Residency experiences in Spain can feel like a roller-coaster journey – we know, we remember those frustrating days. That’s why in this SpainGuru blog series, we’ve interviewed successful expats so they can share a more personal side of their residency experience.
We hope this series helps guide those who have some of the same questions and are in the same spot as we were once in our residency decision/process in Spain.
Expat: Daniel Catalan
Where do you currently live in Spain?
I currently live in Madrid but I’m actually in the midst of a transition period, where next week I will relocate to Paris to finish my master’s degree there! I have a new job, fundraising for my university
Have you lived in any other cities/regions/Communidades in Spain?
I have only lived in Madrid, and I have also lived in Paris in the past and will live there again in the imminent future!
What year did you arrive in Spain?
I originally arrived to Madrid in Summer of 2012. Back then the cost of living was much less expensive and there was much less visible globalization. I walk through Lavapiés, which used to have such a real “cutre” vibe which has since transformed into an almost sterile landscape of tourist rentals and ugly gentrification.
What kind of visa or permit did you initially come to Spain with?
I came to Spain on the student visa provided by the BEDA Program, where I was an English Language Teaching Assistant for 2 years. When that contract ended, I knew I wanted to stay in Spain and I began my investigation into my Jewish-Polish family ancestry in order to claim a Polish passport via descent in order to have access to career opportunities outside of teaching.
What kind of permit or visa do you currently have?
I have a European Union passport and a NIE.
How long did it take you to go through that process and what challenges did you face?
Claiming the Polish passport took slightly over a year with the help of my representative Ronen Waisser, whose company called GetEUPassport specializes in these matters.
He knows all of the nuances of Polish nationality law, of which there are many. For example, my Polish great-grandfather and my Israeli-born grandfather underwent legal name changes that we needed to account for with proof in our application. In their era, Poles would lose their Polish nationality if they ever served in the military of a foreign country. Many Poles that migrated to Israel would lose their nationality for this reason because in Israel, military service is required.
However, my great-grandfather and grandfather did their military service prior to Israel being recognized as a country so therefore they did not lose their right to reclaim and to pass on their Polish nationality. Ronen was able to direct my family towards the proper authorities in Poland and Israel where we got documentation to verify their identities with their name changes and status as citizens despite their military service.
What was the process of claiming your Polish Passport?
My parents made their peace with my decision to live abroad and began investigating different avenues for me to claim European nationality. It came to our attention that Polish nationality extends not only to children and grandchildren but also great-grandchildren, given that there are sufficient original Polish documents to verify the applicant’s claim.
My maternal great-grandfather, Shraga Avitzur (born Fajwusz Suchowol) was born in Vilnius, Poland in 1903. Shraga married his wife Nechama in 1924 and within the same year they emigrated to Israel during the British Mandate period. My grandfather Betzalel was born in Haifa, Israel in 1925. Betzalel eventually moved to the United States where my mother was born, and then consequently I was born.
Shraga kept meticulous records in storage in his house in Haifa, which fortunately remained in our family for generations. My uncle Amir was able to exhume this cache of documents, which included his birth certificate, passport, marriage certificate. These would prove paramount to confirming my Polish citizenship. Nowadays Vilnius belongs to Lithuania due to changing borders and I would like to go visit someday.
What is something you regret about your whole legal process for Spain? Anything you wish you would have done differently?
I wish that I had undergone this process sooner, before I moved abroad originally, so that I could have had less sleepless nights about getting out of the teaching roles that most anglophones get typecast in. I am now knee deep in my career but wish that I had access to these opportunities even sooner.
How much longer do you see yourself in Spain?
I leave Spain next week. I used to want to live here forever but lately my ambitions have changed. I have spent 5 years of my life here total and have grown so much here but now I am looking for something else.
How does Spain compare to your home country? Why do you prefer living here?
As I mentioned earlier, Spain’s cost of living has been increasing, but it is still far less expensive than New York where I am from! I prefer living here because I love the food and how easy it is to make friends.
What is your current profession in Spain?
This is my last week as the Digital Content Manager for the “Exponential Learning” Team at IE Business School! I am currently tying up loose ends here before I relocate. I have been in this position since November 2017. IE Exponential Learning is the newest addition to the IE Ecosystem and I played a crucial role in its promotion online.
What have been your past professions in Spain and for how long?
I was typecast into teaching and tutoring roles for my first 4 years with seemingly no end in sight. Shortly after I received the Polish Passport, and in order to start chasing other opportunities, I pursued a Masters in Global Communications at the American University of Paris in September 2016. The connections and resources provided by AUP, as well as the attention and guidance from the professors who are all expat role models, was crucial to my success and growth.
I did a 6-month internship on the Communications team at the Organization for Economic Co-Operation for Development in Paris where I learned that I thrive in international environments. Towards the end of my internship there, on a whim I applied for the Digital Content Manager position with IE and was hired and I relocated back to Madrid from Paris abruptly in November 2017.
Now, equally as abruptly, I am moving back to Paris from Madrid. My Polish passport has made these moves nearly seamless because I can move back and forth between Madrid and Paris without ever needing to return to the States for a new visa.
How easy or difficult has it been for you in Spain to find a job? (Especially in a country with such high unemployment)
I may have hindsight bias but I think if you are social, network aggressively, are educated, bilingual and ambitious and most importantly have the right to work in Europe, it is feasible to find a job here. IE is growing and seems to always be hiring. There are many new startups and as globalization happens more aggressively there are more American companies that are increasing their presence in Madrid. Netflix is to open a gigantic production studio here in the coming year, por ejemplo.
What have you found to be the most challenging aspects about living abroad in Spain – personally, professionally and culturally speaking?
Landlords here can be really annoying and housing is getting more expensive, while simultaneously wages are stagnant.
Any future goals for your life here in Spain both personally and professionally?
To tie up loose ends at my current job at IE before I relocate next week, and enjoy the company of my friends and loved ones and end this chapter on a high note.
Have you ever considered going back to your home country/or to another country? Is it still on the drawing board or are you only focused on staying in Spain? Why or why not?
I’ve never considered going back to the USA even before I got my Polish passport. I like Paris a lot but I also don’t see myself living there forever. I anticipate that within the next decade I will get itchy feet and want to try something new yet again. I am 26 years old and to me, the ultimate currency is to have an abundance of life experiences that make captivating stories to be told at dinner parties (and on Reddit). My role model, Anthony Bourdain, loved Vietnam and featured it many times in his travel series. I’ve toyed with the idea of one day living there, where cost of living is much less expensive, while working remotely for a Western company.
Any tips for those still deciding whether to stay long term to live in Spain?
Keep updating your digital skillset. Prior to starting the grad school at AUP, I was out of touch with the new digital tools that had become available in the 4 years that I was purely focused on teaching. I recall that a peer from AUP bedazzled me with an amazing presentation made with Prezi, that had vivid map data visualizations that she created with Tableau. My head was in the sand when I was a teacher and I had not heard of either of these useful tools and had to play catch up.
If you are a teaching assistant use your spare time wisely. Have a side-hustle and learn to monetize it so that maybe one day it can be your full-time hustle or propel you towards something bigger. When I was teaching, before I got my Polish Passport, I would write proactively about Madrid’s culture and culinary scene for the website Naked Madrid. I tried to write pieces that other anglophone foreigners could relate to. My portfolio from this period of time was crucial to me acquiring my internship at the OECD and later my job as a Digital Content Manager at IE.
By Dan Catalan (@dcat92)
What’s your Spain story? Why’d you move here?
If you would also like to share your personal residency experience on SpainGuru, please send your responses to hello@spainguru.es along with:
- any social media accounts or blog/website links you wish to include promoting yourself or your business
- 1-3 photos of yourself (it is up to you but we would like at least 1)
Thanks so much!
Shaheen, Stacey and Tina
