Moving home can be one of the most stressful things that we ever do. However, it is one thing moving across town but another moving across the country. Even more complicated is moving to another country: not only is it further away, but you are moving to somewhere with a completely different way of life. Furthermore, in some cases, you may not even speak the language! 
Nonetheless, many people do move abroad, and for a multitude of reasons. A lot of people move to Spain, and this is often because of the far better weather in the south and the laid-back way of life. Let’s face it: here we are at the end of June – halfway through the year, and we have so far only had a few days of hot sunshine. In the south of Spain on the Mediterranean they have 320 days of sunshine every year! Who wouldn’t want that? 
 
Another big advantage of living in Spain is the cost of living. At the present moment, the cost of living in Madrid is 38% less than living in London, and that is a fair old chunk. The average monthly cost of living in Spain is €1,500 for a single person and €2,985 for families. Property prices are lower too, although more expensive in city centres, and popular tourist areas. 
 
Since we are no longer in the EU, you may need a work permit and a visa in order to find a job in Spain. You will also need to provide the following: 
 
• UK criminal records certificate 
• Spanish criminal records certificate 
• Certificate from the Spanish sex offenders’ registry 
• Record of your employment history in Spain 
 
In addition, you need to obtain a social security number which you get from the local Oficina de Seguridad Social. 
 
Furthermore, if you are going to apply for a job, you will need to be able to speak the language. Fortunately, Spanish is not a difficult language to learn, but you need to take some classes so that you have at least a basic understanding. 
 
You also need to apply for an NIE number which is a tax identification number issued by the police. You need one if you are working, want to open a bank account, or buy or sell a property or car, so that covers just about everyone. You can apply via the Spanish Consulate before you leave. 
 
In order to ship your belongings to Spain, you’ll need the following documentation: 
 
Passport 
NIE 
Residence certificate 
Letter from your employer confirming you have work (if you are not retiring) 
Application for duty free import 
Your house deeds for your Spanish home or a rental contract 
A full inventory of the goods in Spanish 
 
For removals to Spain your removal company must also have the correct accreditations, which at Movers International we do. We actually have two of our own depots in Spain in Malaga and Alicante because we move people to Spain all the time, and we also have weekly runs to Spain. This is good news if you only have a small number of items to move – or even just a single item – because it can go as a part load, and you won’t have to wait weeks for a part load as you would with other removals to Spain companies who only go there occasionally. 
 
Depending upon where you are going, it is important to remember that a lot of cities have narrow streets. This is no problem for us as we have local small vans that we can transfer your belongings to in order to access them, but you do need to advise us beforehand so that we can make the arrangements. 
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