Find out how the Jordan's moved to Orihuela Costa in Spain on a Non-Lucrative Visa
To all those naysayers who readily comment on the impossibility of moving to Spain after Brexit, the Jordans are testament to the power of willpower, patience and diligent research.
The family of six from the Wirral are just about to swap the Wirral on Merseyside for the Orihuela Costa area of southeast Spain. On the question of why they are moving to Spain now, Karen, who has spent the last few years working in a private school, says “It’s more a case of Why NOT?”. The time was right for the family. “We are not old, and we are not young,” says Karen who is just about to turn 52, whilst Tim is 59. “The weather is a big factor, but also we are a bit dismayed with UK life at the moment".
“We were presented with a window of opportunity; our 20-year-old is mid-way through her university degree course and wouldn’t need a visa to come out during holidays; and the same goes for our 18-year-old who has just finished her A-Levels and is planning to start university in the Autumn. That leaves our twin 12-year-olds – Alice and Beatrice - who are at a good age to continue secondary school in Spain – and they will be starting in Year 8 before their GCSE courses begin.”
The couple did consider the USA and Canada, but their life-long love of Spain and its relative proximity to the UK and family made them opt for the Costa Blanca. They had never been to that region before, having holidayed in the Canaries, the Balearics and Costa del Sol but after a visit to A Place in the Sun Live in Manchester in March 2022 and seeing so many stands advertising the area, they decided to take a closer look, visiting many of the resorts along the Orihuela Costa, from Punta Prima, to Cabo Roig and Pinar de la Horadada, close to the Murcia border, which they loved.
“It’s got a year-round and quite international vibe, with lots of golf courses and we felt it was a bit like the Wirral with sun,” laughs Karen, who says they made sure they visited at every point in the year.
They decided to rent a place there whilst they sold up at home and started researching schools and could identify the exact area. Finding the right school was the most important part, says Karen. “We looked at three different schools during many research trips. The twins have had two taster days already and sat entrance exams. They’ve already established some friends at the British international school and are quite excited.”
Getting a visa was of course the next key issue. They could have afforded to spend €500,000 on a home required for the golden visa – once they’d sold their UK home – but decided against it, although the scheme is also ending soon too. “We saw properties where the price had been inflated to reach the €500,000 threshold. We can find a perfectly good four-bedroom villa with a pool for €300,000 which is what we are looking around for.”
They also considered the digital nomad visa briefly, but the requirement to have worked in the same line of business for three years made that tricky for Tim, who within that timeframe had a complete change of career to build a nationwide driving school. “We are fortunate to be able to have some time off and still have an income stream from the UK, so we decided to go for the Non-Lucrative Visa (NLV), says Tim, who says the self-employment visa route would have required an airtight business plan for a new business in Spain, which they didn’t have yet.
“So, our plan was to get the NLV for one year, then after renewal – for years two and three – we can start looking at ways of working. At this point, our status changes a little whereby if we find an employer, they don’t have to prove the role can’t be filled by anyone in the EU.”
The visa application process – with help from relocation expert Mark McMillan at Sun Lawyers – involved a lot of paperwork but in the end their visas were received four weeks after their appointment at the BLS visa centre in Manchester. From the end of June, they were given three months to move to Spain. For the NLV they had to provide various documents and prove financial resources in the form of passive income and/or savings of €28,800 for the main applicant, then €7,200 for each additional family member. The total for the four family members who require visas was €50,400.
“Our advice is to do lots of research trips and lots of planning. We spent two years planning it and made sure we were going to the right area,” says Karen. “Schools may be the biggest hurdle – as places are in high demand now. School fees are much lower than in the UK – even before any VAT related rises. Renting first brings flexibility.”
“I have always firmly believed that it’s better to try and fail at doing something than never trying at all. You have one life, and at least you won’t be left wondering – or regretting.”
Read more:
- Buying a Spanish Property - How Much Does It Actually Cost?
- Carol and Phil's Journey of Retiring to Murcia
- The Pros and Cons of the Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa
