Table of Contents
I was at Crossfit the other day and we were sharing the barbell with another person, so we had to change the weights according to who was doing the back squat. Needless to say, I was the one with the least weight, so I came up with a way to put discs on and take them off a bit quicker, because we were on the clock. My star phrase:
“I’m all for the principle of the least effort”, which earned me a giggle from my “compi” (teammate) and a frown from the coach.
Oh well.
And although I know that Crossfit is certainly not the place to make your life easy (ask my back and knees), there are other instances in life that should be made easier. Just because life is difficult enough, and if we can take steps to help ourselves, we just should do it. Out of love to ourselves.
Examples?
Moving to Spain. Or anywhere, really.
And asking for help. Professional help.
“But Jimena, that’s going to cost (more) money!” you may be thinking.
Yes, it will. I won’t sugarcoat it. But ask yourself: who would you rather pay that money to?
A good team of lawyers and relocation agency that does everything for you and preserves your mental health, and is there for you for further questions down the road? Or the psychologist and/or psychiatrist because you will end up burned out and anxious? (Been there. Not because nobody talks about this, means that it doesn’t happen.)
Possible questions you may have if you want to move to Spain
If you are planning to move to Spain, or are a newbie here. I bet you have lots of questions.
This list of questions can be endless but I will try to make it as succint as possible. I’m not going to give you the answers here, either. It’s not the place. But I’m going to give you a great tip at the end of it all.
Buckle up, becasue here it goes it. If you have at least one of these questions in your mind, and I bet you will have at least 10, keep handy the tip at the end of the post.
Visas
It’s not funny the amount of times future expats are already planning to come here without knowing which visa they need… or if they need one at all. I do believe it’s very important to inform yourself about what options are out there and which one fits best your personal and family situation.
- Which one is best for me?
- Non-lucrative visa or NLV?
- Digital nomad visa or DNV?
- Regular work visa with work permit? Entrepreneurship visa?
- Golden Visa? Wait! The government just scratched that one. When will that change come into effect? Will it affect me?
- When will I become a permanent resident?
- I’m coming here with my company, but I’m finding that they don’t do everything for us.
- Can anybody help?
Family (pets included!)
What about family? There are different rules for different countries, although Spain makes it easy for families to live together here. Here are a few questions you may have. Again, it’s better to know in advance to prepare all the paperwork you will need to bring with you.
- Are they covered by my visa?
- What’s the process to bringing them here with me?
- How long does it take?
- And if we’re non EU-citizens?
- Or if I am, but my spouse isn’t?
- Schools??
- What neighbourhood is best for a family with young children?
- I don’t have young children but teenagers, what then?
- We have a dog / cat / turtle / hamster that is coming with us. What do we need to do to bring it?
- What papers or vaccines do we need?
- What about vets?
Citizenship
Let’s be brutally honest: many people wonder if they can apply for Spanish citizenship once they are here. And this includes many Brits (not all). It’s not a quick nor easy process, so you’ll be better off asking the experts.
- When can I apply for Spanish citizenship?
- What’s the process?
- How long does it take?
- What papers do I need?
- The information online is confusing and in Spanish, I need help!
Education
I have a whole blog article, which you can read here, where I talk about education in Spain. However, even if you feel that you can tackle this topic on your own, I’d ask an expert to help you arrange some visits to different schools. And also help you with registrations and all that.
- What school meets my requirements and values?
- How do I apply or go talk to them before making a decission?
- What about universities for my older children or kindergartens, for my little ones?
- Should we go public, concertado or private? (I have an article on this here).
Brexit
This one is still a regular questions on many, many social media groups:
- What about Brits after Brexit?
- Can we still move to Spain?
- What visa is best to retire in sunny Spain?
- Is the law going to change to let us come back to live in Spain hassle-free?
Banking
I know this from my in-laws, and I have seen first hand how difficult it can be for a non-Spanish speaker to open bank accounts and deal with banks. Plus, it’s best if you arrive in the country with a debit card -at least- in the hand to be able to function here.
- How do I open a bank account without a NIE?
- What Spanish bank is best?
- Do they speak Spanish?
- Are they really helpful?
- What bank account is best if I only need to transfer money from my home country, but I won’t have an income in Spain?
Healthcare
I was once interviewed for a radio show from Almería about the importance for expats to learn Spanish. So I was saying my bit and then I mentioned how important it is to know at least the basic level to be able to go to the doctor.
The interviewer’s audience was mainly 45+ years old and his comment was: “Oh, we don’t want to think about going to the doctor at our age”. Which may be true and right.
However, there will be a time when you will need to go to the doc and it’d be best if you’re at least registered in your local health centre, beacause you just never know…
And for that, you need a local expert.
- Is healthcare in Spain good?
- What health insurance do I need?
- Private health insurance?
- Is the public health system good enough?
- Do doctors speak English?
- I have a pre-existing condition, will the public system cover it?
- How, where and when do I register to access healthcare?
- What about if I want private healt insurance, as well?
- How do I apply or find out which one best fits my requirements?
Taxes
This is part just reminded me that I still have to do my income tax declaration. And I would just love to have had someone to explain everything you have to declare to Spanish Hacienda when you become a resident here.
- How do taxes work in Spain?
- How high is income tax?
- How do I tell Hacienda that I’m here?
- Am I elegible for the Beckham Law?
- How do I apply for it?
- Will I be taxed on my pension, that I will transfer from abroad?
- Are there any other taxes that I should be aware of?
Housing
This is a biggie, because there’s a housing shortage in big cities. And by many accounts on social media groups of expats in Madrid and Spain, dealing with this from abroad, without knowing the system (every country has a way of doing these things), can be very tricky.
- Where can I find a good house?
- What are the best neighbourhoods for families / couples / singles?
- The renting process seems daunting and I feel lost. Plus I don’t understand the contract. How do I go about it?
- Could I go to a temporary place before I decide where I want to settle? How do I go about it?
- And how do I get a contract the water, electricity, gas and internet providers if I don’t speak Spanish or don’t have a NIE??
- Should I buy property instead? What are the costs of buying? What’s the process of buying a house?
Please note this: I know that buying a house in Spain differs to buying property in other EU countries. I know it from personal experience and from talking to many, many expats and we all agree on something: it’s different and it’s confusing. And not always straightforward. That’s all I’m going to say here. So I do strongly recommend you get legal help, also with negotiating a mortgage in case you need one. Insert a wink-smiley here.
Actually moving
This is a true story that happened just this week. A student of mine is moving houses within Madrid. Mind, within her actual neighbourhood, but still she wants to hire a removal’s company because she’s very busy: she runs her own company, has small children and plays a lot of sports competitively.
She was telling me in class, in Spanish, that she had to arrange to get a quote from 5 different removal’s companies to be able to compare properly and get the best service for the best price.
And guess what? She was stressed out of her mind dealing with all the organisation. Plus, the quotes she got varied a lot: sometimes over a €1000 difference to move the same amount of things from one house, to the new one.
Imagine you could have somebody at your side dealing with all the organisational side? That’d take a load off your mind, wouldn’t it?
- Where can I find a good and reliable removal’s company to move to Spain?
- How much does it actually cost to move?
- Can somebody please help me get to my accomodation when I arrive? It’s going to be late and we have small children…
Driving in Spain
This topic is confusing yet necessary if you plan to have a car. If not, you can happily skip it and be a happier person that all of us who had to go through it.
- Can I drive in Spain with my country’s driver licence?
- How long can I drive in Spain for with it?
- What about the international driver’s licence? Is it valid? For how long?
- It cant’t be difficult to exchange my existing driver’s license for a Spanish one, right?
- Do I need to go to a driving school?? Why and where can I find one in English?
- Can I bring my car to Spain? This is actually a very valid question for people who move from the EU.
- How do I go about registering it in Spain?
- Is it worth bringing my car or is it better to buy or lease? Can somebody please help me?
My tip on moving to Spain
In short: Sagardoy Legal Expat and Steps Relocation. But more on them later.
Right now, just keep reading.
I don’t know you, but just writing that gave me a short panic attack, as it is just TOO MUCH to think about and organise and try to do it all on your own.
Where do you start? Where does it end? Does it ever end?
Spoiler alert!
I doesn’t. Because when you have one thing sorted out, another one pops up, or your NIE expires (or you lose it on a golf course…), or your kid needs to change schools, et cetera.
Can you do it on your own? Absolutely!
Do I recommend it? Nope, not at all.
Everything has a price, and mental health is valid currency here.
Remember? Pay that money to an expert and preserve your mental health! That’s my motto, anyway.
So, my tip, as I have been saying from the start: ask an expert. Rely on the expert. On people that know the law, the know-how, the ins-and-outs of the city, the system and the paperwork.
And above all, if you have somebody that does it all, an all-in-one, an all-inclusive expert, the better. And if that somebody is a nice person and has lots of experience, even better. It’s the “bestest” option, like my daughters say.
That’s why I recommend you talk to Ana Garicano or Lydia Martínez, of Sagordoy Abogados and Steps Relocation, because they work together and they take care of everything. Plus, they’re really nice and approachable ladies.
You can contact Ana here or Lydia here.
Just let them know I gave you their contact.
And happy moving to Spain!
