Non EU Spouse
 

Hi, I live in the UK and have British/Irish dual citizenship and my spouse has British citizenship. Our plan was to retire to Spain in about two years time but BREXIT has complicated those plans. As I am an EU citizen and my spouse is British what rules/obstacles would we now face to retire to Spain? Thank you.

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

The answer to your question is none! The good news is partners (ie spouses, civil partners and established partners) of EU nationals are entitled to freedom of movement under EU law so you and your spouse can retire to Spain with ease and can just turn up and seek residency in Spain as if Brexit had never happened - bliss!

Third country nationals with EU partners are not restricted by the 90/180 day ruling for travel either but they do have their passports stamped on entry into Schengen if they are not resident in an EU state. You will need to show proof at the border ie marriage/civil partnership certificate or proof that you are in a durable relationship - house deeds or bank statements will suffice.

I am also an Irish national with a British partner so I wrote to the EU to clarify the situation and they confirmed the above.

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

Thank you Lou, quite a relief!

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

Hi Lou, wonder if you can help with this:
Our plan is to stay 9 months in Spain (Autumn, winter and Spring) and the summer in the UK. Do we still need to seek residency to do this?
I will be 66 and my spouse will be 56, I've read somewhere that as a UK pensioner I can access the Spanish healthcare system free using an S1 form and that my spouse would also get free Spanish healthcare, is this correct and what documentation do we need to access this?

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

You would have to become resident and pay all your tax in Spain.

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

You would need to be resident to benefit from the S1 but you could use the EHIC card for emergencies I suppose. If you are non resident you would probably be better off with private health insurance which is excellent and very reasonably priced in Spain.

Re your plan of spending 9 months of the year in Spain, you could wing it with your Irish passport but this is not going to fly for your British partner because they will have their passport stamped on entering and leaving Schengen. I know plenty of British people had very extended holidays in Spain before Brexit but they will not be free to travel in that way now - for them, gone are the days of just taking off for a year sadly.

So to reiterate, your third country partner has EU freedom of movement based on your Irish passport as far as seeking EU residency is concerned and the 90/180 day travel rule but unlike you with your Irish passport, they will have their passport stamped meaning their travel is logged.

By the way, did you get one of those wonderful Irish passport cards? It's a great piece of kit, looks like an EU ID card!

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

Thanks Lou, much appreciated. Can you suggest any companies I can approach for a quote on health insurance?
My Irish passport is on its way, it got delayed due to the pandemic!

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

That's exciting, I bet you can't wait for it to arrive!

I will send you a message because we are not allowed to mention companies by name on here.

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

You are OK to name companies on the forum if you are making a recommendations and it helps when people use the search facility. What you are not allowed to do is openly advertise a company or person.

Rosemary

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

Private health insurance could be an obstacle if either of you have pre existing conditions.My euphoria of gaining an Irish passport and possible retirement in Spain was quickly tempered when I came up against this issue .

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

Lou71. Could you share how you got your Irish Passport card? I have always had an Irish Passport but did not know about the ID Card.
Thank you

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

I think you can pay to join the Spanish state healthcare system. I have no idea of the cost but apparently there is no exclusion for preexisting health conditions.

It's worth noting that Portugal offers free state healthcare to all residents so that is worth considering.

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

I think it's relatively new and I was given the option of ordering it with my passport.

I would definitely recommend you get one and here is the info, you can order it online:

https://www.citizensinformation.ie/e...port_card.html

Hope that helps.

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

I believe Private cover is required for the first year before you are eligible to enroll in the Spanish state system. Unless I can find a solution in the next few years,I’ll start exploring Portugal.

Re: Non EU Spouse
 

Yep you need the cover for the first year, however in some regions it takes ages to get into the system via the Convenio.
And you have to have been resident for the year, not from when you arrived.
We got here in August 2020 but couldnt get residency until the end of November and as the private system charges run Jan - Dec you have to pay for the year anyway.
Here in our bit of the Valencia region its taking around 8 months from applying to getting the Ok.

Also the Convenio is €60 a month for those under 65 and €157 a month for those over. For ref my private care is €52 a month (Im 58)
Once you are at UK retirement age you can apply for the S1 and it will then take over, the UK pay a fixed sum every year to Spain for you.