Moving To Barcelona For Work

Every day at Europe Language Jobs we are connecting talented candidates to interesting companies to find internships for students and graduates and connecting more experienced candidates to great companies such as Apple, Nike and Amazon.

Today we are talking to Franziska from Germany, who is who going to talk us through moving to Barcelona, the ups and downs of moving to a new country and why she decided to move to sunny Barcelona.

Moving Abroad

Hello, I am Franziska, I am 24 years old from Augsburg (southern Germany).

Moving to Barcelona in 2013, having only ever visited once before – during a short summer vacation with my family, I fell in love with the city and it was then that I began thinking about ways to stay here longer.

When I went back to my hometown, I started to discuss this idea with my friends and soon thanks to some friendly networking I received an offer to work as a waitress in a restaurant for the summer period (only 3 months). It wasn’t something fancy, but I just wanted to move to Barcelona, so I grabbed the opportunity, packed my bags and started my paper process!

Obtaining the legal permit to work in Spain, you need a few things, there is so much in-depth difficult to understand advice out there so I've broken it down as simply as possible for you and hopefully, it helps you a little! It is very important to follow the steps in order because you will not be able to accomplish step 2 without first completing step 1.

Step 1: A Contract for the room or flat where you live (must be an original)

Step 2: Empadronamiento

A document you obtain from the town hall saying that you live in Barcelona

Step 3: NIE

NIE is like a green card (Foreigners' Identity Number).

Step 4: Social Security Number

Step 5: Open a bank account

Note* Step 2.5: To get the NIE you need the work contract, but to get the contract you need the NIE. Understandably this is confusing… But companies are aware of this issue and so many will provide you with the contract so you can go get the NIE, it’s just that you can’t actually START the job UNTIL you get the NIE!

Bureaucracy Barcelona

My problem was… I didn’t receive any of this! I gave it a shot couple of times: first, I tried by myself, the second time my boss decided to accompany me. To get the NIE you need to have your empadronamiento – your registration paper (where you live in Barcelona) and work contract.

I decided to work anyway under the terms offered (accommodation & food), but the story with official papers was over for the moment. I didn’t care much though, I was in Barcelona!

Friends In Barcelona

Working in a restaurant gave me the opportunity to meet a lot of people, make new friends and start expanding my network. One of my friends decided to study in Barcelona and asked me to accompany her to the Business School she was hoping to attend. I loved the time I spent there and afterwards, I was calling my parents to say that I want to study there as it would give me the opportunity to stay in Barcelona and improve my Spanish!

I started my course in September 2013 and quickly learned something very important: studying and living in Barcelona is expensive in comparison to Germany where rent is lower and we don’t have to worry about tuition fees. When you take into account rent, food, tuition, and add in the cost of activities if you want to take advantage of the wonderful events in Barcelona, you have to find a job!

Keeping in mind my first attempt at getting my NIE, I thought that maybe big companies with international offices might help me, so I began applying to these types of companies, but a big disappointment was waiting for me: NIE was something basic and most companies were expecting you already had your paperwork done. My only option was an internship NIE, with which I already had some experience, so I went for it. Internship NIE was valid only for 3 months, but still was a huge help – at the interview I could say that I already had it.

Very soon after receiving my NIE, I found a job at Sellbytel as a customer service agent. It was my first “real” work experience and I want to tell everyone to not be afraid of jobs like customer service or telecommunication agent – you will meet a lot of interesting people, complete your skill set and moreover, get paid well.

Theft Barcelona

After working here for 10 months I got what I call the “typical Barcelona experience” – I got robbed and afterwards, I came to the conclusion that I needed a change, call centre work was a really good start for me, but then you have to step up to something more, more challenging and more suitable for your professional skills.

After finishing at Sellbytel I began looking for work to combine with my studies. It was then I realized how easy is to get a job allowing me enough time to study - just knowing German!

I got involved in a transcription project which lasted one year with a one month break every three months. Although this project didn’t bring me much relevant work experience, I had some free time for holidays and of course, some money to enjoy the life in Barcelona!

Making Friends Abroad

The time came to finish my studies and I began looking for something in Marketing (my field of study). I searched for a long time sending out CV after CV until I finally found a position for a German speaker in web publishing and marketing in a Swiss company. After 3 interviews: one Skype and two in-person – I got it! I am still working in this company, enjoying all professional challenges and living my life in such an amazing city.

New Job Abroad

My top tips for moving abroad:

If you find something interesting - apply for it. You never know what is going to be your lucky ticket.

The easiest way to find a job in a new city is to apply for Call centre/ customer service jobs. Do not have prejudices: It is a very good start. Think about the positive sides and don’t be picky.

You can easily find work with just your native language – in Spain there are a lot of companies willing to hire native German speakers, so take your chance.

Be prepared – investigate the papers questions and make the list of what you really need. Now for European professionals, it is not that complicated as it was 5 years ago.

We are used to good salaries in Germany, remember that it is hard to get salary what you probably expect. But hard does not mean impossible, think about the bright sides! the experience abroad, sun and a lot of young professionals around!

Budget to relocate:

Room: €400 / Apartment: €750

Food: €300

Living Expenses: (anything from €200-€400)

As we can see, two of the big problems when moving to Barcelona is a) obtaining the necessary documentation (which hopefully we've given you some helpful tips to point you in the right direction!).

The second problem is finding a job...the best advice I can give you is to sign up to Europe Language Jobs so you can maybe even have a job offer before you arrive! Allowing you to take your first week (or month) on the beach, touring around exploring the city, with the knowledge that you don't have to worry about job searching!

Thanks and I hope my experiences prove helpful to you, (let me know if they were or weren't) and tell us about your own experiences!

Franziska.

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