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The Reason Why Expats are Leaving Spain
Is it all it’s cracked up to be?
Spain is one of the most desirable places for expats to relocate. You see many stories of Americans moving to Spain. They like the affordable cost of living, the beautiful people, the culture, the healthcare, the safety, so many things.
In the past couple of years, there has been an explosion of expats moving to places like Spain and Portugal. But like any trend, eventually tides can turn.
Many people picked the wrong initial location. It’s important to pick a place where you like the weather and can feel comfortable year-round. You should be able to build a life there where you can follow your interests easily. Some people pick a place and what they thought was going to be one thing, ended up being not for them and they decided just to go home.
The Spaniards themselves tell me that there are lots of bureaucratic challenges that they face every day. Whether it’s getting a driver’s license, a permit to do construction, paying a ticket, a bill, having your phone or internet turned on — all of these things represent some sort of bureaucratic challenge. They take a long time; they require a lot of paperwork — this is something that everyone faces in the country.
Expats can sometimes be more frustrated than the typical Spaniard. They may be coming from a place where things are done a little faster. It’s important to know that things are done at a different pace here, and you just have to roll with punches.
At this time, it can take a long time to renew a residency permit. In fact, it can take so long that your residency permit will have expired by the time you ever get an appointment to renew it. But the immigration office recognizes that there is an issue with how fast these permits are being processed, so they’re giving people grace periods.
It’s important to realize that this country is not a police state where they are asking for your residency permits and paperwork at all times. Immigration is not going to come and drag you out of the country. That is typically not going to happen. There are things that you just have to be able to say, “that’s just how it is”.
