Has anyone started a new life in Europe?

[ilkleymoorbartat]

We have kids, both work freelance from home and We could rent our place out.

Obviously we would move somewhere where language would be less of an issue.

But how hard would it realistically be in terms of settling in, finding our feet etc, if we had zero connections to the new place? Am I just fantasising about what a new life could be like?
What is the reality?

I did, sort of. But I moved out on my own to be with someone. So I didn't have to find anywhere to live or anything like that because I just moved straight in with my boyfriend, and I got a job before I went, and it was before Brexit so I didn't need a visa or a work permit. And I already spoke the language pretty well.

Do you have any idea what country you would like to move to?

I think you need to think about it realistically. Two weeks in Italy is gorgeous because you’re on holiday - you leave all your worries behind, you’ve usually got a bit of spare cash to spend, no getting up early for work and school etc. But really there’s no such thing as ‘starting a new life in Europe.’ It will just be the same life somewhere else. So if you’re daydreaming about doing the school run and then getting to work, just in France instead of Britain (with all the additional problems of language barriers for you and for the kids at school) then go for it! If you’ve got dreams of wandering the Italian countryside or cycling out for fresh bread in matching bikes then maybe reevaluate?

Yes but before brexit.

Freelance work is usually not allowed unless you have a permanent residence permit (which is hard to get without a job) and you'll have to sort out your own health insurance and other social insurances. Tax may be complicated if you're working for clients outside the country you're living in. Some countries have laws about cross border trade in this way as well.

Other places like Bali might be more suitable for what you want to do - look up digital nomad lifestyle.

By the way I know you’ve said you’ll move somewhere where ‘language will be less of an issue’ but I wasn’t sure where that would be. Anywhere else in Europe is unlikely to have English as the first language. Yeah, some places are more likely to have shop assistants who can understand English but kids in full time childcare or school will presumably need to speak the language. And doctor appointments, dealing with work in the house and so on, all would benefit from learning the language rather than finding somewhere where you think it ‘isn’t an issue.’

I wouldn't quite agree that it's all same shit different scenery. Yes, there are obviously still school runs, doctor's appointments, etc. But there absolutely are lifestyle differences between different countries.

For example I have no school run for my 13yo (and haven't since he was 7) because he takes himself off to school. And to his friends' houses etc. No school run for my 4yo (who would be starting school this September in the UK) because he's still in kindergarten for another 3 years. Obviously we still have to take him there but we can choose what time he starts between 7:30 and 930am.

And you can cycle everywhere if you want to because it's safe. I don't because I am not safe on a bike, but I could if I wanted to. We live in a lovely spacious apartment that doesn't cost any more than we were paying in the UK and backs onto lovely woodland that hasn't been immediately snapped up and developed into a housing estate.

On the downside a lot of conveniences we take for granted in the UK don't exist here. No Sunday shopping, no shopping delivery, no one supermarket that stocks everything you want to eat (most people go to 2-3 per week. I try and rotate instead because fuck that). Schools are set up with the expectation of a SAHP. Decentralised medicine so you have to find a provider yourself which is really alien to me and a total headache. Many medical practices have telephone lines which are only open about 3 hours of the week and email requests for an appointment are nonexistant.

We did pre-kids and pre-Brexit. It was very easy to settle in but only because we did have a decent grasp of the language and made a big effort to chat and get to know our neighbours, etc. (When you say somewhere where language is less of an issue, do you mean an expat enclave somewhere? Because as Kanaloa says, you still need to converse with doctors, schools, etc… Even though I spoke the language fairly well, I had to consult my dictionary quite extensively before setting up my bank account, utilities etc!)

We actually returned to the UK to have kids, not because we wouldn’t have very happily raised our kids in that country, but because we didn’t want to raise them in that specific part of it (very limited schooling) and then a good opportunity came up in the UK and things all fell into place that way.

I am assuming you have EEA passports or work in an area where getting a visa would be easy.

If not:

Estonia offers remote working visas, so that might be an option.

Portugal appears to be reasonably welcoming to British expats (according to the Times) if you have the right skills.

And of course you can move to Ireland.

In terms of language, the Nordic countries might work because English is so widely spoken, and there are probably English language schools, but again it's whether you have the skills that would allow you to get a visa to live there.

Yes I've lived in Spain for a couple of years. It was much easier for us of course because it was before brexit you can still do it but now if course it's more expensive and difficult. However I definitely have zero regrets and I wish we had done it much sooner when our kids were younger.

We didn't know anyone here so it was important to join tennis clubs etc etc to build a network.

Also learn the language. It really helps

Unless you have a EU passport I think it’s likely to be very difficult unfortunately

Thanks everyone. Really helpful. I can actually get a Spanish passport but need to sort that out. I also speak Spanish so would probably go there.

It's really helpful to hear all the practical issues that I need to think about though!

What are your main reasons for wanting to move?

I was a bit concerned by the reference to choosing where English isn't a problem. Sounds like people who don't settle down here (in Cornwall) where they arrive but want thing to remain the same in many ways. They tend to not settle.

I'd say learning the language by immersing yourself is one of the great opportunities of moving.

Then you say you speak Spanish, so maybe you didn't mean it the way I had interpreted it.

Main reasons are wanting a total change. I can't imagine living anywhere else in the UK to where we are now. I want warmer weather and a more outdoor life, and less money stresses!

it's doable, yes. the fact you already speak Spanish is really helpful, the fact you can get a Spanish passport even more so. Do lots of research first and make sure you've accounted for things PPs have mentioned - health insurance, work permits for those who can't get an EU passport etc. You can do it. Go for it honestly, I love living in mainland Europe. The UK is great in its own way but you have to like the general lifestyle to be comfortable & happy there and accept things like the weather etc, and I never was. Much happier since we moved. Good luck!

You don't need health insurance If you will be working in Spain it's free and also for your dependants

Children have a nicer life much safer , less crime, more freedom everything is outdoors, fiestas constantly. Whole communities together.
I love it. I will never return to the UK

@maddy68 can I ask where you are in Spain ?

Those sound like good reasons, although if you haven't already you'll need to do plenty of research to make sure you actually will end up with more money and that there won't be costs you hadn't anticipated, including costs associated with the move and with letting your house out if you have nightmare tenants and so on. I think my biggest concern would be how your kids will respond to being uprooted - it sounds like you and your husband could quite easily go back to most things in your current life if you change your mind in six months, as you're not selling your house and (if I understand correctly) not leaving your jobs, but depending on the ages of your kids it might be much harder for them to resume their old lives in the event that things don't work out.

Unless it's really expensive, I would also start the procedure for getting a Spanish passport now even if you're not sure you want to move yet. No idea what the Spanish system is like but I applied for citizenship of a different EU country in April 2019 and it's only just been granted (admittedly about six months of that was my own fault for being late with some of the paperwork, and the pandemic didn't help), and now getting a passport will be a separate application on top of that.

Catalonia. On the coast

I do know people who have done it but are now moving back to their home country as their children are getting more towards the end of second level as they feel that the Education Standard is not as good ( this could be just related to their own school). They say that the houses they have rent are not really suitable for winter over there. The

Yes, I moved to a fresh start in London, settled down and had a family here. We then did the same in the Netherlands for a few years before coming back.

I had a good job offer here before I arrived, so just got on a flight, stated in a hotel while finding a flat to rent, and got on with it.

We moved to Portugal almost 20 years ago, no kids then or since.

It’s not been easy, but we’re still here and have no plans to leave

@maddy68, whereabouts on the coast in Catalonia? My boyfriend mainly lives in Girona and is keen for me to move out to join him but I'm not sure. My younger DC is hopefully off to uni in a couple of months so it is tempting although not sure how easy it would be visa-wise. He has Spanish residency so presumably I could live with him if we could prove our relationship status? I'm trying to learn Spanish but obviously all the locals speak Catalan! Have you learnt Spanish or Catalan?