Johnhutchy

Hi my names john I'm 39 years old and currently live in Jersey in the Channel Islands. Myself and my partner Lisa and our baby are looking at moving to Spain or the Netherlands or other better options other than the UK. We are looking at doing this in the near future and just trying to get an idea of locations that are good for schools and work. I'm currently working as a senior engineer for sky in Jersey and have 15 years experience and have all my own tools ect. My partner Lisa is 38 years old and a fully qualified career with over 20 years experience of all sorts of care. We have excellent references from employers and landlord. I have 2 children that live in England and they visit Jersey as much as they can but Jersey is not the beautiful place it once was and not the sort of place I'd like to bring up our child. We would be looking at renting a house/villa with at least 3 bedrooms long term if in the right area. We are friendly out going people who love to meet new people and a nice community that are family friendly. We are both hard workers and I'll try my hand to anything but enjoy what line of work I do so would be perfect if opportunities are out there. If you have any info or advise would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

John and Lisa

Rosemary

Hi and a warm welcome to the Spanish forum on BE. Myself and Fred James are the moderators for the Spanish forums whilst BEVS moderates Europe. Moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. This is so that members gain the information that they are looking for and find their experiences on the forums to be friendly and worthwhile.

Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderator who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are usually friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge about the issues of living in Spain. I hope that you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

cricketman

If you were fluent in Spanish, then (if you were lucky) your wife may be able to earn 3 euros per hour as a carer, and yourself maybe double that depending on what SPanish qualifications you have. Otherwise you will have to find a British person who fits Sky dishes who needs help

The trouble is that there is 23% unemployment in Spain and over 35% in the South of the country

Moses2013

Yes Jersey has certainly gone downhill, especially when it comes to housing quality and prices. Know a lot of people who left over the last few years, but what options will you have in Spain when it comes to jobs? Unless you have loads of savings, there isn't much on offer these days.

spainrico

Hi Folks, not trying to be a 'party-pooper' but..........I have a friend who moved here from Jersey and experienced a load of problems (driving licence, pension, healthcare etc) because of Jersey's status - ie it is not full EU and therefore does not enjoy the same rights/entitlements as say someone arriving in Spain from mainland UK. I do not know full ins/outs but suggest you research very carefully.

Good luck.

Moses2013

Yes, if you have a Jersey passport you are limited to work in the UK or need a visa for other countries, however if the OP has British passport it's OK.

Fred James

There are two types of Jersey passport depending on whether you also have a connection to the UK or only have a connection to Jersey.

In the latter case, the passport will contain an endorsement to the effect that you do not have the usual EU rights of movement/employments etc.

Johnhutchy

Hi guys our passports will let us work anywhere as we are both jersey born but parents were from the UK so we have different entitlements on our jersey passports

Moses2013

One thing sorted, but it still doesn't guarantee you a job in Spain and even people with a job struggle these days. Why Spain and do you have an area in mind? Unless you are fluent in Spanish or have very specific skills, Spain is not the place to make money. The easiest way is to work elsewhere and go to Spain when you have enough money (or maybe you already have), but otherwise there aren't many options. I don't know about Netherlands and while people speak English you'd still need Dutch over there, so why not a nicer part of the UK where you can both work. I'm in Ireland myself, which is also an option. Certainly better than Jersey with more opportunities and easy to get to Spain.

Johnhutchy

Been looking at areas like Valencia Murcia and Granada even the canaries. Iv emailed a few satellite companies and a few have asked for my cv. My partner has found a few UK companies that have positions in these areas. We just want something different and better than jersey being stuck on a rock 9x5 miles is no fun with children and nothing to do. The island is more so for the financial industry now than the beautiful island it was in the 60s to the early 90s. I moved to England for almost 8 years and came back to jersey as my mother was ill and now I have nothing to keep me here. We need a new life somewhere other than jersey. I have friends in Dublin and I do like it there but still would like to go abroad. If I stay in Jersey another 3/4 years I'll never leave. We are keen to learn languages and can get by with basic Spanish and French and a little Portuguese. Jersey is to expensive to live with a gst tax of 5% on every £1 of purchases of everything. A loaf of bread these days is £2.20 a pint of milk £1.20 and a cheap bag from the shop 5p and rental prices of property is unreal could live in the Center of London for the same price.

cricketman

Sure, but just be aware that even if both you and your wife could find a job (and that is a big if), in your occupations in Spain you would be lucky to earn 1,500 euros per month between you

And you will get no benefits to top this up. So 1,500 euros for rent, childcare, education, car etc, everything

I bet that life in Jersey beats that!

Moses2013

I can understand why you want to leave Jersey. A lot of people never manage to escape and continue to live in their bubble. The beaches are great and always loved the walks, but that was it really. Even the financial industry is going downhill and a lot of people are losing their jobs. The longer you stay the more scared you get and actually can't live in the real world. I remember when I left, or took the car to St Malo (driving in 5th gear was something new again). I would just be very careful what you do, because the money certainly isn't great in Spain and you're still young. I would also stay away from the Canaries if you feel trapped in Jersey, because it will start to be the same.

Johnhutchy

Yes I think the canneries is definitely out of my option. I don't know how long ago you were in Jersey but it's definitely changed a lot. With big financial buildings being put up everywhere. It's not really much of a holiday destination for people any more. Hardly any more guest houses and hotels only high end expensive ones. It's beautiful for its views and walks but only so many times you can go for a drive just to view and do the same things. Island life has changed and I know loads of locals wanting to get out it's a expensive place to bring up a family unless you earn £30k + a year. And I agree nothing better than getting off the boat in St Malo and being able to drive over 40 mph

Moses2013

My parents left Jersey when I was young and I then returned again later on with wife, but left again in 2011. Even a £30K salary doesn't really get you that much in Jersey these days, especially when it comes to housing. Spain might seem cheap, but it's really only cheap when you bring money from a different country. You just have to look at salaries and the loaf of bread will seem expensive too. Sure we all want to live in paradise, but in reality you will probably be better off in the UK compared to Spain. Although Ireland isn't always classed as cheap (also depends on area), I need to look at the whole picture like wages, housing costs etc. Financially I'm a lot better off here and don't mind paying 20 cents more for my milk. Being here I can also afford a holiday home or decent holidays. I have loads of Spanish colleagues who left Spain, because they couldn't afford much back home.

Johnhutchy

What part of Ireland are you from? I have friends in Wicklow