As a first-generation child of immigrants living in New Jersey, my worldview has always extended beyond the US. In January 2023, I took a leap of faith and started the process of moving abroad.
Knowing I wanted to learn more Spanish, I started in Mexico. But after six months, I decided to book a three-month trip to Barcelona.
That quick taste gave me the confirmation I needed to apply for a yearlong visa and join the other foreigners that make up more than 25% of Barcelona’s population.
Even though I got to work right away, the logistics of moving abroad took longer than I expected, and there are a few things I’d do differently next time.
I started by weighing my visa options.
For most people, the biggest hurdle of moving abroad is finding work. Luckily, as a full-time freelancer and content creator, I can pay my bills as long as I have a laptop and a smartphone.
Since I knew I wouldn’t be getting a visa through an employer, I had to look into my other options. They came down to digital-nomad, student, or teaching visas, and it took me some time to weigh out the pros and cons of each one.
I had enrolled in a Spanish-language program in Barcelona, so applying for a student visa ended up being the best choice for me.
But even after I moved, the visa logistics loomed over my head.
If you’re considering moving abroad, my biggest piece of boring logistical advice is to invest in an immigration lawyer.
Unfortunately, I have mixed feelings about the lawyer I hired. Miscommunications between us led me to waste time and money on unnecessary documentation, including a state background check in New Jersey.
The document cost $45, and I paid nearly $240 to get it translated and certified before discovering I didn’t need it.
My lawyer eventually cleared up that the FBI criminal background check was the only one that mattered, and they helped me complete that process.
But this significantly slowed things down, which meant that my student visa wasn’t finalized by the time of my move. Luckily, I’ve been able to pull the final pieces together from Spain.
My student visa only lasts a year, so I’ll have to reapply if I want to stay longer.
But next time, I’ll ask my Spanish-language program if there is an immigration lawyer they use or recommend. One of my classmates is using our school’s lawyer, and he seems to be having a significantly easier time than me dealing with his visa paperwork.
Luckily, finding an apartment was easier than expected.
Once I had a plan for my visa, I shifted my attention to lodging, which I thought was the next most important step.
I used a rental app called BADI to look through listings for open rooms in apartments in Barcelona.
It was much easier to move in with a roommate. But now that I’m settling into my life in Spain, I plan to search for my own place on Idealista, a popular apartment-finding website in the area.
Luckily, I feel comfortable with the roommate I ended up with, and I can rent on a month-to-month basis until I’m ready for my next step.
Barcelona will be my home for at least the next year.
As a single, child-free woman who’s already fairly nomadic and minimalistic, I recognize that I had fewer logistics to deal with. But moving abroad still had a lot of moving parts.
Nevertheless, I’m overjoyed to be living in Barcelona. Unlike my experiences traveling on tourist visas, I have plenty of time to enjoy everything Spain has to offer.
It might seem like a hassle to endure all this red tape for one year of stability, but for me, it’s been more than worth it so far.
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