They are typically employees in another country (often non EU) and so not employees in Spain. They still effectively start a new contract in Spain and legally it's a 'new' job (or it certainly is in my company when you move to another country). Perhaps there is some kind of exemption for this situation I dont know, but it's quite common.

#14 and #15
Intra-company transfer, as it's called, is a method for a corporation to move their staff around their international offices/factories/subsidiaries etc. While it's essentially different from an individual applying to work in a country where visa and work permit is needed, the corporation still needs to meet certain requirements, such as the seniority of the employee concerned and demonstrate why it is necessary to transfer instead of recruiting locally. It's not too onerous as they can usually show that the staff member has necessary knowledge and experience to replace another staff member who is being recalled. If they need to increase the number of internal staff being deployed, they need to meet additional requirement.

Back to OP- as many have said unless you specify your nationality and your skill set it is hard for us to answer your questions specifically. However here are some general answers depending on the above
: if not EU national you will need a visa. The fact that you mention work means you would need someone in Spain to have legally offered you a job contract before you can leave UK. You cannot get work visa without showing work contract.
To get a work contract you would need a specific skill ser to which there are no potential EU applicants suitable. This means it would probably be high skilled at a professional level ( engineer, doctor, tech etc) and your qualifications would need to matched with Spanish equivalents.
Unless you were working in a UK company in Spain you would normally be expected to speak Spanish for the Spanis work place
For schools it is a question of age and language. Without Spanish children age 10 can if hard working complete a full Spanish education but it is rare they do as well as the average Spanish . Younger than this and they will struggle to learn Spanish sufficient to progress far in Spanish schools. Private schools are where most British kids attend if starting last year primary or secondary.
You won't get a mortgage unless you have savings and some proof of a stable income source.
Finally be aware that Spain has nothing like the benefit system in UK - so no child benefit and small personal allowance.
Sounds negative I agree but as someone who moved here with a 10 year old I would never recommend it unless you have a good income outside of work as wages here are too low to support a family. Spanish people work as large family units which is how they manage but Brits hardly ever have this available.

Ok lets not ask questions that you havent bothered giving information for...
So assuming you are free and clear to just move here and apply for work.

1. A fair amount of the costa del sol, is like a graveyard in winter. Most of the coastal towns are holiday hot spots. BUT you have already said you know people in this area, so you should be asking them...AND where I would like would not be where you might want too. I would never move somewhere just becasue someone said "Oh its nice here" YOU NEED TO DO SOME BOOTS ON THE GROUND RESEARCH.
2. Flats etc with kids. Why would they not flourish??? My kids grew up in a flat and as far as I can tell neither has turned into a monster (what a silly question). Life here is spent outdoors not cooped up indoors. Not having a garden aint an issue.
3. no job no mortgage.... here comes the first endless circle.. Just like in the Uk or anywhere else...Mortgages here wont lend 4x salary, it will be no more than 30% to 40% of your monthly income. Earn 20k a year and you can borrow an amount equal to €600 to €800 a month max. But without a job.....................
4. Jobs. If you only have a UK passport, nothing... Unless you can find an employer to sponsor you or if you can get an inter company move. Or if you are a rocket scientist. What job do you do now??? Salaries are lower here for the same job (I worked as a pallet wrapper installation engineer and I was paid 30% more than the Spanish bloke who worked for the same company.) Hours are longer as well. We only had to do an eight hour day before O/T kicked in here my opposite number had to do ten and a half. And dont get me started on the other benefits a Uk employee gets over most of the rest of the world.
4a. Your wife again if you work she is not guaranteed to be able too. I dont actually know about this bit. BUT if you come here on an NLV visa You cannot legally work. If you come here on a DNV you cannot work exclusively in the Spanish system. If you come here on a work visa I dont think your family can work (the visa is for you). Obviously there are business visa's and self employed..YOU NEED TO CHECK THE SPANISH GOVERNMENT WEBSITE TO GET THE CORRECT INFO.
5.Learning Spanish, some do some dont. One of our close friends has two children who moved over with her when they were 3 and 5. They are now 19 and 21. The 21 year old is working in bars in Benidorm because she couldn't pick up Spanish very well. The 19 year old is going to university at some point and is very clear, he speaks four languages. Nobody but your children will be able to know the answer to that question. Have you even asked them if they want to move???
6. Making friends is another entirely subjective comment. If you have no friends in the Uk then I doubt you will have any here. A good percentage of us here are retired so we have our social circles. You will have work and lots of it so your workmates will be your friends. Your wife should be able to make friends with the other mothers...

But if you could have been bothered to give us a better understanding of your background maybe the answers might have been better.

Call me a cynical sod, but your opening post has all the hallmarks of a bait and trap used by a troll.... I could be wrong and sometimes I am.....

I never fails to amaze me when members continue to try to put useful information on a thread even when an OP has made it clear in a rude manner that they do no appreciate the time that members have put into sharing their knowledge.

Thanks to all of you who are being helpful.

Rosemary

Thank you to everyone who have taken the time and trouble to try to help the OP. Hopefully he will take the comments on board and realize that we are a very helpful group.

Snap.

Ha, ha, we were on the same wavelength.

Rosemary

Fantastic post by Barriej !

If you can already legally live and work in Spain ie already have the correct “paperwork” then just say so and you will gain lots of help to your other questions, if you do not have the legal requirements to live and work in Spain then say so and the good people in this site will help you as much as possible with how you may be able to “gain” the correct visa but you have not offered this information.

The OP has made it very clear that he simply wants answers to the original questions and nothing else. So not really looking for other help.

Rosemary

In my opinion we won’t see the OP here on this thread again as he appears to me to have taken offence at some of the initial responses supplied. I wonder whether a sticky is needed to direct future similar posts as one of the existing stickies contains broken links New Guide for Spain

So a few answers from someone who has friends that have moved to Spain -

Many millions of people across the world bring up their kids in flats. I have friends in Italy, Spain, Australia and the UK doing just that Just look for a flat large enough for a family - its incredibly common across Europe for families in cities to live in apartment buildings Be warned though - they don't all have pools!

For any job you'd need a good level of Spanish, as friends of mine have discovered. Even in tourist areas its essential as the tourists go home but you need to deal with the locals 365 days a year.


The language barrier is going to come into play here. My own Spanish is non-existent but sign language and google translate are good tools! A friend of mine who lives over there now has managed to acquire a basic level of Spanish and Galician in 3 years, but has finally decided he needs proper lessons - and this from a guy who mastered other languages from French to Arabic in his younger days. He's got some fairly good mates in Spain now, but there's still a barrier when it comes to slang and colloquialisms which doesn't help when trying to lake lasting friends.
As in other countries, having children in school helps, once you start meeting the other parents.

If your 10 year old isn't already learning the language, and customs, info about life in Spain etc, start them on it now so they can hit the ground running

Hope tis helps a little!

I have unstuck the "New Guide" sticky, thanks for highlighting this to me.

A new sticky to replace it will not be implemented due to the difficulties of maintaining up to date information.

Rosemary

Perhaps this sorry tale will illustrate for those who don't realise just how difficult it can be for British passport holders to be able to work legally in Spain now, and that when we tell them that we are not just being negative and trying to thwart their dreams.

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