Question by Wild side: I want to move to spain?
For personal reasons, I’d like to move to Spain in the distant future. Living in Texas bores me so I want to get out and see the world. Currently I am 17, and have looked into living abroad permanently for the past couple of months. Spain first caught my eye for a plethora of reasons; its location in Europe which allows for traveling across the continent and to North Africa, my intermediate level of knowledge about the Spanish language, and Spain’s carefree lifestyle. Since I know some Spanish, I won’t be going in blindfolded because I’d be able to communicate efficiently with the local population. Being my last year of high school I have the luxury to take it easy and prepare for a cross-continental move. I need to establish funds to move and start a new life, further develop a skill set that will enable me to get a job, and improve my Spanish. I need assistance regarding quite a few issues:
How are American expatriates treated in Spain?
As a native English speaker is there a demand for us?
How long does residency, or citizenship take for an American? I assume it is easier if you are an EU citizen.
Is there a strong demand for jobs related to Internet Marketing, front end web development, or technology; and how long would it take my to get a job in this field? Currently I know HTML5, css3, some blackhat and whitehat SEO, and am in the process of learning Javascript, jquery, and php.
How much is the cost of living in Spain to live comfortably as a single male?
What is the process of acquiring citizenship? Can you explain it to me in detail?
Should I go to University in the states and put off moving for another 4 years? Is a bachelor degree from a top U.S. public school valuable in Spain?
Culturally, what are some things I must adapt to?
How is the party scene, and how is the issue of Marijuana treated?
Thank you.
Best answer:
Answer by Castilla y Leon
Marijuana is not legal! So, if you are a smoker PLEASE do NOT come. You can’t just move to Europe just because you like it. You have be offered a job first, But first they must see if anyone in spain wants it, if not they check ALL of Europe. You have to be highly Educated to get the position. a simple bachelors degree is not going to cut it.
As a native English speaker from America YOU will NOT be able to teach at their school even if you had a degree in English as a second language. It must be someone from Britain to teach English there. An American is not allowed to teach English in Europe.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
The party scene is amazing in Spain (i.e. Barcelona, Ibiza, etc..) Might be a bit expensive though and if you want to find some bananas over there shouldn’t be too hard. The bartender in our hotel hooked us up with a connect there.
Don’t listen to the Debbie Downer who answered before me, he sounds nothing like the typical person I met in Spain.
Also would be good to plan ahead and look at Marketing companies over there that do business in America. Contact them to see if you can start off with an internship. Good luck!
You need a visa that allows you to live and work in the host country. A good starting point for this is the consulate website for countries you’re interested in; for example, Spain: http://www.maec.es/subwebs/Consulados/Lo… . This is the consulate in LA. In particular, you would need a visa that allows you to live and work in Spain – there’s a link to the information on this page: http://www.maec.es/subwebs/Consulados/Lo… . Note in particular that you will need to have your documentation translated into Spanish and you need a Medical Certificate & Certification of “absence of police records” which must come from the FBI.
You need to be aware that the unemployment rate in Spain is very high – 20% overall and 50% for people in the 16 to 24 age group. Unemployment is not quite so high here in Italy, but still higher than in the US.
EEA citizens have the right to live and work within the area. Others including US citizens need a visa to live and work here legally. Companies are required to advertise jobs and demonstrate that there are no viable candidates from the EEA before they can apply for a work permit for a foreigner. That pretty much limits job opportunities to things for which you have special education, experience, or skills even in a good economic environment. You might consider an education visa though. You will also need to speak the local language in order to live anywhere here in Europe.
The rules in much of the EU have been harmonized and will be similar. The site for visas here in Italy, where I live, is: http://www.esteri.it/visti/index_eng.asp . The site has links to the application, the additional information you need to supply in order to get the visa and where to apply. As noted above, you can usually find similar information for other countries here on their consulate websites.
A work permit is separate from a visa – you cannot apply for that yourself. The company has to apply and they have to be able to demonstrate that there is not a viable EU candidate for the job.
When I applied for a visa several years ago, the process took about 8 months even though it was just of transfer of the job I was already doing from the US to Italy. Actually getting the visa after the paperwork was in place was pretty quick though (about a week).
It’s useful to check the expat sites for information about living and working here or other places you might be interested in. Sites specific to just about any country you might be interested in that you can find by searching for “ex pat” or “expat” and the name of the country. Generally, these will have a lot of good information on daily life and negotiating the bureaucracy when you arrive and provide you with useful information you should know before you make the transition. You will want to check the tax situation carefully. As a US expat in Italy, I have to file tax returns in both countries every year.