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So a 'no deal' is looking increasingly likely. The fallout of this will be masked by Covid19 devastation. It's a very grim future for this country imo.
I always wanted to move to the continent, and have lived/worked there before, so Brexit was particularly depressing as I was very happy with Freedom of Movement and appreciated EU citizenship.
(One possible avenue is surly Scotland has had enough now - if they get independence I hope I get get citizenship and get back into the EU that way. That could take years though!)
So wanted to ask any forum members who have the same idea or who are over there now: what's all this going to look like next year? Do you think in the end our leaders will be grown ups and make the least possible fuss of this?
I moved to Austria in 2016. This was before much talk of Brexit. I love it here. Was working for others as a bike guide. Now setting up my own company (probably not the best timing but hopefully will get locals). Just do it.
www.iolotours.com
I might be looking for guides next year.
My website is not amazing just now. It will be updated by someone who knows what they`re doing.
More info on my Facebook
Do you think in the end our leaders will be grown ups and make the least possible fuss of this?
No as you say CV will be used a a scapegoat for any negative effects.
On the moving front, try to move for something rather than from something (although I share your POV). i.e. Make the Pull > the push.
Another one of the same mindset here with a work skill that is in demand in most countries but no language skills.
The moving for something rather than from something rings true though and I guess that's why we've not gone yet then.
EU via Scotland does hold some appeal certainly.
A lot of people move to get away from problems, then find those problems have either followed them, or started again.
If you go to Europe, will you be able to speak the language and earn a living ? Will you be able to be a citizen in that country, or be stuck as an imigrant.
I suspect Europe will suffer just like we do in an economic downturn. Europe is still made of independant countrys looking our for themselves. So they may not be better off than us. Europe hasnt managed to organise itself to deal with Covid. They, like every country, have acted independently.
Going forward as things get more difficult (Economy, Climate, Refugees) you may end up out of the frying pan and into the fire if you dont pick a county you can become a citizen of.
As for Scotland, if it becomes independent then it will be a tiny country physically stuck to England and asking for Europe to let it in. I dont see that being sorted out quickly !
As said above, I don't think there is any magic bullet for this.
my plan is to make sure I have skills that are transferable and apply to lots of areas so if it all goes pear shaped I know we can move to where the jobs are.
Thankfully am in a high demand industry with some pretty rare skills.
But sadly the fallout from both covid and brexit will be widespread and in discriminate.
you may end up out of the frying pan and into the fire
This.
If you think Brexit will make things worse for you here (and I’m with you on that)… it’s nothing compared to how much harder it might make it for you to be a Brit newly arriving in an EEA country from next year onwards.
= :87(
surly Scotland has had enough now
We're not surly.
We're emotionally distant.
To make it work your really need to invest in the language. You can get by in English more and more and a bit of local language gets you a long way but to really settle, chat in the pub, get on with your neighbours you need to work at it
I'm in the 'bit of local language' group, enough to be Belgian but not having more does get in the way
it’s nothing compared to how much harder it might make it for you to be a Brit newly arriving in an EEA country from next year onwards.
If you are thinking of making the move do it before Brexit day (whenever that will be).
Surely Ireland is the answer - there’s no restrictions as a British citizen (I think), everyone speaks English and the geography is similar.
To make it work your really need to invest in the language
Applies equally if you plan on moving to Scotland.
You wouldn't want to get malkied for bowfin' patter.
To make it work your really need to invest in the language. You can get by in English more and more and a bit of local language gets you a long way but to really settle, chat in the pub, get on with your neighbours you need to work at it
This can’t be underestimated.
It made all the difference when I moved to Fife.
It made all the difference when I moved to Fife, eh?
FTFY
Some friend of mine ran away to New Zealand to get away from all the problems in the UK. The problems mostly seemed to be the dreaded 'They'. As in They stop me progressing, They undermine me, They force me to work like this, They keep me poor. She was a respected nurse and he was a trained horticulturist working as a gardener because They stopped him doing the job properly. He had also taken three years out to do a shipping management degree but never used it because They only employed the sons of Greek shipping companies.
Got to New Zealand and she is working as a training nurse and he is a working for the local council doing unskilled plant management (cutting road verges) because They won't give jobs to the immigrants.
Be sure of your motivations for leaving. As said earlier be pulled somewhere, not pushed.
We lived and worked in Southern Spain for about 17 years.Made the move purely because we wanted a change from what we were doing in the UK.
Spain was different then to what it is today.Now it's shopping centres,Ikea,McDonalds,etc.People want the big German cars to impress and all the consumerist stuff that's been fed to us.Now,it's not really much different to any other Western European country.
Other Brits I know out there moved because of problems in the UK,relationship,financial.The problems were actually made worse by the move.They blamed being in the UK for this when it was actually poor decisions by themselves.I still see these people on social media taking any opportunity they can to vociferously criticise any aspect of UK life.They are still embittered.
Not initially speaking the language or knowing the systems caused enormous problems.
As we still have a house there we split our time but more of it will be spent in the UK.
Most of our friends out there , Spanish and British,are older,and the healthcare system in our region,Murcia,really concerns us.
When you are younger its new and exciting and that's great,but down the line other considerations come into play.People miss family and friends,especially if things are not going well.
I'd say go for it,but don't cut off ties to the UK.
U
Is this the right time to point out that David Cameron's "Strong and Stable" 2105 term (under the fixed parliament act) has just come to an end.
Thank god we didn't vote for Chaos with Ed Milliband, eh?
You wouldn’t want to get malkied for bowfin’ patter.
Bowfin' is such a great word. Malkied is what is likely to happen to many folks when the pubs open again though?
If you go to Europe, will you be able to speak the language and earn a living ? Will you be able to be a citizen in that country, or be stuck as an immigrant.
Yeah I already speak Spanish and I think I'd learn Italian/Portuguese quickly because of it. I can work online.
I guess a lot of it's cost driven - that, and well, I just prefer the sort of climate and landscapes of mountainous Italy/Spain.
A friend of a friend recently bought a area of land and a house in north-west Italy (in the mountains, about 1.5h north of Luca). It has a forest and a river running through it. It cost 30.000 euro.
Now everything is online (including my job), I don't see it ever completely going back. So my idea would be to live out there and work online, but I'd come back do to fixed-term work.
I'm not emotional, I don't hate this country, so it's not like I'm throwing my passport in the fire... But I do see prefer the idea of living somewhere in the mountains with a decent climate rather than paying 150,000 quid to live in a tiny terraced house surrounded by concrete and cars.
I’m not emotional, I don’t hate this country, so it’s not like I’m throwing my passport in the fire… But I do see prefer the idea of living somewhere in the mountains with a decent climate rather than paying 150,000 quid to live in a tiny terraced house surrounded by concrete and cars.
That's one of the main reasons for me why I left. I actually miss rain being Welsh. I'm in the red wine region known for it`s bloody hot climate and thermal spas. I'm living mortgage free and enjoying life once more instead of working every hour god sends to break even each month.
What I have realized is that the only important thing in your life is the quality of it. We are only on this planet once (so they say) so do what you can to enjoy it. If you want to move, go.
I actually miss rain being Welsh.
Line of the thread!
Joeeggs nailed it. I have lived in Spain for 20 years and the changes are immense. Ikea and the shopping centres are hurting the towns and are v popular. Spanish are funny, they complain about it and I see them in there.
I still have uk properties so effectively have a uk salary with spanish costs. I love the lifestyle, this morning for eg climbed a mountain from my house and scrambled along a ridge, back and straight in the pool.
Funny thing uk things I miss are the Lakes, cutting the lawn, concerts.
I 've seen so many expats come and go, I can spot the signs now if they ll stay. The long stayers tend to keep their heads down you rarely see them.
Good luck i m so pleased I did everything properly and have residential status
If you go to Europe, will you be able to speak the language and earn a living ? Will you be able to be a citizen in that country, or be stuck as an immigrant.
That's been the barrier for us, the thing is if we started to learn French (to move to France obvs) 3 years ago when we first wanted to do it, even using something like Rosetta Stone we'd probably have it sorted by now, but we just moaned about it instead.
We speak enough French to get by in a resort town when all the locals speak English, but it's pretty far from being able to be a Nurse / IT Consultant. Maybe post Covid I'll be able to work for a UK firm in France, one of my Reps is based in Florida and just works UK time.
One of our Friends is 90% down the road of emigrating to New Zealand and have been bending our ears to do the same. She's going as soon as the borders are open, Nursing seems to be one of the professions they'll accept most places and they're not too fussed about what your spouse does either.
Spanish are funny, they complain about it and I see them in there.
Every country I've visited is the same in that respect, everyone moans about some big retailer or fast food place coming to town and sucking the life out of independents. 'All' they have to do is not shop there and within months it would be closed, but there will always be a queue on opening day.
I actually miss rain being Welsh.
I miss rain occasionally, too. Not enough I plan to leave the Madrid area, mind 🙂
I have lived in Spain for 20 years and the changes are immense. Ikea and the shopping centres are hurting the towns and are v popular. Spanish are funny, they complain about it and I see them in there.
Haven't seen many of them complain about Ikea and the rest TBH, but you're right about the massive changes over the past 20-25 years. Barcelona (I believe) was always a bit more "European", but Madrid has definitely opened up and gone from a very provincial Spanish city to a more international vibe. When I arrived here back in 95 I could count the number of Indian and vegetarian restaurants on one hand, and good luck getting anything as exotic as curry powder in a supermarket...
Anyway, to the OP: central Spain is great, we've got sun about 300 days of the year and proper mountains. Although 150,000GBP won't get you much more than a small flat here. And as everyone else has pointed out don't come here to run away from the UK, you need a positive reason to make a success of it.
Surely Ireland is the answer – there’s no restrictions as a British citizen (I think), everyone speaks English and the geography is similar.
This is the easy answer, definitely. And (depending on your line of work) job prospects could/ should be fairly good compared to the UK.
Other thoughts:
- any long-lost Irish relatives who you could claim an Irish passport through?
- somewhere outside Europe. Oz is a long way away, but they speak English and you'd really be leaving Brexit Britain behind! Canada is a bit closer; bit colder but similar.
Yup - as a Brit, you have a right to live and work in Ireland under the CTA.
Anywhere else is going to be... complicated...
How about moving to the Crown dependencies of the Isle of Man or Channel islands.
Best of both worlds, familiarity with the UK and language but separated from the UK government.
Oz is a long way away, but they speak English and you’d really be leaving Brexit Britain behind!
In distance, not in mindset.
– any long-lost Irish relatives who you could claim an Irish passport through?
This is on my list, through my dear departed Nana
I moved to Belgium a year ago. I'm now buying a flat, have a steady job and about to get a car. All this was possible because I got my residency (not permanent) paperwork done. To get that, I needed to prove my identity, that I have somewhere to live and a job. It was slow but easy.
After brexit, I imagine it will still be slow, but difficult, to do the same.
@leffeboy, I joined you on a ride on zonianwoud not long after I moved. Once the lockdown is over, I'll come back and join again.
To make it work your really need to invest in the language. You can get by in English more and more and a bit of local language gets you a long way but to really settle, chat in the pub, get on with your neighbours you need to work at it
I’m in the ‘bit of local language’ group, enough to be Belgian but not having more does get in the way
I'm trying to learn french at the mo, from a starting point of knowing the basic nouns from school which gets you by in a tourist shop or restaurant.
IT would probably take 6 months of imersion to get past the point of "refusing to integrate englishman", a year to conversational/easily making friends with locals.
Being able to do my technical job in French. Not a chance.
I'd have to at least start off in a little expat bubble working remotely for an english company. Not something I can really afford or want.
How about moving to the Crown dependencies
Falkland Islands and become a penguin wrestler...?
climbed a mountain from my house and scrambled along a ridge
All within the municipio I hope, @poolman !
For the rain lovers, try Pais Vasco. Being Cumbrian I like my rain and clag - Basque Country did not disappoint with about double the rainfall of Penrith in the first year!