A Salutory Tale - Page 2

Robin53 wrote on Thu Feb 11, 2021 4:34pm:

I haven’t been on this forum for some time, having stopped using it due to being a bit frustrated by some of the disagreeable comments made by some of the users. Disappointingly, nothing seems to have changed much, although I am a bit more relaxed about it all.

The forum reminds me of an old Australian joke: How do you know when a plane load of Brits has landed at Sydney Airport?...

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You can still hear the whining after the engines have stopped.

This aside, the reason for my post is more to provide some information relating to my recent experiences which I hope will help others in a similar situation.

I have a place in Palomares which I bought five years ago and over those five years we have enjoyed many happy visits to the area.

When I bought it, it was always my intention of moving to Spain full-time on retirement.

Circumstances meant that I couldn’t move until after Brexit and although I recognised that it would be slightly different, I was content to do what was necessary.

In January, I contacted the Spanish Consulate in Manchester and they provided me with copies of the documents I would need to submit to support my application for a Non-Lucrative Visa.

I started gathering the requested information when I discovered to my horror that I could not actually get private medical insurance suitable for Spain.

Due to a couple of medical issues (type 2 diabetes and having had heart surgery) I was essentially uninsurable.

I did get a couple of quotations of which one was for over £10,000 and still didn’t cover me for my pre-conditions!

There seems to a huge medical insurance industry in Spain living off the requirements for residency and visas.

Another requirement that surprised me was sums involved in the ‘proof of sufficient financial means,’ which by my calculations would come to €32,270 per year.

I have taken that as net, so if you add the potential income tax, it comes to roughly €40,000 gross per year.

That is one hell of an income for a retired person given that the average salary in Spain in 2019 was €27,468.

None of this is the fault of Brexit or the Spanish Government as medical insurance was always a requirement of getting residency, so I would have come across the issue sooner or later.

However, it has left me a wee bit bitter as my retirement plans are now dead in the water.

Incidentally, the 180,000 Spanish nationals currently living in the UK do not have to have medical insurance and get free medical care courtesy of the NHS.

As we are not currently allowed to travel and I am going to have to change the dates on my ferry tickets to sometime in the future (oh, and buy a return), it gives me plenty of time to think of what to do with my Spanish home.

PS. For information – the visa fee is £516.

Helen B wrote on Thu Feb 18, 2021 10:51am:

Hi.

I also have a place in Palomares but havent been for over a year now .. 

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I also looked into Residencia I think they require toooooooooo much information. Also I think to give up our right to the NHS is downright awful.

I will just go as required and when pay my Taxes here in the UK and not in both if I was to become a Resident of Spain .

I'm looking into Portugal now !   

Spain I think will do the same .  They will need our money when this settles !  .

 Regards .

Helen

juliandeus wrote on Sat Feb 20, 2021 5:00pm:

Salutary not "salutary"

Bess wrote on Sat Feb 20, 2021 5:14pm:

??

psy1967 wrote on Sat Feb 20, 2021 7:36pm:

I suspect the comment was supposed to read "salutary not 'salutory'".  Wryly amusing that the slightly pedantic orthographical observation included a typo.  Or is it "wrily"?

L181SKY wrote on Sun Feb 21, 2021 11:47am:

Lol.  couldn’t make it up the way people JUMP on people on here ,or is it hear.  haha.