increased border patrols and cooperation with Moroccan and Algerian governments.
In addition, the global financial crisis has caused many popular illegal immigration destinations to lose their appeal.
