Spain has taken in just 18 refugees in the last six months against a pledge of some 15,000 from Greece and Italy under the EU redistribution plan.
The 18 arrived at the end of 2015 but this year there have been no groups under the plan, according to El Pais newspaper.
In anticipation of large numbers, a network had been set up across the country for citizens to have refugees stay in their homes and to introduce them to the culture.
The government budgeted more than €200 million for refugee care.
Last month, the interior ministry announced that a second group of 450 refugees would be brought to Spain, but this has not yet taken place.
Spanish politicians have blamed the slow movement on the "complexity" of coordination.
Acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy admitted that the EU plan was not going as quickly as he would like.
"There are things that could be done better. Things are moving slowly," he said, according to El Pais.
The interior ministry blamed the delay on “procedural implications” stemming from the quota plan, including "the need to provide information about the country of relocation to the potential beneficiaries, security-related issues, and issues that are not completely resolved".
"Spain cannot act alone," the interior ministry told El Pais.
"The government says that there’s a problem with red tape at the European level, especially with the identification of refugees in Greece," said Cristina Domínguez of the Spanish Red Cross to El Pais.
According to Eurostat, Spain took in a total of 14,600 asylum seekers in 2015.
