[deedee76]

Hi my names Dee,
I am looking for some advice/help.
Myself, my husband and 3 children are looking moving to Spain in about 12 months time .
We are going to be living in my mother in laws villa until we find the right property to buy in the area ( Torrevieja ).
So a place to live and his employment are already sorted.
The questions i have are about my children , well mainly my oldest child hes 17 be 18 when we move he is disabled , and has regular medication he also has an A.C.E which is a catheter directly into his bowel , i would need medication and catheters and a few other medical bits for him in Spain ,obviously i know we would have to register with a doctor but i am worried they wont know about this type of surgery as my local hospital has not got a clue and we have to travel quite a distance at the moment to a specialist .could i sort this before we move?
my other children are 12 (we have looked into a school for him ) my other son is 16 what age can you start work in Spain (I KNOW FINDING A JOB FOR HIM WILL NOT BE EASY )

secondly any moving tips to make life easier would be very welcome x
thanks in advance dee x

 

[Pesky Wesky]

Hi my names Dee,
I am looking for some advice/help.
Myself, my husband and 3 children are looking moving to Spain in about 12 months time .
We are going to be living in my mother in laws villa until we find the right property to buy in the area ( Torrevieja ).
So a place to live and his employment are already sorted.
The questions i have are about my children , well mainly my oldest child hes 17 be 18 when we move he is disabled , and has regular medication he also has an A.C.E which is a catheter directly into his bowel , i would need medication and catheters and a few other medical bits for him in Spain ,obviously i know we would have to register with a doctor but i am worried they wont know about this type of surgery as my local hospital has not got a clue and we have to travel quite a distance at the moment to a specialist .could i sort this before we move?
my other children are 12 (we have looked into a school for him ) my other son is 16 what age can you start work in Spain (I KNOW FINDING A JOB FOR HIM WILL NOT BE EASY )

secondly any moving tips to make life easier would be very welcome x
thanks in advance dee x

The minimum age for work is 16, but you need the permission of your parents. This will mean "official" permission; paperwork will need to be done.
Having said that I don't know any 16 year old who works. My daughter's boyfriend left school at 16. He's now 21 and has never worked. He's decided to go back to studying.
I'll let someone else fill you in on youth unemployment facts and figures!

You say that your husband's employment is already sorted. What will he be doing? Will your son be working in the same business?

Health care in the past has, in general, been very good in Spain, and my own experience has been very positive, but there are lots of cuts and changes going on... For your own peace of mind I would check out the situation in Torrevieja before you go. How, I don't know because you can't go straight to a hospital. Maybe talk to your in laws doctor first?


What kind of school will you be sending your 12 year old to?

I'm wondering what your reasons are for coming to Spain...

 

[brocher]

First you're going to have to see if any of you will qualify for state healthcare. Will your husband be employed in Spain or will he be working from the UK?

At the moment, healthcare in Spain is contribution based so either your or your husband will have to work/pay taxes and NI in Spain, or you will all have to get private healthcare. There is a scheme at the moment where you may qualify for healthcare based on your UK NI contributions for a very limited time but this is about to be abolished.

Then you are going to have to find out 100% sure whether your 18yr olds disabilities will allow him to be classed as a dependant of your family. Normally an 18yr old would be classified as independant, which would mean having to work and contribute in his own right for healthcare. Are you aware that to reside in Spain, you will all have to satisfy the authorities that you have sufficient income and proof of healthcare to prevent you being a burden on the Spanish system. The requirements for this vary from area to area but generally, it means you have to prove you have around 600 euros/ month of income per person including children, or a contract of employment or proof that you are paying self employed NI contributions. Thats's 3000e per month (into a Spanish bank account) if the 18yr old qualifies as a dependant. If he is deemed independant how will he prove income? In addition to monthly income, some areas also seem to ask for savings of around 6000e per person.

That all needs checking out before you get into the specifics of different hospitals.

What kind of school are you thinking of for the 12yr old. It would be pretty well impossible at that age in state school unless you speak fluent Spanish. Private school would be needed.

 

[extranjero]

How much research have you done about the medical facilities available for your son? this is very specialised and the answer is not likely to be found in this forum
Healthcare for you all is your prime consideration
Tax implications is another huge matter
Do you know the latest requirements for residencia?
Would you be able to survive financially, if things went wrong eg if your husband were to become unemployed?
Would you be able to receive allowances from UK for your children, and disability benefits for your son?
Won't moving your 12 year old here be detrimental to his schooling? Can you afford private education?
It seems you have an awful lot to consider.
It's a huge consideration for anyone without problems. Given your circumstances, it may be best to stay in the UK, where you know you will have support.

 

[deedee76]

hi thanks for your replys ,
firstly my 16 year old works now in the uk and his saving hiself for the move so he can surport hiself why he is looking for a job , were would we get the official paperwork for him?
secondly my husband will be doing care work 3 weeks in the uk 3 weeks back in spain so has i said his job is sorted .
we have been saving for 10 years for the move this is not something we have taken lightly and i ask the questions as im trying to tie up loose ends and make the move as easily as possible.
i think speaking to my mother in laws gp is a great idea and i will do that when we come back in feb thank you .
you ask why we are moving and the main reason is my disabled son and his health , as he suffers from colds/flu/phnemonia and after spending january in spain he was not ill once the weather/food/fresh air really makes a big difference to him and of course us .
the other reasons for moving are ,well the weather,the fact my husband works 14 hours a day 6 days a week and we have no surport at all in the uk .
we just want a laid back easy life and after working since we were 16, if my husband does loose his job we do have finance to keep us going until either him or i get another job .

 

[deedee76]

i should of also said my husbands work he would be paying tax and contributions into the spanish system so that entitles him to state healthcare ,would this also cover myself and children ? my disbaled son would be covered by his e106 form as i have been told please correct me if i am wrong xx

 

[xabiaxica]

hi thanks for your replys ,
firstly my 16 year old works now in the uk and his saving hiself for the move so he can surport hiself why he is looking for a job , were would we get the official paperwork for him?
secondly my husband will be doing care work 3 weeks in the uk 3 weeks back in spain so has i said his job is sorted .
we have been saving for 10 years for the move this is not something we have taken lightly and i ask the questions as im trying to tie up loose ends and make the move as easily as possible.
i think speaking to my mother in laws gp is a great idea and i will do that when we come back in feb thank you .
you ask why we are moving and the main reason is my disabled son and his health , as he suffers from colds/flu/phnemonia and after spending january in spain he was not ill once the weather/food/fresh air really makes a big difference to him and of course us .
the other reasons for moving are ,well the weather,the fact my husband works 14 hours a day 6 days a week and we have no surport at all in the uk .
we just want a laid back easy life and after working since we were 16, if my husband does loose his job we do have finance to keep us going until either him or i get another job .

I don't understand what you mean about support. I can't think what support you might get here in Spain... There really isn't much in the way of support, practical or otherwise. What's more, life really isn't more laid back - when you have kids - and I have 2 teenagers - it's not really any different - in fact unless you speak really good Spanish it's harder!

 

[xabiaxica]

i should of also said my husbands work he would be paying tax and contributions into the spanish system so that entitles him to state healthcare ,would this also cover myself and children ? my disbaled son would be covered by his e106 form as i have been told please correct me if i am wrong xx

So your husband will be working for a Spanish company? If that's the case then you and the younger children would be covered for healthcare and possibly the 18 year old too, since he's disabled.

 

[snikpoh]

If, as you say, your husband works in UK for 3 weeks and then comes back to Spain for 3 weeks, I presume that he has a UK employer. As such I can't see how he, and therefore the family, can be covered by Spanish health care.

However, I seem to recall somewhere that you may be able to use the S1 for reciprocal treatment as he will be paying UK National Insurance.

My suggestion would be to contact DWP and ask about the S1 with a view to getting FULL healthcare in Spain.

Another point to note is that, in all probability, your son will not be able to find work in Spain. For the under 25's, the unemployment rate is over 50% and that's for Spanish!


Forgive me for saying, but from your written English, are you from UK? I just ask because this may have a bearing on your move to Spain - in all probability it won't.

 

[deedee76]

I don't understand what you mean about support. I can't think what support you might get here in Spain... There really isn't much in the way of support, practical or otherwise. What's more, life really isn't more laid back - when you have kids - and I have 2 teenagers - it's not really any different - in fact unless you speak really good Spanish it's harder!

by support i mean finacially , we will be finacially surpporting ourselfs with our savings even after paying outright for a property ,and on top of that we will have my husbands income plus other income coming in monthly.
for us it will be more laid back and easier as at the moment as i said my husbands work will be considerably different,which means getting to spend more time together as a family which we cant do now , the food is cheaper and fresher in Spain plus the weather allowing us to get out more for walks the beach ect .

 

[xabiaxica]

by support i mean finacially , we will be finacially surpporting ourselfs with our savings even after paying outright for a property ,and on top of that we will have my husbands income plus other income coming in monthly.
for us it will be more laid back and easier as at the moment as i said my husbands work will be considerably different,which means getting to spend more time together as a family which we cant do now , the food is cheaper and fresher in Spain plus the weather allowing us to get out more for walks the beach ect .

You said you had no support in the UK. How will moving to Spain change that? If your husband is changing jobs you'd have the same in the UK as far as time together, surely?
I do agree that the weather and fresh air would make a difference

 

[deedee76]

orgive me for saying, but from your written English, are you from UK? I just ask because this may have a bearing on your move to Spain - in all probability it won't.

i do not understand what you mean by this ? yes i am from UK, and no my education was not brilliant as i had a terrible upbringing hense trying to give my children a better life in Spain.
what bearing will this have on my move to Spain?

 

[deedee76]

If, as you say, your husband works in UK for 3 weeks and then comes back to Spain for 3 weeks, I presume that he has a UK employer. As such I can't see how he, and therefore the family, can be covered by Spanish health care.

However, I seem to recall somewhere that you may be able to use the S1 for reciprocal treatment as he will be paying UK National Insurance.

My suggestion would be to contact DWP and ask about the S1 with a view to getting FULL healthcare in Spain.

Another point to note is that, in all probability, your son will not be able to find work in Spain. For the under 25's, the unemployment rate is over 50% and that's for Spanish!


Forgive me for saying, but from your written English, are you from UK? I just ask because this may have a bearing on your move to Spain - in all probability it won't.

You said you had no support in the UK. How will moving to Spain change that? If your husband is changing jobs you'd have the same in the UK as far as time together, surely?
I do agree that the weather and fresh air would make a difference[/QUOTE
we do not have physical support in the uk by this i mean from family or anyone else and we wont have if we move to spain either .
my husband is woirking 6 days a week at the moment if we move to spain we wont see him for three weeks but then get to spend three weeks together so it would make a massive difference .
i know it will not be easy and im not pretending it will but to us it will be worth it.

 

[brocher]

Deedee - everyone is trying to help but to try to give correct advice we need to know a bit about your circumstances.

Are you saying your husband has secured contracted, steady employment in Spain? Will he be earning enough to support you all, as tax rates are generally higher in Spain than in the UK? If so, that takes care of four of you as far as healthcare is concerned and gaining residencia are concerned.

You may still have a problem with your eldest. You need to talk to the DWP about his exact circumstances and be aware that the UK are currently making big changes to the benefits system.Does he get some disability benefits now, are you absolutely sure he will still be eligible for them if you move to Spain? Does using the E106 depend on him continuing to qualify for benefits? Even if it does, you may still have to pay far more for prescriptions than you do now in the UK.

Can you live without your sons disability benefits if necessary?

Can you afford to "pay" him 600e per month to satisfy residencia if he can not be deemed a depandant in Spain?

Finally, you said you had a hard upbringing. Are you prepared to sacrifice your younger kids education and chances in life by moving the to Spain now, or can you afford to pay for private schooling?

 

[deedee76]

hi thank you for your reply , i do understand the crisis spain is facing and we are not moving to be a burden on the spanish system we are moving for a better life for us as a family and of course the weather is a big bonus but why we are moving was not a question i asked in my first post ,after spending 10 years back and forth to torrevieja and this is were my husbands mum lives we have been saving to move over . my son who is disabled is on dla , and yes we could afford to loose this even though i have been told he can still get care component of dla if we move to spain.
i really dont see what effect my spelling has on moving to spain and i found the question to be rude and quite upsetting.
my husband has a job in the uk now , and my mistake i said he would be paying into the spanish via taxes and contributions but he will not he will be self employed . so we would need to take out private medical insurance .
he would be earning enough to finacially support us all ,and if the job were to end or illness we have income monthly from the uk which are not benefits.
my younger son is very clever even though he is dyslexic and after speaking to a specialist we think he would benefit from the move , he speaks really good spanish and in another 12 months will be even better .
the rest of us know basic spanish but have upped our lessons for the next 12 months to learn enough to get by .
i thought we had gone about the move the right way ,looking for an area to settle ,sorting a job for my husband,saving to pay for a property inc taxes and legal fees ect ,looking into schools for my son ,enquiring about removal prices and learning spanish . i do appologize for spelling im not very good on a computer and with spelling .

 

[brocher]

You are correct your spelling is of no importance. The person who asked this was only checking that you are an EU citizen, or you may have had to deal with additional requirements to live in Spain.

You have obviously done a lot of work to prepare for the move but it is essential that you make sure you are fully aware of, and can satisfy, all the legalities or you will leave yourself open to disister with no way to access vital healthcare for your son, or schooling for the youngest.

No one is accusing you of trying to be a burden on the state, but regardless, you all have to apply for your NI number within 90 days of arrival. You also have to apply for residencia, then sign on the padron before you will be able to access schools, healthcare, etc. To do all this you have to satsify the Spanish authorities by proving work/ income/ healthcare as detailed earlier.

Perhaps, if your husband is self employed he can pay autonomo contributions in Spain to cover healthcare. Again you would have to establish that your eldest can be deemed a dependant to be covered.

If you have to get private healthcare, it may prove impossible or cost prohibitive to get your sons existing conditions covered.

 

[Pesky Wesky]

• hi thank you for your reply , i do understand the crisis spain is facing and we are not moving to be a burden on the spanish system we are moving for a better life for us as a family and of course the weather is a big bonus but why we are moving was not a question i asked in my first post ,after spending 10 years back and forth to torrevieja and this is were my husbands mum lives we have been saving to move over . my son who is disabled is on dla , and yes we could afford to loose this even though i have been told he can still get care component of dla if we move to spain.

i really dont see what effect my spelling has on moving to spain and i found the question to be rude and quite upsetting.
my husband has a job in the uk now , and my mistake i said he would be paying into the spanish via taxes and contributions but he will not he will be self employed . so we would need to take out private medical insurance .
he would be earning enough to finacially support us all ,and if the job were to end or illness we have income monthly from the uk which are not benefits.
my younger son is very clever even though he is dyslexic and after speaking to a specialist we think he would benefit from the move , he speaks really good spanish and in another 12 months will be even better .
the rest of us know basic spanish but have upped our lessons for the next 12 months to learn enough to get by .
i thought we had gone about the move the right way ,looking for an area to settle ,sorting a job for my husband,saving to pay for a property inc taxes and legal fees ect ,looking into schools for my son ,enquiring about removal prices and learning spanish . i do appologize for spelling im not very good on a computer and with spelling .

I asked about why you were thinking of coming to Spain because if the reason was "To give my children a better life" I would question whether Spain is the right place to be bringing children over the age of 10 if you think that having a better life includes education and work.

• The weather will no doubt be better, even though you'll not escape winter entirely and there are whole threads about houses being cold and uncomfortable in the winter on this forum, so be prepared. Although that you probably already know from being at the in laws, don't you?
• So the weather will be better and you say that you'll prefer the work routine that your husband will have, so that's a positive.
• However, there are other issues -
• you need to register as an EU citizen living in Spain and you need to prove that you have around 440 - 600 euros to be able to register.
• You need healthcare cover
• You'll need to be absolutely sure that your 12 year old, as a dyslexic child, will be able to go into state education in Spain. I would seriously doubt that he'll have a high enough level of Spanish to be able to study along side Spaniards when he first comes over. That's not to say I doubt your word that he speaks well, but studying in another language is a different matter.
• You also need to consider the 12 year old long term future - Spain or UK, and how his education will fit in.
• Then there's the 16 year old. How will he fit into things in a Spain with youth unemployment of over 50%?

Here's some info you might find useful
https://www.gov.uk/living-in-spain
And here, posts 1 and 3 to start with!
http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...-living-spain/2725-faqs-lots-useful-info.html

 

[snikpoh]

i really dont see what effect my spelling has on moving to spain and i found the question to be rude and quite upsetting.

Firstly, I apologize if you were offended by my questions. As others who know me can confirm, this was not my intention. I was trying to establish if you were from outside the EU as this could influence your right to live in Spain.


1) Can we confirm that your husband will be working as self-employed in Spain? If so, then he MUST pay his taxes in Spain but will, therefore, get Spanish health care for himself and his entire family.

2) If your husband is self-employed in UK then this is a very different matter. You will need private medical care in Spain and they will NOT cover existing conditions. You will still have to complete tax returns here in Spain as this will be your 'centre of interest'.

 

[Megsmum]

Hi Firstly I would like to wish you all best wishes. However I think you are missing the basic points people are making.

If you husband is working in the UK - presumably he is paying tax in the UK, however as his family and main home is in Spain - he will have to declare - as all residents do- his income in Spain and will be liable for tax there as well as UK. you will not pay double but you need to be mindful of the tax implications and the procedures.

My understanding is, that if not contributing to the Spanish system you will have to have private health cover, as after March next year the UK is no longer offering the S1 form. This I see as your biggest issue - however others will know more than me, Pre exisiting conditions are very rarely covered on private health insurance, so I can not see how you son will be covered, unless you are paying into the systems here

To get your residency in Spain - you have to show income and health cover.

Your Son - who will be self supporting will have to show proof of income and health cover - not sure what the age is for this starting, and as for finding work for him being difficult I am sorry to say this is an understatement. Youth unemployment in Spain is at an all time high and that is among the Spanish, if you do not have a good grasp of the language and skills, even low paid work is going to be difficult to come by.

The comment regarding your spelling, although may have come across as harsh, I think it was meant in good faith, because if you were not a UK subject, then residency etc would be completely different.

No one here would say do not do, at the end of the day only you know if you can afford to do this. You potentially have many pitfalls to overcome and only you know if this is all possible, members of this forum can only tell you what its like for them. We are moving in February and this place was invaluable in getting advice and opinions, but not everything you hear you will like, but like us, you have to way up all the odds and make your choices and always remember the choice is yours.

Best wishes

 

[deedee76]

thank you ,those are very useful websites,
i will look more carefully into a school as it seems i have been given the wrong information about the one i had intended to send him to .
my 16 year old we will also have to look into either a job or further education before we come over .
i will also find out about the healthcare part as this in front of everything else is most important.
.i will re-read all the thread and take on board everything everyone has said .i am glad i didnt leave it until the last minute to iron out the creases so to speak .
thank you for your replys everyone.