7 Biggest Challenges of Moving to Spain
Summary
TLDRThis video script discusses the top seven challenges faced by individuals moving to Spain, including choosing a place to live, understanding the cost of living, and dealing with visa applications. It highlights the allure of regions like Andalucía and Valencia, and touches on the complexities of taxes, real estate, employment opportunities, and the importance of learning Spanish. The creators offer an eight-week online course to navigate these challenges and set up an ideal life in Spain, with the first intake already sold out.
Takeaways
- 😀 Moving to Spain involves various challenges including legal, emotional, and family aspects.
- 📚 The 'Move to Spain Masterclass' is an eight-week online course designed to provide tools and knowledge for a successful move to Spain.
- 🎓 The first intake of the course is already sold out, indicating high interest and demand.
- 🏠 The decision of where to live in Spain is critical and can greatly affect one's experience, with popular regions including Andalucía, Valencia, Madrid, Barcelona, and Northern Spain.
- 💶 The cost of living varies across regions in Spain, with the Basque Country and Madrid being more expensive, while Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha being cheaper.
- 🔍 A website called Numbeo is useful for comparing cost of living between different regions and cities in Spain.
- 📑 The visa application process for moving to Spain can be overwhelming due to varying requirements by different consulates.
- 🏡 Buying property in Spain involves understanding additional fees and taxes on top of the purchase price, which can be confusing.
- 🏢 Work options in Spain are limited for non-residents, with common visas including the entrepreneur visa, self-employment visa, and work permit through company sponsorship.
- 💰 Taxes in Spain can be complex, and it's important to understand the implications of becoming a tax resident, especially for retirees and US citizens.
- 🗣 Learning Spanish is crucial for integration and a richer experience in Spain, with regional languages also present in some areas.
Q & A
What is the main purpose of the 'Move to Spain Masterclass' online course?
-The 'Move to Spain Masterclass' is designed to provide tools, knowledge, and a roadmap to make the relocation to Spain successful and help set up an ideal life in the country.
How many responses did the creators of the 'Move to Spain Masterclass' receive as preparation for the course?
-They received 300 responses from people sharing their biggest challenges when it comes to moving to Spain.
What are the four main areas in Spain that people generally gravitate towards when considering a move?
-People generally gravitate towards Andalusia (specifically Málaga), the Costa de la Luz, Valencia, Madrid and Barcelona, and Northern Spain (Green Spain, including Galicia, Asturias, and the Basque Country).
What is the 'non-lucrative visa' and why is it significant for moving to Spain?
-The 'non-lucrative visa' is a common visa for those who do not live in the EU and wish to move to Spain. It requires applicants to show they have sufficient funds to support their life in Spain without the need to work.
Why might the requirements for the non-lucrative visa differ depending on the consulate?
-Different consulates may interpret and apply the law differently, leading to variations in the requirements they set for the non-lucrative visa application.
What is the significance of the website 'numbeo' in relation to moving to Spain?
-The website 'numbeo' is helpful for comparing the cost of living between different cities, including those within Spain, to help potential movers budget and plan accordingly.
What are some of the common challenges people face when navigating the real estate process in Spain?
-Challenges include understanding the fees and taxes on top of the purchase price, which can vary between 10-15%, and dealing with different types of real estate agents and their access to properties.
What are some of the work visas available for those wishing to work in Spain?
-Some common work visas include the entrepreneur visa, self-employment visa, work permit through company sponsorship, and the golden visa which is obtained by purchasing property worth 500,000 euros or more.
How does the tax situation in Spain differ for US citizens compared to other nationalities?
-US citizens are subject to taxes on their worldwide income due to the US being one of the few countries that tax based on citizenship, not just residency. This means they may need to file taxes in both Spain and the US.
Why is learning the Spanish language important for those planning to move to Spain, even if they are moving to areas with English-speaking communities?
-Learning the Spanish language is crucial for integration and having a richer experience in Spain. It also helps in areas where English may not be widely spoken, and understanding local regional accents and languages can be beneficial.
What are some of the regional languages spoken in different parts of Spain, apart from Spanish?
-Apart from Spanish, regional languages include Valenciano, Catalan, Basque, and Gallego, with the prevalence varying from region to region.
Outlines
🏠 Challenges of Moving to Spain and the Move to Spain Masterclass
This paragraph introduces the topic of moving to Spain and the various challenges one might face, including legal, emotional, and family issues. The creators have launched an eight-week online course called the 'Move to Spain Masterclass' to provide tools and knowledge for a successful relocation. The course aims to set up an ideal life in Spain and has already seen its first intake fully booked. The hosts gathered responses from potential movers to identify the seven most significant challenges, which they will discuss in the video. Viewers interested in future courses are encouraged to join a waitlist via a link in the description.
🌍 Deciding Where to Live in Spain: Regional Preferences and Cost of Living
The paragraph delves into the critical decision of choosing a place to live in Spain, highlighting four popular regions: Andalusia, particularly Malaga and the Costa del Sol, the Costa de la Luz, Valencia, Madrid, Barcelona, and Northern Spain or 'Green Spain'. It discusses the importance of location on the overall experience in Spain and provides insights into the cost of living, which varies by region. The paragraph mentions a website called 'Numbero' for cost comparison and introduces a cost of living tool developed by the course creators. It also shares personal insights on living expenses in Madrid, emphasizing the need to understand regional cost differences.
📑 Navigating Visa Applications and the Real Estate Process
This section addresses the complexities of visa applications for non-EU residents, focusing on the non-lucrative visa and its requirements, which can vary by consulate. It points out the challenges of meeting the criteria and the importance of having organized documentation, especially within a 90-day window. The paragraph also covers the real estate process in Spain, including the fees and taxes associated with purchasing property, the role of real estate agents, and the importance of understanding the market and legal aspects before buying a home.
💼 Work Visas, Taxes, and the Importance of Financial Planning
The paragraph discusses various work visas available in Spain, such as the entrepreneur, self-employment, and sponsored work visas, as well as the golden visa for property investment. It touches on the transition from a non-lucrative visa to a work visa after a year and the student visa as alternative paths to working in Spain. The paragraph also emphasizes the complexity of Spanish taxes, the importance of understanding tax liabilities as a resident, and the potential for double taxation, especially for US citizens. It advises viewers to consult with a tax advisor and to be aware of worldwide income taxation if they become tax residents in Spain.
🗣️ Language Barriers and the Benefits of Learning Spanish
This section highlights the importance of learning Spanish for those planning to move to Spain, especially for integration and a richer experience. It dispels the myth that language can be learned once in Spain and stresses the value of starting the learning process early. The paragraph also mentions regional languages like Catalan, Valencian, and Basque, which may be encountered in different parts of Spain, and suggests that learning Spanish is essential for dealing with local life and bureaucracy.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Challenges
💡Online Move to Spain Masterclass
💡Costa del Sol
💡Non-Lucrative Visa
💡Cost of Living
💡Numbero
💡Real Estate Process
💡Work Visas
💡Taxes
💡Language
💡Golden Visa
Highlights
Launching an eight-week online 'Move to Spain Masterclass' to provide tools and knowledge for a successful move to Spain.
The first intake of the course is completely sold out, indicating high demand and interest.
300 responses were received regarding the challenges of moving to Spain, emphasizing the importance of addressing these concerns.
Four popular regions for relocation in Spain are identified: Andalucía, Valencia, Madrid/Barcelona, and Northern Spain (Green Spain).
Costa del Sol in Andalucía and Costa de la Luz are highlighted for their contrasting appeal to potential residents.
Valencia is presented as a more affordable and manageable alternative to Barcelona.
Madrid and Barcelona are popular choices for those seeking a bustling city life.
Northern Spain, known as Green Spain, is becoming an attractive option for retirees due to its cost of living.
The cost of living varies significantly across regions in Spain, with the Basque Country and Madrid being the most expensive.
Numbero.com is recommended for comparing cost of living between different regions and countries.
A custom cost of living tool is developed as part of the masterclass to provide personalized insights.
The Non-Lucrative Visa is a common route for non-EU residents to move to Spain, with varying requirements by consulate.
The importance of being organized and having checklists when dealing with visa applications is emphasized.
The real estate process in Spain can be complex, with various fees and taxes on top of the purchase price.
Different types of real estate agents in Spain are discussed, including their access to the property market and fees.
Work visas and permits in Spain are explored, including Entrepreneur, Self-Employment, and company-sponsored visas.
The Golden Visa program is mentioned as an alternative for obtaining a work visa through property investment.
Transitioning from a Non-Lucrative Visa to a work visa after one year in Spain is discussed as a viable option.
The importance of understanding Spanish taxes, especially for retirees and tax residents, is highlighted.
The potential complexity of taxes for US citizens living in Spain due to double taxation agreements is noted.
Language learning is identified as crucial for integration and a richer experience in Spain, with regional languages adding an extra layer of complexity.
A blog post on how to learn Spanish effectively is mentioned, with a link provided for further guidance.
Transcripts
hey spain lovers so moving to spain is
full of a lot of challenges there are
legal challenges emotional challenges
family challenges and today we're going
to cover
seven of the biggest challenges that
people face or expect to face when they
move to spain
so as you may know yoli and i have
recently launched our eight week
online move to spain masterclass this is
a master class and
an online course that's going to give
you the the tools the knowledge the road
map
to really make your move to spain
successful and set up your ideal life
here
and by the time this video is released
we're actually already running the first
intake of the course which is completely
sold out
and as preparation for this wonderful
master class
we ask you guys what the biggest
challenges
are for you know when it comes to moving
to spain
and we got so many responses 300 of them
yeah
and while 300 is too many so we're not
gonna be covering all of them but we're
going to cover
seven of the biggies the ones that
consistently
showed up in there and we're gonna make
sure that all of that
is pretty clear and before we dive in if
you want to take this course in the
future
click the link in the description below
so you can get on the the wait list of
people for future intakes all right
should we dive into the seven problems
concerns challenges of moving to spain
let's do it
right let's go so number one
where are you gonna live in spain this
is obviously a big challenge you have to
figure out and overcome because where
you live will really
set up how much you enjoy your
experience here it really is critical
so what we've found is people generally
gravitate to four different areas of
spain
i think the most obvious one is under
lucia you know when people think of life
in spain they think of
a lot of the imagery of andalusia they
think of the weather and so we're seeing
a lot of people who want to move to
malaga
that province within the andalusia
comunidad i can't blame you guys
yeah i mean it is a beautiful place and
malik is great because the costa del sol
for example has great infrastructure
it's a beautiful part of spain you've
got the mediterranean right there
but what we are also seeing is more
people starting to say well maybe i want
to move to the costa de la luz which is
over to the west and is a little more a
little less built up
you'll be more around more spaniards
rather than a population of people that
are spaniards and people who have moved
to spain as well
so i think a little bit more
undiscovered in the sense it's around
the khadith area
we're seeing that as well and i would
also say the second area is is valencia
valencia is really huge and i think what
we're seeing is a lot of people
are starting to think that maybe instead
of barcelona they would move to valencia
it might be a more livable place you
know there's concerns in barcelona
with just the cost of living being
expensive valencia is cheaper
and the other thing that you're going to
find is barcelona is if you're in the
center obviously it's a really touristy
city so valencia is maybe a little
cheaper more manageable
warmer in the winter because it's
further south so we're seeing that as
well in valencia i mean
in preparing this i was looking at
valencia's like i want to move to
valencia oh really
make paella militia sorry
see you see around there i guess
don't worry madrid is also on the list
it is madrid and barcelona
madrid and barcelona are also on the
list and people tend to go and uh
kind of group those together because
they want to be in a big bustling city
so it's sort of deciding between those
two we dive in the course and really
look at the differences between those
two and i think the last one which is
interesting there was more people than i
expected who want to move to northern
spain what we call green spain
galicia asturias paisbasco the basque
country
quite a few what number of people talk
about san sebastian they've been they've
had great food it's a beautiful town
expensive up there uh in san sebastian
yeah but great
wallet yeah totally so for many people
this is about how long they can stretch
their retirement money right so it's
very very important to know
to have a really good idea about the
cost of living in spain
so it's gonna depend on your lifestyle
but also in the region where you're
gonna live
so most expensive regions are for
example the basque country
madrid catalonia is pretty expensive as
well
cheapest regions are extra madura and
castillo more or less
and then there is other areas that are
also cheaper not the cheapest but
cheaper say malaga valencia
asturias galicia those are more
affordables
now there is this website called numbero
and it's pretty
helpful when it comes to figuring out
what your cost of living is going to be
so it allows you to go in there and do a
comparison
between the place where you live in the
united states or the united kingdom or
wherever you are
and the place that you are looking at or
considering and even also comparing
cities within spain see what is cheaper
and what's more expensive
i did find it a little bit wonky so we
have developed our own
cost of living tool which is pretty
which is the course
it's pretty cool yeah so we decided for
the master class and it has a bunch of
fireballs of course
so for us for my treat a couple living
in madrid with our
lifestyle eye catch which is neither
very rich neither very poor
i'm between 2500 with a mortgage with a
1 000 euro mortgage paying there every
month
that's not bad two and a half thousand
euros to live in with a mortgage in
madrid and you can think that's one of
the most expensive
exactly always bear in mind that android
is one of the most expensive places to
live in
in spain so number three another bunch
of comments we got from people
is that they're overwhelmed by the
paperwork that they're going to need to
apply for their visa now if you don't
live in the eu already you will need to
apply for a visa to move to spain
one of the most common ones that we see
from people say the united states or
australia new zealand uk
is the non-lucrative visa which is a
visa that you have to show that you have
a certain amount of funds available to
support your life in spain
and you can't work while you're in spain
but here's the trap or the tricky area
the law
that creates this non-lucrative visa is
you know it's one law it says one thing
but when you want to get it you have to
apply to the consulate where you live
you know there's a few in canada there's
a few in australia there's probably one
or two in new zealand but there's many
united states for example and some in
the uk
and when you apply to that those
consulates they apply the law in
different ways so if you're applying to
the chicago consulate
sometimes very different you know the
the chicago concert might have one type
of
requirements the los angeles one
slightly different i mean all around the
same kind of idea
but quite important differences so one
of the key things with the non-lucrative
visa is that you have to show that you
have all these funds
you know either savings or income
although that's a bit fuzzy that you can
support your life here
and here's the thing the law says how
much you need per person and per
additional
people in your family however for
example the washington dc concierge
actually requires less
than the law and they actually don't
even write that on properly on the
requirements they figure you don't need
to know anyway they change the
requirements and also they don't explain
the requirements you really have to dig
in there and that's what we do in the
course is we really go and look at the
different variables here
and so that's one of the challenges the
other one is how you make up that income
you know ideally it's savings or it can
be retirement money
there are some consulates that will
allow passive income remember you're not
allowed to work on that visa but they'll
allow you know maybe you have a blog or
something like that but others will not
allow that at all
so positively earned exactly
yeah passively earned money it is
feasible it's a bit of a pipe dream but
less work than than active income and
just getting on top of all the paperwork
is really hard when you
submit your application to the consulate
there's certain key documents that can
be no
older than 90 days old from the date of
application so you really have to hustle
in that three-month period to get all
this you know criminal background check
together so we go through all this in
the course but i
understand that's really overwhelming
for people and the key is to be
organized to know what you need and be
really
organized checklists checklists
right so the next challenge is the real
estate process
and of course it can be very very
daunting to buy a house
in a country that is not yours and first
of all you need to know that you guys
as future residents of spain you can buy
a home you can even buy a home not being
a resident
in spain one of the things that people
find very confusing
is the whole fees so taxes
and fees that you're going to be paying
on top of the
purchase price so this is usually
between 10 and 15
of the purchase price but it depends on
whether
you got a real estate agent involved or
whether you got a lawyer involved so all
of these
variables are always there also the
region changes and whether it's new or
or second hand so depending on the
region you're going to be paying more or
less
taxes and yeah depending on whether it's
new
or not it's going to have a different
kind of tax and a different percentage
so all of those things
need to be taken into account as well
another question that we got a lot is
real estate agents what's the deal in
spain now you have
the barrio real estate agents the ones
that you find around
the corner there see one there and
i mean those ones sometimes well most of
the time they come
attached to the really cool house that
you sell only the alistar and that you
want to buy
and they man they are attached to it and
there's no way to get rid of them
so i'd say that the big problem with
this kind of agents is that they don't
really have
a huge percentage of properties of the
market they just have a
small corner so you're like well i'm
interested in like a first floor with a
ratha with an outside area they're gonna
show you maybe two
so there's another kind of agent that is
the agent that
is specialized in people that are moving
to spain
so of course they will speak english and
a lot of the time they will act as a
buyer's agent so they will have access
to the whole market and they will have
a really wide range of properties to
show you
according to the briefing that you have
given them which is
very very handy now the real estate
agent fees are all over the place it
varies regionally
whether it's the seller that pays the
fee or whether it's the seller
and the buyer that pay the the fee
so a little bit uh tricky there but uh
you'll you'll get there so a lot of
people also wrote to us and said that
they were a little overwhelmed by the
idea of how they could work in spain now
in the course we don't cover precisely
how to get a job
because that's a whole other process but
we do cover the work visas that are
available and how you might be able to
achieve them and some of the most common
ones there's the entrepreneurs visa
the self-employment visa and there's
also getting a work permit by virtue of
being sponsored by a company
but those are actually quite challenging
ones to do for the entrepreneur visa for
example
you actually really have to be doing a
startup or something quite similar they
invented the wheel guys
pretty much and only if it's an app and
then the
self-employment visa if you're applying
for that you have to show a business
plan
and then for the getting a work visa to
be sponsored by a company that job or
the role you're going to do has to be on
a skills
shortage list so those are quite limited
but there are other routes
another route for example is to get the
golden visa this is the one where you
buy property worth 500 000 euros or more
in spain that gives you a work visa
but i realize that for a lot for most
people that is you know out of your
reach
but there is another way is if you come
on a non-lucrative visa remember that's
the really common one
and you can't work on that visa but
after a year on that visa you can
transition
to a self-employment visa or to a work
visa working for a company
and those transitions are easier than if
you had applied for those
self-employment or work visas from your
home country in the first place
there's also the student visa although
that is a longer path because you have
to be on that student visa you can work
at the same time although only about 20
hours a week and you have to be on it
for three years before you can
transition to
kind of a full work visa and study you
have to study that's true
if you want to go you don't want to go
back to school that's a that's a bad
idea yeah
i hope that they loosen these up in the
future and allow people to work remote
in spain and pay taxes and
and i think there's a lot of people who
want to do that because they're location
independent particularly after covert
but right now it's still a little narrow
in that area
okay and connected to working and the
whole idea of money are taxes now
i just a little pet peeve here i get
very annoyed when people complain about
taxes i love paying taxes because it's
taxes that
great create the great health care that
you know is looking after our baby
it pays for the road out there so i'm
going to push back against the whole
anti-tax thing i love paying taxes
there you go you know what you said
anyway taxes but what i don't like about
taxes they're very complicated to figure
out
and so when it comes to the world of
taxes here in spain you have to really
do your homework before you move here
and for a lot of people who are retired
and moving here taxes are important
because you've got to figure out
how long is that pool of money that
retirement money going to last or how
far is it going to go
really important now people freak out a
lot when they see
higher income tax rates in spain but
some of the tax
experts i've spoken to have said and
although this will vary
had said for some of their cases some of
their clients they find that the
total tax they end up paying is actually
quite similar to their home country
it's just the mix and the concepts are a
little bit different
so we cover those in the course we go
over the different concepts and and and
how they kind of work
but one of the key things is if you're
in spain for 183 days in a calendar year
you're going to become a tax resident
and what that means is it doesn't assume
you have to pay taxes in spain and back
home
but you're gonna have to file
potentially in both places
particularly if you're from the usa
because the usa along with eritrea are
the only two countries in the world
that if you're a citizen of that country
you're paying taxes
lifelong taxpayer i don't pay tax in new
zealand i'm no longer a tax resident in
new zealand that stopped a long time ago
but for the us
and the era trans that really they hold
on to you
as i say there are double taxation
agreements so you shouldn't be double
taxing but you will have to pay more
you'll be double filing
double filing exactly here's the thing
sometimes i think people think that oh
look i'm just going to move to spain and
if i earn some money in canada or in the
united states i'll pay that money
there in those taxes there and i'll pay
any money i earn in spain in spain no no
no
if you're a tax rise in spain you pay
tax on your worldwide income
so you really need to figure it out so
you need to understand the broad
concepts
but then you've got to talk to a tax
advisor if you're concerned about this
because
if you just leave it then you might be
you know happy as larry
living in spain and three years later
you get an email you're gonna
knock knocks tax company and said hey
our country's shared data and they saw
that
you haven't been paying tax so yakasha
so you've got to be a little bit careful
about that about the tax thing so
i love tax i go with access new t-shirt
i love text
next one is concerns about language now
you have done
all your paperwork your visa you have
your dream home
everything is perfect now in your taxes
paying your taxes
now you need to live in spain so
wow do i need to learn the language how
am i going to
learn the language will will i get by
without knowing
a lot of spanish at first now of course
there are areas with the
large english-speaking communities but
if you really want to
integrate and that's what most people
want you need to learn the language and
don't leave it until the last minute i
would just
start as soon as you make the decision
of living in spain
start learning it because it will really
pay off you need to just kind of
start building your base and then once
you're here of course
you will be able to absorb it much
faster right
yeah i think some people think that one
of the biggest challenges is going to be
like the visa
and figuring out the text and they kind
of leave the language thing of like of
course when i'm in spain i'll learn
spanish yeah but yeah i mean that's
you know the better you can have your
spanish by the time you get here yeah
you're just gonna have
a kind of a richer experience yeah you
gotta get in there
yeah a lot of people are very interested
in moving to the really authentic place
where there is no english spoken
and while that can be really fulfilling
and awesome
it can also be very very challenging so
if you're like aiming for a kind of
place like that
really work in your spanish you got to
work on that spanish and your thick
local regional accents
so james wrote a fantastic blog post
about how to learn spanish i will link
to it below
make sure now just in case this wasn't
hard enough
there are several regions in spain that
have i called visual language so
apart from spanish you are going to have
valenciano or catalan or basque or
gallero for example so how present are
these languages it's going to vary from
region to region i would say that you're
going to see
way more catalan in catalonia obviously
but way more catalan
then you will see gallego for example in
galicia that is a little bit kind of a
lesser known so we've only scratched the
surface in this video we cover so much
more in the master class and if you're
interested in getting on the list for a
future intake click the link in the
description down below
can't wait to be your instructor about
how to move to spain and also
click the playlist that's appearing up
here so you can explore more videos and
watch more videos with us
about kind of life in spain moving to
spain the whole kit and caboodle
all right hasta luego everyone ciao
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