Spain's Supreme Court applies amnesty to Puigdemont and lifts arrest warrants

Supreme Court judge Pablo Llarena has agreed to apply the amnesty law to former Catalan regional president and Junts leader Carles Puigdemont, and to former Catalan government ministers Antoni Comín and Lluis Puig, according to Antena 3 Noticias on Monday, October 19, 2026. With this decision, the investigating judge in the procés case confirmed that the national search, capture and arrest warrants against the three pro-independence leaders are no longer in effect.

The court ruling rests on the doctrine set by the Constitutional Court on applying the amnesty to the crime of embezzlement (malversación), a standard that the judge said must be enforced despite earlier legal disagreements. The court therefore rejected the appeal filed by Vox's popular prosecution against the provisional lifting of the precautionary measures ordered earlier this month.

Despite the scope of the measure, the ruling clarified that it does not amount to the definitive closure of the case, nor does it formally extinguish the criminal liability of those affected. The proceedings still await further decisions from the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court to determine the final dismissal of the charges in each of the cases under investigation.

On the political front, former Catalan minister and newly elected member of the European Parliament Toni Comín announced that he expects to return to Spain in the coming days to complete procedures before the Central Electoral Board. The Supreme Court's decision reshapes the legal situation of the main pro-independence leaders who have been sought by Spanish justice since 2017.