# toes in the water



## wencra (Oct 12, 2010)

hi all
firstly we would like to say hi and thanks for letting us join........
hopefully we won't come across as complete 'numpties'
we are considering moving to spain 
I am 50 (will be 51) and retired on a pension, my other half is 43(will be 44) and won't have a pension she'll be living of me 
as I'm on a pension and she is not what paperwork would we require, (we are not married just 'living over the brush')
what health care insurance if any would we need
I have started going through the forums to get some answers but a lot seem confusing and go round in circles, or that could be me though
also we intend to bring our dog over with us are there any major problems on that front
thanks one and all


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

wencra said:


> hi all
> firstly we would like to say hi and thanks for letting us join........
> hopefully we won't come across as complete 'numpties'
> we are considering moving to spain
> ...


Hi, Good evening and welcome to the forum!

If you are in your 50's and your better half in her 40's then I am guessing your pension will be private. Once you are entitled to state pension then you can get your healthcare here for free but as that is way in the future I will talk about what you will need now.

Depending on your level of NI contributions in the UK in the last few years, you may be able to get a form from the DWP which you can bring to Spain and once resident slaim up to 2 years free healthcare. This depends on circumstances and NI contributions and would be a maximum of a couple of years anyway, but worth calling the DWP about to get started.

Depending on what you do when you are here (nothing I presume because when you say living off pension I assume early retirement), if you do work your employer will pay your socual security and you get halthcare. If you are self employed you pay your own and get the same.

If you are retired then, depending on your area you may be able to pay to go on the state healthcare (Valencia region did offer this for about 270€ per quarter each), having said this, as others will confirm these things change almost daily and I am not sure whether you can still do this.

Failing that you would need to take a private healthcare policy and there are many to coose from . I personally am with ASSSA (Spanish) and they are absolutely superb (in my humble opinion). The cost will vary depending on age and health history etc. I am almost 30 (a wee baby) and I pay 69€ per month for their top policy.

The healthcare side is as simple as that. One thing I will say though, State or Private, the healthcare here is as good as if not much better than in the UK. Prescriptions are cheaper (generally), you don't pay a cost per item, you pay 60% of the normal price on state, or 100% private but as I said many things are cheap - a box on antibiotics is 2-3€ for example!

Now the pooch.... your dog will need a doggy passport and a rabies injection. I cant emphasise enough how much I recommend that you go the whole way and get the following blood test done. Once this has been done (providing you keep all vacined including rabies up to date) your dog can travel freely between Spain and UK. Without the blood test you would be looking at quarantine if you do go back! Go and see your vet who will advise you fully. All in all expect in the UK £150-£300 to get the passport with all the jabs and tests.

Oh yes, in Spain all dogs need to be chipped (requirement for passport anyway). When you get to Spain go and visit your local Spanish vet (much cheaper than UK), and have them register the micrpchip onto the spanish and EU computers, otherwise if doddgy escapes and they scan him they will find no data. You can do it yourself but its a pain in the rear end. Our vet charged 10 € and did all the paperwork etc for us.

Dogs in Spain do great, I have 2 huskies and a rottie. I got the rottie here but was very worried about the huskies in the heat - but they love it, moult a lot but cope very well and are very happy.

Between May & September you need to protect them fro the sandfly because this can infect them with a very nasty desiese - Lieshmenosis (or some spelling similar). This is like AIDS for dogs and not nice. All they need is a special collar which a vet will charge about 25€ (i think) for, and they wear it for 6 months of the year and you replace it every year (or in the case of one of mine you replace it every bloody week cos he thinks its fun to remove it and bite the clasp off) 

Once you are here you will need all sort of things like residencia, NIE numbers etc but loads of people here will advise - 

Hope this helps, the forum is great, there are a lot of people who know a lot more than me so post ALL your questions and I am sure you will get the answers 

Where you thinking of going to?


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## dunmovin (Dec 19, 2008)

I think Steve has just about said it all( except take into account the lead balloon that poses as the exchange rate and calculate your budget to suit)

The dog, well, a local vet will advise you best, for us our wee dog is on "frontline" for ticks over the autumn/winter and on "X-spot" over the spring/summer for the sandflies early spring watch out for processional caterpillars (do a google search and you will know what to look for). Horrible little creatures that can temporarily blind a human , but could kill a dog. The hairs on these wee beasties are hollow and are filled with a corrosive venom, even once the have past,shed hairs can linger.They favour nesting in young pine trees so keep yours eyes open around this type of tree. Of course the place you choose to stay will have bearing onthe catrepillar problem(obviously,if you live in town the chances of coming across them are minimal and in the countryside,you just have to be aware of the prob)

Can we presume that you are going to rent before buying? Always a good idea as you get a feel for the area,get to know what's available and what's not.

I live well inland from the Costa Blanca (50 something KM drive, on very good roads, from Alicante) House prices are much cheaper than on the coast, but language is a bigger problem here than the coast. Not an insurmountable one.

Electrical stuff: gone is the time when Spain was on a 110v supply, most, if not all of your stuff, will work here. it's 220v supply,so you won't need voltage converters

Driving here: steve is your man for that! Me? I learned to switch the side of the road you drive on in Asia(where the side of the road you drive on is decided upon on the basis of how pig headed the driver is on that particular day. _In s.e.asia, looking both ways when crossing a one way street is not paranoia...it's a survival trait_).

hope this helps and enjoy it when you get here


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## wencra (Oct 12, 2010)

dunmovin said:


> I think Steve has just about said it all( except take into account the lead balloon that poses as the exchange rate and calculate your budget to suit)
> 
> The dog, well, a local vet will advise you best, for us our wee dog is on "frontline" for ticks over the autumn/winter and on "X-spot" over the spring/summer for the sandflies early spring watch out for processional caterpillars (do a google search and you will know what to look for). Horrible little creatures that can temporarily blind a human , but could kill a dog. The hairs on these wee beasties are hollow and are filled with a corrosive venom, even once the have past,shed hairs can linger.They favour nesting in young pine trees so keep yours eyes open around this type of tree. Of course the place you choose to stay will have bearing onthe catrepillar problem(obviously,if you live in town the chances of coming across them are minimal and in the countryside,you just have to be aware of the prob)
> 
> ...


hi thanks for that, yes it does and know we need to read a lot more, we do intend to rent to start with, understand the euro/sterling is not the best at the moment. still loads to take in and examine but hey one step at a time lol


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## wencra (Oct 12, 2010)

thanks steve, the pension is a works one, just can finish earlier, hope that we don't get on peoples nerves if we ask what seems like daft questions to those who have done it....
we are looking inland around the valencia/alicante/mercia/almeria ares so should be plenty of choice there, need to look at average temps for her as she 'who must be obeyed' feels cold when the rest of the world is warm(thats gonna cost me)


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

dunmovin said:


> . Horrible little creatures. The hairs on these wee beasties are hollow and are* filled with a corrosive venom,* even once the have past,shed hairs can linger.


oh you make them sound lovely! reminds me of my ex mother-in-law!


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Whilst I appreciate many of our thread ramble and go off track there is a wealth of information on the forum its self, so have a look round. Also 2 good sites with lots of info and even videos...
tumbit and advoco


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Pesky Wesky said:


> Whilst I appreciate many of our thread ramble and go off track there is a wealth of information on the forum its self, so have a look round. Also 2 good sites with lots of info and even videos...
> tumbit and advoco


Totally agree, I learned so much from this (and still do) without even asking - search the forums...

Pesky... Videos?  ¿qué tipo y Donde?


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

steve_in_spain said:


> Totally agree, I learned so much from this (and still do) without even asking - search the forums...
> 
> Pesky... Videos?  ¿qué tipo y Donde?


You need to have a good rummage in the sites Steve, but for example look at autónomos in advoco or on youtube too I believe???


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Hi and welcome! Nice th meet someone else from Wales (my OH is from Newport).

We were in a similar situation when we moved here in 2008, living on works pensions until 2014 when my state pension kick in. 

Healthcare is free under the Spanish state system for up to 2 years under your UK National Insurance contributions. Contact the Dept of Work & Pensions in Newcastle and ask for an S1 form (formerly E106) - further details plus lots of other useful information on the British Embassy site here. Access to healthcare: S1 (previously E106)

If you live in Andaluca you can then get free cover under a scheme for foreigners on low incomes (less than 12,000 euros pa for a couple) so we haven´t needed to fork out for private insurance, which gets considerably more expensive as you get older!

Just a word on climate, as you mentioned your partner doesn´t like the cold - neither do I! Be aware that most Spanish houses are very poorly insulated and can get very cold in the winter (November through February). I spent our first winter wearing fleeces and mittens INDOORS (it´s often warmer outside!). So you´ll need to budget for heating costs (prices now are about the same as the UK).


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