Being unemployed in Spain. Tips for living in Spain
Unemployment is high and foreigners who move to Spain often find it difficult to obtain work. If you wish to live in Spain and require employment to enable you to do so it is better to find work in Spain before you emigrate.
EU citizens have the same rights as Spanish nationals with regard to pay, working conditions and social security entitlements. However, foreigners moving to Spain and looking for work are expected to support themselves while doing so.
Jobcentre Plus offices in the UK are supplied with details of vacancies in Spain by the EURES network. This partnership circulates vacancies and provides up-to-date information on living in Spain and other countries within the network.
Unemployment benefit can be transferred for a maximum of three months when you first move to Spain. Spanish benefits are not payable to non-nationals living in Spain initially.
Spanish Social Security
The Instituto Nacional de la Seguridad Social (INSS) is responsible for administering the social security system in Spain. Benefits cover healthcare, sickness, pensions, unemployment and invalidity. If you move to Spain you have the same social security rights as elsewhere in the EU. When you start work, you will immediately begin making social security payments, gaining the right to benefits as you do so. If you become unemployed once living in Spain, you should contact your local Oficina de Empleo (job centre) or INSS office who will give you advice about claiming benefits. Unemployment benefit will be paid according to the amount you have paid into the social security system.
Looking for work in Spain
To have UK qualifications endorsed in Spain take your certificates and translations to the Ministry for Sport, Education and Culture. This process is known as obtaining ‘homologacion’. More information can be found by contacting the British Embassy in Madrid. Information on vacancies can be obtained from the Oficina de Empleo, in the press and on the Internet. However, the traditional method of finding work in Spain is to enquire on-site. This is particularly true of the catering and construction industries but the importance of networking should not be underestimated in all fields. Personal contacts are the most important route to finding work in Spain. To someone who has only recently moved to Spain this might sound like a disheartening statement but do not let it be.
Turn up at building sites and cafes, write off to companies (in Spanish if you can) and generally do everything you can to get your name known.
Already living in Spain – what about starting a business?
This is a route many choose when setting up home in Spain. Whilst it can undoubtedly be a very profitable direction to take there are also many pitfalls. Click here to find out more about establishing a business in Spain.
Finding work in Spain is not easy. This is particularly true for non-Spaniards living in Spain. To further their career is not a commonly quoted reason given for wanting to move to Spain but jobs are there if you follow these guidelines.
