Yes, we have gone off topic somewhat. For what it's worth, with the loss of freedom of movement, I think the OP's best and probably only option is to try for the digital nomad scheme. It's not easy and my British neighbours (in Spain) have come unstuck with it but it's definitely worth a try. It would be worth enlisting the help of a professional relocation company who will be aware of the pitfalls.

Good point and none of us here have gone through the process. There is an interesting article on the Local about it and doesn't seem to be straight forward. https://www.thelocal.es/20230503/it-...pplicants-face

Thanks, that was an interesting read and it explains why my neighbours (and so many other people) have hit the buffers with it.

​​​​​​It 's also a stark reminder of just how brilliant EU freedom of movement is and how there is no substitute for it.

Only for those in the club... For the rest of the 167 its jumping through hoops...
Would it be better for the WHOLE world if there were some form of onward freedom of movement, not just a small block of internalised, keep it in house, countries???

Why is FOM that good anyway? Its nothing like the USA where there is at least a common language.
FOM only benefits the rich countries who want poor people doing menial jobs their own citizens wont.
Even before FOM Uk citizens rarely worked in the fields, factories and did waiting and low paid jobs.

Anyway... For the OP, Digital nomad Visa is a way, but all your Ducks must be in a row.

Had you thought of Study? That way you could come and do a course that would both give proven qualifications and also give you language skills, after that you will be in a position to then diversify after all at 24 the world is still your bivalve.
And why restrict yourself to the EU, there are as I said some 167 other countries in this world and a lot of them dont have a language barrier you have to overcome before working...My daughter and lots of her friends went to Australia and she earns approx three times what the same job would in the Uk and most of the EU. She is only an accounts clerk but her command of English (well common west londerer aint she) gave her an advantage over some of the other nationalities who went for the job.

And finally from me, Spain and Spanish will allow you to communicate here and South America but it wont be much help in France or Germany, Portugal or Poland. (or the other 100 plus)
Which is why I think trying to carve a living here actually narrows your options. I have the same view about someone wanting to move to Germany etc...
My 2c etc......Im retired so what do I know?

Freedom of movement certainly doesn't only benefit low paid workers and it's also in relation to healthcare access, studies, retirement, travelling etc.
While Australia might have worked out for your daughter, have you seen the cost of everything over there recently? It might seem cheap for someone from London, but I would need 4 x my Irish salary to afford a decent house in Melbourne (as an example). Speaking about language, I work in Ireland because I speak German and most of my colleagues either speak Spanish, Italian, French. They only need basic English and it's more important to speak a foreign language.

Absolutely. EU freedom of movement is about the free movement of goods, capital, services and people. It would have been rather helpful if people in the UK had fully understood what it meant prior to 2016. Even half the UK cabinet had to have the workings of the single market and the customs union explained to them immediately after the referendum.

I would imagine the OP is attracted to Spain for the same reason as millions of other foreign nationals. It's the second most visited country in the world, it's easy going, it's affordable, it's safe, it's friendly, it's easy to travel to, it's not on the other side of the world and the quality of life is right up there with the best of them. Portugal is very similar and also attracts millions of people.

Disagree with you there:

Britons living in rest of EU are mainly working age, not over-65s (from 2018)

So there's no point in moving anywhere?

True and distance alone makes it an attractive option. You can even drive down with your own car and if something does go wrong in the first 6 months, you can just drive back to the UK without losing thousands of €.

Yes FOM did give all these things and thats why the UK GOV at the time decided to exploit it by inviting (actually sending coaches to Latvia etc) and that was the main reason for Bday... Although my cousin stated he voted Brexit because there were too many Chinese where he lives (he comes from the inbred side of the family)...
As to it just working for my daughter, well 1.2 million brits cant all be wrong. Yep stuff is dearer, but it all relevant and as I said she earns way more as an accounts clerk than I did as an experienced service engineer with 30 years behind me in the UK..

​​​​​​https://www.independent.co.uk/travel...-b2367081.html
She originally went on a travel/work visa in 2015 and the above has opened that up further...this is a try before you buy and a lot cheaper than the digital visa from Spain..

Still think staying close to home is the main reason people moved from the UK to the EU, workers and retired so if anything goes wrong they have a bolt hole..
And Im glad your colleagues only have basic English and they have FOM which is not what Brits have now. And it gets them by as its needed as English is Irelands language (ok I know) but thats one of my points, what language does a BRIT choose when thinking of moving to the EU??? There are 26 to choose from and therefore you are automatically closing off options by choosing one over the other.
German where apart from Germany does that allow to to settle easily?
French OK some of Africa and a couple of Caribbean island
You see my point!!!...

You and others have good points but the EU (and I know this page is all about Spain) aint the be all and end all.......
I just think there is more to life than FOM and if we had never had it these conversations would not even be happening..Brits are still being given special treatment over the other 3rd countries. Yet people are still not happy...

We need to stop mourning for the things we have lost and start thinking about how we all go forwards.

Ive already posted a link for the OP to see whats needed for the visa they asked about, so no more from me... Ive got some cassettes to record...

That was exactly our thought process when we decided to buy a retirement property in Spain. Initially we thought about Cyprus as we had lived there when first married in the military. However distance in case of issues either for us or family made Spain a better choice. Worst comes to the worst and you need to get back to UK plenty of flights or as you say drive back. Mind we also thought EU country best for medical care pensions etc. Never thinking that could become an issue. Luckily we are protected by the withdrawal agreement so our plan wasn't affected.

Indeed, we have driven to Spain countless times with loads of household goods since the first house was completed in 1999. Yet another great attraction.

I'd be interested to see some evidence of that.

Hilarious post

what do you define as the “younger generation’ …. A very sweeping judgement to say people are not skilled !!

I don't know why you think my post was "Hilarious"..........

Perhaps I didn't word my post very well for you.

I used to train teenagers in the skills of mechanical precision engineering some years back and to cut a long story short it was unusual for them to stay the course because they really wanted office and computer work!! Having spoken with them about manual work such as plumbing, electrical, bricklaying etc, etc none, or very few were interested. At that time it seemed most youngsters wanted 'clean' jobs where there was no need to take an apprenticeship hence there was always positions available for jobs and skill shortages for jobs mentioned earlier.

My son was one of those teenagers at the time and he explained to me that those jobs are undesirable having to work in factory conditions and computer work is clean and is the future........

Steve

Your post said



Which in my humble opinion is a very sweeping thing to say. Just because people dont have skills in precision mechanical engineering doesnt mean they are not skilled, would you agree ?

I agree that there is a shift from (and shortage) in common trades but that doesnt mean to say young people are not skilled. When I did woodwork, metalwork and technical drawing at school computers and technology didnt exist, now it does and the world is a different place.

Many young people have different skills to those that you and I grew up with but it doesnt mean to say they are not skilled.

The problem with many of the 'older generation' is that they are often too fixed in their ways and mindset