Working in Spain is tough for Americans…

Well, I just wanted to write a quick post about a subject that I wish I knew more about: Working in Spain.  I’m no lawyer and I really don’t know what the “standard” procedure is for an American who wants to obtain permission to work in Spain; however, I can say that, from talking to other Americans who have worked abroad, the process seems to be quite difficult and it appears to vary from individual to individual.

Basically, getting a job in Spain is hard because companies there don’t always want to hire Americans.  This is due to the fact that, in order to hire an American, a company must deal with a lot of paperwork and prove that there is no other Spanish or EU Citizen as qualified for the job as the American – a daunting task.  This, of course, means that if you’re from the USA like me, finding a job in Spain is probably going to be a little difficult at first.  Despite having said that, it does appear that people have done it and it certainly is possible to find legal work in Spain if you’re American.  (On a side note, I DO NOT advocate doing anything illegal to work in Spain… no sense getting yourself into a huge mess!)

Since I’m a student, I have a bit of an advantage that others who have already graduated from college don’t have: a scholarship to teach English.  The scholarship is a good option for me because of one simple fact: it would get me a guaranteed year in Spain with a temporary job as an English teacher and the correct visa.  This would be great because I’d be able to live in Spain for a year, work there, get a paycheck, and study Spanish life in depth.  Later, when my time under the scholarship was over, I could make the decision as to whether or not life in Spain is something that I want to pursue even more and then decide if I want to take on the daunting task of getting a more permanent work visa to live in Spain longer. 

Honestly, I really don’t know if I want to spend the REST of my life in Spain or not.  That’s why the scholarship that I’m applying for, if granted to me, would be a great way for me to “test the waters” and see how things go as an English teacher before making any definite decisions.  Later, if I did decide that I wanted to look for a permanent job in Spain, I’d probably have to hire a lawyer to try to figure out the work visa process – something that won’t be happing for quite some time.  Right now, I’m just worried about getting the scholarship I’m after and spending a year abroad as an English teacher to see how things go.  We’ll have to see what happens as I begin the application for the scholarship….  Stay tuned!

Hasta la próxima,
–Chris
http://www.abroadinspain.com