Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

My husband and I are expecting second child and we have decided to move to Spain for 6 months during my maternity leave. None of us is going to work during that time, we both just want loooong holidays.
We do not take any benefits (apart of ChB), we do not have property in UK, our income during the time of being abroad will be from UK (my husband will be still paid for previous contracts and I will be paid by my employer + SMP).
Should we inform any authorities that we are leaving?

We are planning to buy a house as first time buyer soon after returning to UK – would our absence influence on our credit score? We are both EU citizens but non British. My husband lives in UK for 14 years, I joined him 5 years ago.
Thanks in advance

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

You are both EU citizens so I cannot see how your credit rating would be affected. If you are staying in Spain for more than 90 days in any one year you will need to register with the local authorities and prove that you have external income (I kid you not). I cannot see any reason to inform UK authorities.

I don't know when you are planning to move to Spain but the time of year will influence the rent you pay. If you visit from October onwards your rent for decent, centrally located, 2 bedroom would work out at around €500.00 (Euro not GBP£) per month + electricity.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Come and enjoy your holiday in this lovely country. You don't have to inform anyone, anywhere. All you need is your passport and EHIC, and your credit rating in the UK will be unblemished.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

What will you do about medical care during your pregnancy (and the birth if you expect to be here for that)? You may be able to get S1 forms from the DWP which would entitle you to treatment under the Spanish state health system, but after returning to the UK you would then have to go through the process of proving Habitual Residency to be able to access the NHS once more.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

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

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Yes that was my immediate thought. Unless they have private health cover they'd need to register with the Spanish system, and feel comfortable about the treatment they receive (scans, etc) during the pregnancy. We've had 2 kids in Spain and, even though my wife is Spanish, it isn't always easy to understand well the medical advice you are being given.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Hello
Thanks for answers and nice welcome. I’ll try to respond to all of you at once.

Leper :
If you are staying in Spain for more than 90 days in any one year you will need to register with the local authorities and prove that you have external income (I kid you not).

Could you please advise what authorities need to be informed?

The baby is due in September; we are planning to move to Spain in November as soon as baby’s passport is ready and come back to UK in May.
My husband will go to Costa Del Sol, Benalmadena in October to find a flat for us. We have a friend who works in estate agency there so it should not be a problem.

Lynn R ,
I’m planning to work until the end of pregnancy and will give a birth here, in UK. I am thinking to buy a private medical insurance for all family. Are you able to recommend any? We all have EHIC cards in case of emergency and we’ll get one for the newborn as well.

Thanks for help!

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Registering for a longer than 90 days stint can be done locally in the nearest government offices. You will need to show proof that you can support yourself financially while in Spain and you will need proof private health insurance which is valid in Spain. In reality, it is no big deal.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

If you are here for more than 90 days then it will be ILLEGAL to use the EHIC at all. You must get private health cover or perhaps an S1 from DWP before you go.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

If they arrive in Spain in November then they won't do 90 days this year, so I guess they'll have 90 days from the beginning of Jan. So they could get round the 90 day rule simply by coming back to the UK a month early.

Regarding insurance I have Mapfre cover through my work, and they have always been good whenever we have used them (although we prefer to use public healthcare when we can). As Mapfre is a very large (almost ubiquitous) Spanish insurer I imagine the vast majority of private Spanish doctors are signed up to them.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Oh and the op should be aware that there are fewer over the counter medicines in Spain (at least it seems like that to me), and they can only be bought from pharmacies (you can't buy aspirin from a newsagent for example). With a new born it is well worth being close to a 24 hour pharmacy. Also in Spain some of the brands are different, e.g. the Spanish equivalent of Calpol is Apirital but I think Apirital is more concentrated so you need to be careful with the dosage.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

This is the sort of important information that people often fail to find out. I believe that a lot of medications are more concentrated so vigilance is necessary.

Rosemary

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Totally wrong, you can buy medicines in Spain that were prescription only in the UK as OTC medicines, you can, or at least could, in some phamacias buy antibiotics. Often worth going into a pharmacy and taking the medicine you need, they will tell you if you need a prescription. Also note that many of the OTC medicines such as Ibuprofen and Paracetamol are sold as much bigger dosage, than in the UK, often twice as strong.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Actually Ibuprofen and many paracetemols are not OTC medicines in Spain.

However many Spanish pharmacies do (illegally) sell them OTC:

http://elpais.com/diario/2008/12/08/...04_850215.html

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

You are correct, in our pharmacy they are not OTC, they are ON THE SHELVES!

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

In my area (Madrid) the only shelves with medicines on are behind the counter. I guess it varies from region to region

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Indee, my wife used to buy antibiotics when in Spain and it supposedly changed, so when we tried last year they refused us. Mentioned it to the Spanish people we were staying with, they popped down and got exactly what we were refused. It's treated as most rules and regulations are in Spain.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Happened to me just last week when the local farmacia refused to serve me a couple of items as they've done a time or two in the past year or so, though prior to that they were always quite helpful.

So I thought why not try in the next village just to see what happens.
I asked briefly in my best Spanish accent, though I haven't a clue if that was what made the difference or if they just happened to have a different policy.

Anyway,suffice to say that I got served there no problem.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Certainly some paracetamols are sold OTC, today in the press they are discussing the morning after pill (freely available without prescription to any age) and it says, «Las farmacias venden paracetamol sin receta y es más peligroso que la "píldora del día después"»
http://www.abc.es/sociedad/20130613/...306121329.html

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Yes the article I linked to referred to "Algidol (paracetamol con codeína)" as not being OTC. I think other paracetemols are allowed OTC in Spain (as in the UK).

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

We could get virtually anything at our farmacía in Elviria, Marbella. There were always Germans in with a list to buy. Heard a few old men buying viagra:lol: One day I went in and there was a list of items they wouldn't be selling anymore, including antibiotics. I don't recall ever seeing Spanish supermarkets selling painkillers either:unsure:

I always try to buy antibiotics as our UK GP will only prescribe them if you have suffered for a couple of weeks. Bought a few items in Belize including sleeping pills. Flew back via Miami and when I unpacked one of the suitcases had a note from USA homeland security saying they had searched the case! Wouldn't have known as it was all orderly. They left all the medication, probably because only in small quantities. Dogs must have sniffed out the case.

I did manage to buy some in Sorrento!

Impossible to buy in formerly British Caribbean Islands too.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Thing there is getting to be some confusion here OTC means 'Over The Counter' and applies to any medicine you can just go into and buy, as opposed to POM, 'Prescription Only Medicine'.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Yes I was replying to snikpoh's comment which seemed to imply that in their area OTC medicines were placed on shelves in front of the counter. My point was that in my area of Madrid you have to ask for both types of medicine at the counter. So if the want OTC parecetemol you have to ask for it - you can't just pick what you want from a shelf beforehand.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

When we lived in Spain, we had a number of visitors who would buy their pain killers when with us because of the stronger ones available, and the fact that they could just go into a pharmacy and get a box of 100 without being quizzed as to whether they knew all the side effects etc by the pharmacist. Viagra is AFAIK, available OTC in pharmacies in the UK, certainly the morning after pill is.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

True, but I don't see anything commendable in being able to buy as many high strength pills as you want, it's literally a recipe for disaster. Spain used to pop antibiotics like smarties, it's well known the body builds up a resistance to them. Now they are supposedly POM, but as we've said that's widely abused. Despite the supposedly healthy life style, fabulous med diet, the Spanish are a load of hypochondriacs, they are the second highest poppers of pills in the world.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Drove over stayed six months, travelled a bit and drove home again....didn't have to tell anyone only the gas, electric, phone and council to freeze all the bills.

Many do that six months here six months there.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Now you know about pills you can buy....... Lets get back to living in Spain ..in Cran Canaria the Icelanders, Swiss,Germans come in October and stay till April or May and none of the ones i know have a NIE or anything from the Spainish Goverment.. the just show their passport to the landlord and you can open a back account with passport only.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Thanks for answers everyone!
One more question: do you think we should open a bank account in Spain for these few months? I need to check with our banks if they have any offers for travelers. I would prefer to avoid transferring money from one account to another.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

If you have an atm card there is no need to open a bank account in Spain.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

I went into a farmacia in the centre of Valencia this week and bought OTC 600mg ibuprofen tablets without any problem - €1.90 for 40.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

What i do is lift €500 from the ATM and put it in the bank to pay my phone and internet as i need an account for them..Rent is paid into the landlords account..My Movistar account is only €34 a month so €500 goes a long way..

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Not surprised to read that three out of ten Spanish are overdosing on ibuprofen., seriously increasing their risk of even worse health.
http://www.abc.es/sociedad/20130622/...306212011.html

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

I get the impression from Spanish media reports that the increased domestic pressures as a result of the crisis are becoming all to much to bear for many, with numerous cases of attempted suicide, some by overdose as well as increasing problems with domestic violence.

It's quite understandable I suppose, in household with big families living permanently on top of each other on a shoestring budget, with no jobs to go to and little or no money for other activities outside their own four walls.

There have been a couple of comments from those in high places saying the worst is now over.
Lets hope for just once they are right, because even in a best case scenario most experts seem to think it could take another five years to get back on an even keel.

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Hi I am 30weeks pregnant today and I'm going to spain to visit family and I may stay here to have the baby will I be covered under ehic card?

My partner works in oil and gas so I won't be looking for employment just looking for a long term let in mazarron area I believe the closest hospital is Cartagena?? Has any one gave birth here?

I will be paying for private appointments whilst I am there but just need advice in regards to birth

Thank you xx

Re: Moving to Spain for 6 months
 

Having had a 1 year old ill in Spain and getting liquid paracetamol from the pharmacy was difficult, one pharmacy had a policy of no drugs for children without a prescription, following a trip to the Drs we returned with prescription but the liquid was still a much higher concentration than we were used to in the UK and worked out at 0.2 mls..... very difficult to get down an unwell child! This was a few years ago so I do not know whether they do have a lower dose now, but I have been unable to get sachets of liquid drugs for children for when we are traveling.