Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Hello everyone,

This is my first post and I have been contemplating this for a while, but I am so sick of living in the UK, I am very unsatisfied with life here and I have liked the idea of emigrating for as long as I can remember. I thought I would wait it out and see how Brexit goes but now with the threat of a no-deal Brexit looking more likely, I am very worried that after 31st Oct that the drawbridge will go up and I will not be able to fulfil my dream of living in Spain. I'm in my early twenties, and I speak Spanish fairly well (C1 level), I have studied it for years and even spent 6 months there learning the language, So, I am familiar with what it is like living in Spain and not just going there on holiday. I feel much more at home there and out of all the countries I have been to, Spain attracts me the most.

I have experience working as a waiter, I was thinking maybe I could find a job in restaurants or even in hotels, and I have around 10k in savings.

I don't know where in Spain I would like to live... maybe someone can give me some recommendations? I have Madrid, Malaga and Barcelona in mind. I would be making the move alone. Is it worth taking the risk and moving out there? I feel like I have nothing to lose.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Hola

First find a job as that will decide where you move to; with massive unemployment and very low wages, I question the quality of life you would lead here.

Davexf

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Can only agree with Dxf. Look where you can find the best job, or let's say where you get more for your money first and then see. But think about it, you managed to save 10K, so life isn't as bad as you make it. Even in 5 - 10 years Spain will still exist and people will come and go regardless of Brexit. You might be better off saving more and learn skills that will get you better paid jobs in the future, rather just rushing into things.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Being young, perhaps you will be short on experience but full of energy and enthusiasm, things that count very often with employers. Trying to find a job in Spain from England, I'd forget, despite what others might say. Employers like to see a potential client face to face. Yes, there's youth unemployment here, but with the right attitude you might survive.
Ever thought of this part of the world? The Basque country is making serious links with Britain, trade-wise and is considered the culinary capital of Spain, deservedly so. You wouldn't need to speak Basque, unlike Catalan in Barcelona, in fact not a lot of Basque is spoken in Bilbao, more so in Donosti / San Sebastian.
Spanish people's level of English in general is not as good as we might have thought, bearing in mind tourism is the number 1 industry.
If you don't come, you'll only regret it later on.
As for Brexit, absolutely nobody knows, but my personal opinion is that not a lot will change initially.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Obviously with your language level you will find jobs more easily in the tourist areas but the season is drawing to a close and many temporary staff contracted for the summer will be laid off. Madrid is a good place to start, less likely to encounter language issues ( catalan ! ) than in Barcelona or head to somewhere like Malaga - year round cruise ships make the tourist market less seasonal . Be prepared for a lot of disappointment but stick at it, somewhere they will offer you a temprorary job. Bear in mind that there is a lot of paperwork associated with settling long-term so try and make the most of the first 90 days which is the time period allotted to a non-registered person. Then you will have to register with the police , the town hall, show medical insurance, funds to support you and so on . Critical then get a job within 90 days.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

hi lee:wave:you are a young bloke with a little bit of money behind you :eek: think very carefully where you might go in spain i,e right city, you seem sensible to me ,if i were 21 and single with 10k i,d give it a bloody good go son, you have had a couple of good replies already ask for more:thumbup: i,m 62 lived here 4 years so a little a little different to you, i to got feed up with uk moved to spain i have enjoyd every second of if. not every thing is Rosie but i think a far better live:thumbsup:as i said have a bloody good go son,you can always go back and earn more money in uk if it does not work out .think very hard and careful make your own mind up

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Hospitality pay is extremely bad, as many restaurants rely on family to staff the place and pay them peanuts., also many are not contract jobs, so no coverage in the Spanish health service and no benefits. I know of one place a few years ago that was advertising for staff, this was a brit run place, and someone I knew got a job there having been told the pay was €5, she thought it was per hour, turned out it was per NIGHT, she never went back. You may foind out that the 10K doesn't last too long in those circumstances, and most of the jobs are seasonal, with many places shutting down in September, and a lot just don't reopen the next year, unless they have sold the premises.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Agree with el collado kid - if you can afford to risk those 10k savings I'd give it a go, particularly since we don't know conditions might apply to residence post-brexit.
C1 gives you a great advantage over most job-hunting brits and while hopitality jobs might not be the best paid or most stable, you can get your foot in the door, get your paperwork sorted and then start thinking about what you might really like to do.

If you're going to rent on your own, choose your location wisely - if I'm not mistaken the current laws on long term rentals mean that if you leave a place before the year is out, or certainly before 6 months is up, you can be severely out of pocket. Flatshare might be safer initially.

Good luck, I hope it works out for you

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

:goodpost:hi racelk, good info and advice just what the boy needs:wave:

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

There is a company in Madrid which is always advertising for native speaker 'sales agents' aimed at UK clients. Not everyone's cup of tea but it could be a starting point to establish yourself. Here is a link.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

hi lee morning:yawn:i just told my wife about you ,she told me our friends son who is 21 live lives with mum and dad in the valley. he looked for work in restaurants in moraira costa blanca he walked a round the town asking in person he had four job offers took his pick happy as larry,:thumbsup:
moraira costa blanca 15 minuet drive for us,

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

One other thing to consider is what kind of life you are seeking in Spain. While many people always talk about Spain as a country, every area will be very different. In Madrid you don't have any beach and climate is completely different to Barcelona. Both cities are very expensive and crowded, but at least in Barcelona you can still smell the Med, have amazing coastline close by and have milder winters. Malaga is great for the sunseeker and again offers you beach living if you of course have the right job. Especially if you're in IT, Malaga might be an option. Rather than wasting your hard earned money, find out what kind of location you want and then look online for jobs.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Unless you speak Spanish and have a 'needed' skill you can forget Spain. Better off gaining UK qualifications that will get you out to Canada/New Zealand/Australia.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

He has stated that he has C1 level Spanish.

Rosemary

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Give the lad a chance; at least he speaks reasonable Spanish, is keen and willing to give it a go. And he's English, so could fall back on that with some extra teaching if need be.
I find many of us here on this forum tend to be too negative. Yes, spell out the true facts, but let's encourage people.
My whisky glass is always half full.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

:goodpost:well done Euskadi bravo mate too true, young man starting out on live, go for it son

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

And what else does he have to land him a job over a Spanish local?

Unless youngsters have a specific set of skills to suit Spain and they really want to leave the UK then NZ/Auz/Canada are the places to aim for, forget Spain. We're hoping our two grown children leave the UK, lock stock and barrel and head for NZ, they are professionals, have skills needed there and their future will be better than the UK can offer post Brexit....we'll pay all costs for the move...the wife and I would of course move to.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

No risk, no gain, right? Especially when you're young. So many Victor Meldrews here ... :)

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

If I wanted advice on how to move to NZ/Aus/Canada I would have started a thread in that section thank you. I have no desire to live in any of those countries, I'd rather stay in the UK. I'm only interested in Spain, thanks.

And as many have pointed out already, there are lots of fields for Brits in Spain and currently as we are still in the EU, a specific skill is not necessarily needed under free movement, any communitarian worker can seek work like in their own country. Being bilingual is certainly sought after in Spain as the level of English is not very high.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Thanks so much for your tips and positivity el collado kid, I will certainly give it a lot of thought in the next few weeks but you have encouraged me! :lol:

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

I have heard similar things about the Basque Country, that it has one of the strongest economies in Spain! I will certainly look into it, not to mention Bilbao looks beautiful!

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

So what can you do that a Spanish national cannot given the mass unemployment in Spain for your age group? Good luck and all that but you need to get real.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Dear Bob, far from me the desire to argue with you, as life is too short and I have better things to do.
I would like to say only this: ok, you have discovered "nirvana" for you and your family. But that is YOURS, not necessarily everyone's.
Lee sounds to me intelligent, articulate and ready to give anything a go. University is not for everybody, some are learning their skills on the job, some like to be their own boss and start a business. So, dear Bob, remember how it was when you were young, optimistic and at the start of your life journey. Get yourself in that "place" and then post again.
In the meantime, enjoy your sunny day! :)

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

lee you are more than welcome ,i thought i lost my chance of spain then all of a sudden i now live in spain for 4 years now, good fortune to you son

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

hi minouette :goodpost: i total agree well done and thanks for your input

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Hi from the France forum, where you'd encounter the same issues - high unemployment, risks with the Authorities if working on the black, difficulties renting without adequate income (justified by payslips), healthcare coverage from Day 1, requirement to register officially after 3 (?) months in the country, .... No one knows yet what will happen after Brexit. Teaching English was mentioned, but firstly you'd have to be "legal" (= be salaried or set up as an Autonomo) and even with your level of Spanish, you'd have to be employed a lot of hours in order not to have to dip into your savings. Fore-warned is fore-armed...
I would suggest getting a job lined up before you arrive in Spain, and ensuring that you've got a safety net back in the UK if everything goes pear-shaped. Which I hope won't happen for you.
Good luck with your venture, but do more research first!:)

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Good post dmu.

We live in an age where younger folk are told they cannot fail, you even get a medal for taking part these days, sadly this is not a reflection of real life. People need to be told the reality of situations and not pumped full false hope. If someone comes along with the 'high I'm fed up of the UK and want to move to Spain' then for crying out loud tell them the truth, warts and all.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Very true and unfortunately it happens again and again. If somebody wants to move to the UK, people focus on every detail and make a difference between different areas, different towns and different streets. When it comes to Spain, it seems people focus on the country and Spain is always Spain. Apart from the weather, it would be more interesting to know what the OP is trying to find in Spain. If you're looking for Spanish culture, don't move here https://theblacksea.eu/blogs/we-hear...ess-of-madrid/.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

hi what if my truth warts and all are different than yours and others ,what would you suggest to keep quiet, i think like you have said tell as it is, i have from experience for what i,ts worth from living in spain for four years,

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

I may be wrong, but I believe you're decades older than the OP, so your circumstances must be different, and your personal experience of living in Spain won't necessarily apply to a young newcomer wanting to work. My age and the fact of living in France aren't applicable either, but I've lived on the Continent long enough to give an overall view of what the OP can expect outside of what he's used to in the UK, and the "warts and all" reflect the nitty-gritty of living and hopefully working in a different country. So many things are different across the Channel and the OP must be aware of them and make an informed decision. As I already said, "fore-warned is fore-armed"...;)

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Just focussing on this only:

I live in New Zealand . Emigrated 15 years ago.
Your children and families may of course be able to emigrate to New Zealand under one of the visa policies. What is uncertain in your post is under what policy you might be able to emigrate to NZ yourselves.
It may be that you have the skills, quals and occupation to effect a move under your own steam but just in case you do not realise, the family parent category has been closed for a fair old while now with nothing on the current horizon that it wil re-open. There are parents of those who have emigrated who have been in limbo for a good couple of years now. If you have a substantial amount of money to invest , it may be different.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

My children will have no problem going, son is a network engineer and my daughter is a Charge Nurse. The wife and I are retired but have a good UK property portfolio so could finance our move and a business out there.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Sounds like you have already investigated the investment visa criteria.
All the best.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

I have, there are several options open to us IF the children get off their asses and move. I'm in the process of reducing the size of our UK property portfolio so financing the move is not an issue.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

I'm a little late to the conversation, but wanted to comment on this. You should know that the weather in the north of Spain is quite different from the rest of country. So if the UK weather is one of the things you are trying to escape, note that the weather in the north is more similar to the UK -- i.e. more cloudy and rainy. We do get our fair share of warm, sunny days in the north. But certainly not like in the south.

Personally, I was grateful for the cooler weather this summer. When the rest of Spain (and Europe) was suffering during those heat waves, we were relatively comfortable here in the north. And yet there were still plenty of days that it was warm enough to go to the beach!

- Eric S.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

All I can say is, if you want to move to Spain while you can still take advantage of freedom of movement, why are you sitting in the UK with two months left to go, asking questions on a forum? Do you want people to tell you don't do it because you will fail? Do you want people to tell you go ahread it's easy? Nobody knows what your chances are because we don't know you, we don't know how resourceful and resilient and determined you are, and those things make a lot of difference.
If you don't find a job you will be heading back to the UK very shortly, a few thousand squid poorer. If you do find a job but you decide Spain isn't for you, you can always head back when you've had enough. But if you don't haul your ass over there very soon and give it your best shot, you may find you've lost your chance.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

hi lee and eurotrash
This advice is in my opinion, is BANG ON,,,:goodpost: nothing ventured, nothing gained in life, how ever you asked for advice and you have received from this forum a broad spectrum of advice. all be it ,a lot from older people but as eurotrash says you have nothing to loose only gain. travel for young people is the best education ever.i wish the best of fortune in your Spanish adventure.:thumbup:

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

:goodpost:never thought about that great advice which we all need.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Only one thing to say.

When you're older and reflecting on life you realise that most of any regrets you may have will be for the things you didn't do, not the things you did.

Re: Young Brit wanting to move to Spain before Brexit
 

Hi notdunroamim, are you a mind reader. there is the truth right there in a nut shell:goodpost: