Want to move to Spain but have no idea where to start? As an American expat who moved to Barcelona in 2023, I had tons of questions. Do I need a visa? How do I find a place to live? Do I need to open a Spanish bank account? Will my phone work in Spain?
I spent a lot of time researching these questions, so I decided to compile all of the information into a “Moving to Spain Checklist”. Hopefully this helps others who are in the same boat I was!
Contents
Visa Requirements
Housing
Phone Options
What to Bring
Learning Some Spanish
Money
Health Insurance
Relocation Service
Visa Requirements
This is probably the most important and challenging part. Start this process EARLY because it will for sure give you the biggest headache. The process took about 3 months to collect all of the required documents, attend my appointment, and collect my visa. (Note: Visas are required for non-Europeans moving to Spain. Europeans do not need to apply for a visa.)
If staying for less than 90 days: Through 2024, if you plan to stay in Spain for less than 90 days, a visa is not required. Beginning 2025, US citizens will be required to apply for a travel visa to enter Europe. The process seems pretty easy and is 100% online. You can access the ETIAS application website here.
If staying for more than 90 days: You must apply for a visa, which as mentioned above, can be a lengthy process. There are various visa types, all of which have different requirements:
- Study Visa
- Studies, training, internships, volunteer work, au pairs, teaching assistants
- 20 hours per week minimum from an accredited school or educational center
- Gateway to the Work Visa
- While job searching, you can apply for the Job Search Visa
- **This is the visa I got and will be writing a detailed post about the process soon**
- Work Visa
- Employment with a Spain company
- Need a work contract to apply
- For senior managers and executives, you can apply for the Highly Skilled Visa
- Self-Employed Work Visa
- For small business owners or freelancers
- First must obtain an “Initial Residence and Self-employed Work” permit
- Digital Nomad Visa
- Remote work that exclusively uses computer and phone communication
- May be employed outside of Spain or self-employed
- Requires a college degree and at least 3 years work experience in current field
- See differences between Self-Employed and Digital Nomad Visas
- Non-Working (Non-Lucrative) Visa
- Live in Spain without performing an work
- Applicant must prove sufficient and guaranteed means to live on
- Others: Researcher Visa, Internship Visa, Investor Visa, Entrepreneur Visa, General Scheme for the Family Reunification Visa, Long-Term Residence or EUR Long-Term Residence Recover
Housing
Finding a place to live is another monumental task. My recommendation: find temporary housing first. Instead of signing up for the latest apartment scam online, wait until you arrive in Spain to start looking for permanent housing. Instead, find a temporary place to live – hotel, hostel, AirBNB, friend, or other temporary housing. I joined a couple Facebook groups dedicated to room rentals/shares in Barcelona. I rented a room for one month in a shared apartment. Turned out to awesome! The host ended up being super cool and not a serial killer at all.
Staying in a temporary location gave me time to search for a long-term rental, meet with landlords, and view apartments (aka flats) in person. There are numerous sites out there you can use to search. For rooms in shared apartments, I recommend BADI or Facebook. If you want your own place (much harder to find), then you can use Idealista, Fotocasa, Pisos, or Habitaclia. If you’re looking to buy a place, you’ll have to search another article for that!
Phone Options
If you’re just visiting Spain for a short while, you should probably just keep your current plan and purchase the international package. But if you’re staying for longer than a month or two, then definitely consider purchasing a Spanish SIM card while you’re here. I ended up canceling my AT&T plan, porting my phone number to Google Voice, and then purchasing a SIM card. Here’s how that process works:
- First, unlock your phone. This allows you to use the phone with different carriers. Most carriers allow you to do this on their website or app. I had AT&T and the process was pretty easy. Here is a link to Apple’s instructions for unlocking your phone.
- If you want to keep your phone number, you can first contact your carrier and see if they will suspend your number; however, most carriers will only do this for 2-3 months. If you’re on a family plan, they might be able to suspend it for longer. If you’re like me and have your own plan, the best option out there is to port your phone number to Google Voice. This will allow you to keep your phone number and receive texts/calls through their app. It also allows you to set up a voicemail that says something like “My parents shipped me off to Spain, so this phone number is not currently active. You can call/message me on WhatsApp at +34 XXXXXXX.” For a great step-by-step guide, take a look at this article. You will want to do this ~24 hours BEFORE you leave for overseas.
- Once you port your number to Google Voice, your plan will be automatically cancelled by your carrier. Unless you’ve paid off your phone, you will have to buy out the rest of your device contract.
- Download WhatsApp and tell your friends and family to do the same. If you don’t currently use WhatsApp, then it’s time to get out from under the rock you’re living and become part of the international world! WhatsApp is a free international messaging/calling tool that won’t use up your data or charge you international fees.
- When you arrive to Spain, get a Spanish SIM card. There are hundreds of mobile stores that sell SIM cards, so just find one close to you. Most of them prefer to be paid in cash by the way.
- Buy a prepaid plan from Vodafone, Orange, Movistar, or any of the other carriers out there. These plans will run you around 10 to 20 euros per month. In doing so, you are purchasing a new SIM card with a new phone number. The worker will help switch out your SIM cards for you…just make sure to keep your old SIM card and don’t let it get thrown away.
- You can continue to recharge your SIM card as often as you need. Most providers allow you to do this on their app, so no need to go into the store.
- Purchase phone/gadget insurance. Phones are lost and stolen all the time. You can get phone insurance for about $10 per month.
What to Bring
Pack light. I mean it. Even if you think you MIGHT use it…don’t bring it. You’re not going to want all those old clothes and half-empty bottles of shampoo. Towels and bed sheets take up too much room. Pack light and purchase what you need after you arrive. You can always ship stuff later or bring more stuff after your next visit home.
Learn Some Spanish
I HIGHLY recommend learning some Spanish (or whatever native language is spoken in the country you’re moving to). Read my other blog post 6 Unique Ways to Learn Spanish (or any language).
Money
Before you leave, go to your bank and request currency (euros if going to Spain). This can take a few days, so don’t wait until the last minute.
Almost everywhere accepts international credit cards, so you can use your current bank cards in most situations. When using your credit card, always select the LOCAL currency (EUR) when prompted instead of your own currency (USD). If you select USD, you will end up getting charged up the ying-yang for conversion fees. Let your bank handle that.
Opening a bank account is a good option if you plan to sign a rental lease. Many landlords and utility companies require payment from a local bank. There are two types of bank accounts in Spain: non-resident and resident. There are also online-only banks like N26. I believe all options require an NIE (Foreigner’s Identity Number). This number should be listed on your visa. If it’s not, or you don’t have a visa, you will need to register for an NIE.
I would also recommend creating a Wise account. Wise is an international money transfer platform that connects to your bank account and converts the currency for you. Conversion rates are low, and the process is quick. This is how I pay my rent (since I sublease), but I’ve heard many landlords accept this form of payment as well.
Health Insurance
Although there is free public health insurance in Spain, most visas will require you to purchase private insurance. I purchased health insurance through Sanitas which ran about $50 per month.
Relocation Service
If all of this sounds completely overwhelming, I feel you! I managed to do it all myself, but a lot of people decide to hire immigration lawyers and/or relocation companies like BCN Life.
In summary, moving abroad is not exactly a last-minute decision. But don’t let that discourage you! Moving abroad is one of the best decisions I ever made. You just have to make it happen!
NOTE: If any of the information above is inaccurate or misleading, please let me know in the comments below!
