We are a family of five hoping to move to Sax with three dogs and find work - Page 3

Spain is no longer the cheap living option it once was

So true. We've been visiting for years, but visiting to do research with the aim to relocate over for the last three. When there to research as opposed to holiday you take more notice of the price of living, and it's gone thru the roof in those three years. And it's not just prices on the coast, although they seem to have gone up the most. But even inland; a bottle of wine in a restaurant now rivals that in UK/Ireland.

I'd say in those three years our estimate of the income needed for the lifestyle we want has jumped 30%.

I completely agree, trouble is we put things off and off and eventually run out of time...lol 

Definitely has. We stayed near Malaga over Christmas in a residential area, Just like we lived there. I could quite cheerfully have stayed, although Im happy to budget and do things on a shoe string anyway when we go away. We never do the hotel holiday thing, as I choose to do it as we live there and it is much more expensive over the last couple of years .

When I made my reference to the cost of living in Spain I wasn't referring to alcohol, tobacco or dining. Like you Ray I live in a Spanish village back from the coast (Tercio €1.40, glass of wine €1.50, great pizza €8, although this isn't a competition!)

What I was referring to was the general cost of living as a percentage now of what it once was compared to the UK cost.

Steve

In my small town its £3 for a normal coffee, and we have nothing here at all. Apart from beautiful countryside.

Sorry Ray for misinterpreting your comments. I agree. When I go back to the UK and see supermarket wine prices it still shocks me. I'm currently buying a very decent rosè in Mas y Mas for €2.10

Last time the bars in the village here edged their prices up by 0.20 cents we joked that we were going to organise a march on the Town Hall, Wolfie style "we're not going to take it!"

Just to add to the conversation: we live further north than any of you, so experience a little different. Would agree that cost of living (purchase of essential bottles of pink cava excluded!!!!) is almost comparable with UK, at least we have noticed very little difference in general household bills. Our house is all electric - we live miles out in the campo - heat pump for hot water and all electric for cooking - and heating, underfloor, heat exchanger. However not as bad as it could be but not cheap.

If your husband is a fully qualified tree surgeon, then there are several professional companies, certainly in this area, all qualified from the agricultural colleges here, who may be interested in sub-contracting to him. But a command of Spanish would, I imagine, be necessary. He is unlikely I am afraid, in the current climate, to find a fully employed contract as employing staff is extremely expensive and onerous here. He could set up officially on a self-employed basis - autonomo - which will immediately bring him into the remit of the Spanish social security system with the requirement to make contributions monthly, regardless of income, although there is a reduction for the first year. He will require a gestor to do his tax and IVA (VAT) returns, which I understand have to be completed every 3 months. The plus side is that this will cover him and immediate family for medical services (dentistry and optical all private here), which may mean that the necessity to prove comprehensive private medical insurance for the entire family, payable annually in advance, may be unnecessary.

I really would urge you to think long, hard and seriously about moving with three children to an area where you have no immediate prospect of work, and do not speak the language. It may seem a enter prospect than staying in UK wth all the concomitant problems,  but life here is really little different to anywhere else if one needs to earn a living; there are many, many Spanish unemployed people of all persuasions. Most of the foreign population resident here are more or less of retirement age and therefore do not need to work. Our pensions now may be struggling, but most people can just about get by. Or, as I know, there are many families who settled here many years ago and have thriving businesses now, except for Covid, it they have worked very hard for many years to achieve this. Please do think about all of this, it would be quite disastrous if you found yourselves in a year or so time with no work and still having to pay bills etc, be advised, there are few if any benefits here, certainly not easily for expats!

He could set up officially on a self-employed basis - autonomo - which will immediately bring him into the remit of the Spanish social security system with the requirement to make contributions monthly, regardless of income, although there is a reduction for the first year.

To expand on that slightly. and perhaps inaccurately as I've not looked too hard into it: Self-employed in Spain must charge VAT regardless of turnover, opposed to the UK and I believe the rest of the EU where you have to hit a certain turnover before charging VAT. 

The monthly payments into the Spanish system is about €285 a month I believe, which as said gets you healthcare, and also (again potentially wrong as not looked too hard at this) but I believe it also qualifies you for a Spanish pension after 15 years paying in. 

Being self-employed in Spain is very expensive, prohibitively so for many. I will have to go that route once I'm there permanently, as although most of my income will still be generated in the UK and other parts of the EU, my understanding is if I live there I must register as self-employed, and so pay the price. I've not looked into this too much, as no matter what the requirements I'm just going to have to suck it up as I'm moving to Spain permanently no matter what, so some of that might be incorrect, but if he plans to do the self-employed thing you need to be aware of the costs. And as said, these costs stand no matter you turnover €1 or €100,000 a month.

This is one of the reasons why the "unemployment rate" among Spaniards is so high...not the main reason, but one of them.

I don't doubt it. There little incentive in Spain to start up your own business, but plenty of hurdles put in front of you. I\d imagine the net result would be more money in the government coffers if they modernised the self-employed tax system as more would go official and so pay something. As it is there are plenty of "illegal" businesses paying nothing.

It used to be much the same in Ireland. I set up a business there in 1998, at the time the VAT rate was very high compared to other territories I had business in. At my meeting with the Irish VAT man to register the business, I asked why it was so high. He response, more or less verbatim, floored me: It's cheaper for us to screw those willing to pay then chase those not willing.

Back in those days, I knew plenty of people who routinely ran up huge VAT debts then agreed a settlement at pence in the punt. The VAT office took the deals as it was easy. 

What with the "tax breaks" Ireland still gives to big business it's fair to say Ireland has always had an interesting approach to corporate taxation.