jord26

Hiya there,

I know there is an introductions page but to be honest I might as well get down to the nitty-gritty! My fiancée is Spanish and we'll have been together for 6 years this coming February. I am working here in the UK (as a Multilingual Helpdesk Analyst) and she is working in Spain (as an English teacher in a language academy). We have been apart for all of our relationship, apart from a year when I did my Masters in Barcelona in Translation Studies (where she's from). We are definitely looking at me moving out there this coming year (if all goes to plan) and have been looking at several areas to live in (she is still living with her parents and brother and I am still living at home here), like Castelldefels, Gavà and Sant Boi.

In theory I'd like to be out there by say autumn next year as time is ticking on (I'm 26 now, but will be 27 then and she's 25, will be 26 then), so I just wondered whether you guys had any suggestions about how we could kcik start our plans?

I do actually have a 'Permiso de residencia' (the one you need for staying in an EU country for over 3 months, can't remember the exact name as haven't seen it for ages, but have it here somewhere), so obviously would need an NIE (Número de Identificación de Extranjería) as soon as I'd got out there and done the 'empadronamiento' with the local town hall, wherever we ended up settling.

My major snag is finding a job and hopefully being happy out there, as well as finding somewhere to live asap!

Has anyone got any suggestions?

Thanks a lot!

Jordan

cricketman

Hey Jordi

You certainly have a good name for moving to Catalunya

Obviously jobs are tough now as there is 22% unemployment in Spain and Catalunya in particular is feeling the pinch

I guess you are British? So you can live where you like. Your best bet for a job is actually your girlfriend - again I assume you are fluent in Spanish? And hows your Catalan? That is important for the job market there

Ask your girlfriend to spread the word in the language schools that you are coming - native English speakers are always welcome in the language school world.

Where you live is again up to you and depends where your job will be. Rents are still pretty high around Barcelona, but you could get a decent studio/1 bed for around 750 euros a month I would think.

lynnxa

hi

yes, as cricketman says you don't need any sort of 'permisso de residencia' if you are an EU citizen - you just have to go through the formality of registering as resident - it's much more straightforward than when you were last here

NIE number again is fairly straightforward & a lot of oficinas de extranjero are issuing these when you sign the resident list

also as you realise, work will be the biggest challenge, but if you're mulltilingual you have an advantage & also perhaps a bit of enchufe with your Spanish fiancee

jord26

Hiya cricketman!

Yes, you're right about the job situation to be honest; hence my worrying! Well, I did my degree in Spanish (and Italian), spent my Erasmus year in Cádiz and did my MA (as I said) in Barcelona (as I said before), and now use Spanish every day at work (as well as Italian, French and English), but tbh usually speak in English to my fiancée as her English is excellent - although I speak in Spanish to her family as they don't know English at all, apart from her brother, but his English is only on a very basic conversational level, so it's best if I talk to him in Spanish tbh! My Catalan could be better, but did do a Catalan course when I did my MA in Barcelona and actually wrote a 3,000 word essay in Catalan whilst I was doing my MA, so my written Catalan isn't bad either. I also sat the DELE Nivel Superior exam in Spanish in 2007, but unfortunately failed two parts of it (got full marks in speaking though!) and would like to do this again some day if possible, and my fiancée reckons I could pass the Nivell C de català exam if I tried, but who knows!

That's true, I mean in thoery I could always work where my fiancée works, but I've never wanted to be a teacher tbh...as my aim is to either become a translator or interpreter (although I think translation is more my thing tbh as have done both (albeit English-Spanish!) at the University of Pompeu Fabra, when I was in Barcelona, and found translation much easier than interpreting! It's just finding some kind of job which will give us enough money to live on.

Yes, that's the problem. Tbh we have only been looking at areas briefly, and I also don't want to live too near her parents as I want us to have our own time too if you see what I mean.

Thanks a lot for your help again though!

Do you live in Barcelona itself btw?!

Take care,

Jordan

jord26

Hiya Lynn!

Thanks very much for this! Yeah, I really need to find out more about this tbh as I got that number back in 2008/2009 when I was studying in Barcelona, but I guess it's all just procedures you go through and when they're done, it's all pretty much straight forward (having said that, I know what Spanish burocracy can be like!) The last time I was out there it took my fiancée's friend's Dad (who used to work at Barcelona airport) to go down to the police station in Barceloneta to get the relevant paperwork signed (whilst I was on my Crimbo hols as it turns out back here!) as whenever I'd been going (despite going at times indicated etc.) I was told they couldn't do it there!

Yes, that's the thing...work WILL be the biggest challenge! Let's hope she can be an 'enchufe' It's certainly who you know, as well as what you know, when it comes to getting a job isn't it?

Take care and thanks again for your advice!

Jordan

pwwm

Warm welcome to the forum and I wish you well for the future

Rosemary

As Concierge for the Spanish section of BE I would like to say hello and welcome.

BE is a very large expat website, so if you have problems finding your way around we have concierges who will try to direct you. The moderators for the Spanish forums are Mitzyboy and Fred James, moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderador who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge of the issues of living in Spain. At the top of the page you will find a quirkily named thread called Free Beer which is full of important and useful information. Hope you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary