Furthermore to the visa requirements, you may need to prove that any offers of employment do cover the financial requirements needed to satisfy the Spanish government income and healthcare guidelines.

Steve

Appreciate what your saying. I know full well it wouldn't be a fast or easy process at all. Just trying to get a feel of if it would actually be possible. Like so many others I'm just sick of UK life.

As a first step joining the EEA (like Norway, Iceland) would suffice as it would mean being in the single market, which automatically encompasses the "four freedoms" which are indivisible.

The Russians poured tons of money and effort into peddling brexit to the gullible masses solely because it would be devastating for the UK.

Even the Governor of the Bank of England has admitted that brexit has caused MORE damage to the economy... than Covid. Let that sink in. What's even worse though is that although the Covid storm is over... brexit will continue inflicting damage to the economy every single day until the UK can rejoin the single market.

Now you have to keep in mind that before brexit you could move to Spain as a UK citizen any time as you were also an EU citizen back then. You had all the rights of a local citizen so you could move and work, study, or retire in Spain any time you wanted to. And not just Spain. You could move and live anywhere in the EU. Got tired of Spain, wanted to give Portugal a try? Off you went. Simply because you wanted to.

Not any more. Now that UK citizens are no longer EU citizens but third-country nationals, we have the same rights of someone wanting to move to Spain from Morocco or Mongolia. It's no longer easy, it's no longer automatic, it now requires jumping through hoops like a circus animal and navigating the limited pathways that exist for such people.

In the EU you can generally only permit someone (non-EU national) to move to the EU to take up a job position if you cannot find an EU citizen for that job. EU citizens get priority. If that position cannot be filled, then companies can look elsewhere.

That's why I think your wife could use her experience and qualifications to apply at an International/British school. Not sure how it would work if you decided to be self-employed though, whether the burden of proving you can be self-sufficient would in fact fall on your wife as the person moving to Spain on a work contract, etc. Maybe someone else can pitch in here.

P.S. Have you looked at other EU countries or is it just Spain you're eyeing?

Maybe Malta has some easier inroads ("special schemes") for British nationals due to historic ties with the UK? Maybe it's worth moving to... Ireland for some years until you can gain EU citizenship and then use that as a springboard to live elsewhere in the EU?

was mainly spain due to the in laws living there to be honest. I imagine other EU countries would have the same issues as you've explained above though. Although if Spain is really out of the question, some other countries such as China offer really attractive packages for teachers + their families. Perhaps it's worth while for me to look to speak to lawyer who specialises in these sort of matters to see if it is feasible or not - understanding it seems well above my pay grade.

Some routes have been suggested here, in reality it will always come down to finances, personal skills and expectations and is a lot easier for young singles or the retired with an EU passport. Spain (like much of Europe) is no longer cheap and the world is getting smaller in the sense that more people want to move to the same areas. Unlike 20-30 years ago, these days you actually have to lower your expectations, or are coming from a high cost area with plenty of cash. Even when it comes to taxes and regulations, sometimes you wonder how people survive. I'm currently dealing with another plot of land that my wife owned for many years. We are now selling with a building license that was granted after lots of stress with council, after they changed planning regulations. They now want people to build bigger homes, so the plans had to be increased by 36m2. It took them 2 years and we have 6 weeks to pay fees, or pay fines and of course heavily taxed.

As you can see we are prone to go off on our own personal tangents here. However, getting back to your original enquiry. I think given your circumstances it could be both hard and risky. Best thing is to google the international schools in area and then contact and see if they would employ your wife and arrange visa. If not then I think its will be a bit of a dream.

What evidence of that do you have? Plenty of British people are still getting NLV visas, mostly retirees, but even then, you need a big pension to qualify. The reality, sadly, is that post Brexit its almost impossible to get a work visa unless you are in a highly specialised profession.

There is no way you can just turn up and look for a job any more.

It's just yet another snag that Boris failed to mention.

One possibility is the Digital Nomad Visa but neither of you seem to be working in those kinds of jobs.

The other is maybe you could wait until more info about the 90 day visa-free waiver for Britons working in Spain is released. A caveat is you still have to respect the 90/180 day Schengen rule.

Then you could try working for up to three months and if it works out okay maybe the company will sponsor your residency and take you on. It's a slim chance though, you'd need to speak enough Spanish and the company would have to be willing to pay enough for you to get residency.