Moving to Spain

Logistics of moving to Spain, including shipping, timelines, checklists, and preparation steps.

Home Security Systems In Spain: How To Avoid Getting Fined

There's a lot more to consider with home security systems in Spain than in the US. Home security systems in Spain are common in new home construction. Expats who buy an existing home usually install a system if it doesn't already have one.

There are many professional firms that you can purchase systems from, but if you're thinking about doing it yourself, it's not as simple as just ordering some cameras or a video doorbell, installing them wherever you want, and forgetting about it. Real planning is required to make sure you don't run afoul of Spain's privacy laws.

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230 Volts Will Fry Your Hair Dryer: What to Know Before You Move To Spain

If you've traveled to Europe before, you've probably dealt with a plug adapter and not thought much more about it. Moving to Spain permanently is a different equation. This isn't about getting your phone charger through a two-week trip—it's about deciding what from your kitchen, bathroom and closet is actually worth moving and what you're better off buying once you arrive in Spain.

Read More230 Volts Will Fry Your Hair Dryer: What to Know Before You Move To Spain

The $10,000 Mistake: Moving With Your US Car to Spain

.For a very short, fleeting moment this was one of the first questions we asked ourselves: could we just ship our car? The answer, once we started digging into it, was a hard "NO". Here's why.The answer, once we dug into it, was a clear no. Here's why.

The Cost Stack Adds Up Fast

Shipping is only the first cost line item and it's not even the biggest one. Getting a US car to a Spanish port runs somewhere in the $2,000 to $2,500+ range depending on which US port you're leaving from and whether it lands in Valencia or Barcelona.

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Leaving The US For Spain: The Part That’s Rarely Talked About

Everyone talks about what it takes to move to Spain. The visa process, finding a home, setting up a bank account, learning where to buy groceries. That's where the excitement is and honestly, that's where most of our energy goes too. But hardly anyone talks about what it takes leaving the US. What it takes to wrap up your life here. And the more we've worked through it ourselves, the more we've realized how easy it is to underestimate.

One thing we'd say to anyone in the early stages of planning: you can never start this too early.

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What Pests Are Out There?

We now have two house hunting trips to Jávea under our belt— one last August and one in February. It was a great way to see everything in two different seasons.

One of the things we started thinking about when we got home was: what about pests? Is it like Florida where there are mosquitoes and snakes around all the time?

The reality, as it turns out, is there are some of the typical ones that one would expect, along with some that are specific to the Mediterranean climate. Yes, there are snakes. Yes, there are scorpions. And yes, a unique creature — the pine processionary caterpillar — that every pet owner in this part of Spain genuinely needs to know about before their first January here.

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US Expats Register With STEP

As soon as we arrive in Spain, we’ll register our Spanish address with the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). We do this for short trips and vacations we take outside the US now. It's just as important when moving for a longer period of time. STEP is a free service run by the US Department of State that lets US citizens register their location when they’re outside the United States.

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Applying For A Second US Passport

A second US passport can keep your international travel on track if you're without your original passport.

Usually when applying for entry to foreign country that requires you to have an entry visa, you have to send away your existing US passport with the visa application. Processing by that country can sometimes take as long as two or three months. While you're without your passport, you can't travel outside the US and that includes Canada or Mexico.

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Adjusting To The Metric System

We learned about the metric system early on in school. We did the worksheets, memorized the conversions, passed the tests and then as most US students do, promptly forgot about it. Moving to Spain means it’s time to reach back into the recesses of our brains and get comfortable with it again.

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The Right VPN Service for Expats

The right VPN service as an expat is critical. Accessing US-based websites and streaming services can be surprisingly frustrating when you're outside the country, even when you're connected to a VPN. We experienced this firsthand during our house hunting trips to Spain. When we got back, we dug into how we could fix this to make sure we don't have issues when we move full time.

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ETIAS Is Coming

If you’re planning a trip of an type to the EU and Schengen Area, ETIAS — the European Travel Information and Authorization System is coming this year and you need to be ready.

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US Expat Voting

US citizens living overseas do not give up their right to vote in US elections. Americans abroad can vote using an absentee ballot with eligibility tied to the last place they lived in the US. This becomes their voting residence even if they no longer own property there.

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