illegal

[sisterfox100]

question:  does anyone working here illegally actually do visa runs to a non-schengen country or do you just stay indefinitely and hope for the best?  i entered spain via a land border crossing so i have no stamp in my passport that says i´ve entered the country.  any advice, anecdotes, personal experiences on this topic would be enlightening.[addsig]

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[Sibsie]

You must have some sort of passport stamp for when you first entered Europe.  Europe being the way it is you don\'t get passport control when you\'re crossing into places within the EU.  It\'s much like going to different states in the US in that respect.  I think your problem will be if you get stopped and asked to show your passport and in Spain you quite often have to show it.[addsig]

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[Mel328]

Actually not really... When I went to Spain over Christmas I wasn\'t asked to see my passport in Paris when I entered Europe nor in Madrid when I entered Spain.



Melinda[addsig]

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[sisterfox100]

i do have a stamp from when i entered germany.  i´ve been to a few eu countries since then and no one has even asked to look at my passport let alone put a stamp in it, including spain.   i suppose my question is, if i was checked and they find no stamp what will they do?  i´m entitled to stay here for 3 months on a tourist visa - how do they know i didn´t arrive yesterday?  what are other illegals doing to get around these problems.[addsig]

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[Tracy]

Do what i always did, keep a copy of your passport, instead, stating that you were told by the guide book to leave your passport at home to avoid it being stolen.  If anyone asks to see your docs, you show them the photocopy. In all my time in Spain and France (about 2 years) no one ever asked to see my passport.

Unless you look like Jack the Ripper, you should be OK.



 [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_wink.gif\"] [addsig]

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[Molly]

Good idea. I truly wasn´t stamped at all -- nothing in my passport on entering the EU. But I´m still a bit concerned about the 3 month visa issue -- wondering what someone would suggest IF someone was actually confronted. My concern is that I´ve just rented a flat for a year -- through an agency, gave extra months rent to make up for no work/income coming in. So I can´t really say i just arrived, or i guess i could, but being i´m in a fairly small town, that wouldn´t fly to well/be very hard to get the facts on.



From all I´ve read, maybe it´s just nerves and a bit of paranoia. Seems like no one else has experienced that problem or known anyone who´s been escorted to the airport or anything! Should I totally relax, or take some type of precautions like planning an exit to Andorra... or maybe Portugal?



Thanks for any thoughts, Molly[addsig]

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[boneshaker]

here\'s the short version of my story.  i lived in madrid for a year & 1/2 until this feb.  i always left the country to go back to the states or visit friends in the uk via a 3rd EU or schengan country which meant that i never had a spanish stamp in my passport or met a spanish immigration officer.  no problems.  or so i thought, until one night last november at 3 am while i was sitting in the easy everything internet cafe in puerta del sol i was greeted by a not-so-friendly immigration officer with a very large mustache.  it seems that i was not the only illegal in need of using the internet in the center of town late at night.  well i pretended to not know much spanish (using my best immitation of the mexican variety with lots of english words mixed in, even though i could speak alot better than that and had learned to speak with a madrileno accent) and replied that i had only been in the country for a couple of weeks.  when he asked to see my passport, i told him that i had left it at the pension because my friends told me that there were too many pickpockets in madrid.  well he didn\'t seem to have much patience with a dumb american and eventually gave up to go hassle some guys who looked as if they were from north africa.  when i left the cafe, the immigration man and his cronies were hassling people on the gran via.  well, the lesson here is if you are illegal and concerned you should probably avoid the center of town late at night unless you are with your loud and drunk spanish friends and then you will never get hassled.  also, about leaving the country: it\'s not really neccesary if you don\'t have a stamp in your passport and are a fairly good liar.  good luck![addsig]

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[PR4552]

Boneshaker,



Thanks for the insight.  One never knows when he or she will get caught out there.  



Shawn[addsig]

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[Molly]

I second that... thanks for the info/story. Feel much better now. I´m a very cacaty liar in general, but could pull it off if it´d mean leaving here -- this too cool country

 [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_wink.gif\"]



[addsig]

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[Lily]

I´ve been in Spain now for just over 6 weeks and I was asked last week in Barcelona to show my passport by the police who were stopping anyone within sight. I saw this happen 3 days in a row but was only stopped once. I´m still here legally so no hassles  thank goodness. I did have my passport stamped when I entered France but the ink was so faint you could hardly see the date I had entered the EC and it was stamped on a page with many other stamps from when I had visited Africa a few years back, and as such, very hard to spot. Unfortunately, I had my passport stolen 2 days ago and have since had to visit the Australian Consulate to re-issue me with a new one. I have to pick it up in 2 days so it will be interesting to see what stamp date will be showing in my new passport. I´m keeping my fingers crossed that they will not go through the hassle of checking when I first entered the EC.



I am worried about staying illegally and have so far not met anyone working illegally in Spain. I am thinking of heading out to Zaragoza to look for work instead of staying in a big city like Barcelona, and hoping I´ll have better luck there.



That´s my story so far!



Cheers,

Lily[addsig]

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[silo]

So, just out of curiosity if you don´t mind me asking...how did you get your passport stolen?[addsig]

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[bluebwoy]

I have a question relating to this topic. Has anyone living here illegally recently left spain on a direct flight to the u.s. from BCN or Madrid, and if so what type of questions (if any) were asked by spanish authorities upon leaving the EU and U.S. authorities upon entry in the the good ol\' US of A.



Any info would be greatly apprecciated as I am planning to make a run home this summer to stock up on pancakes and and mexican food.



hasta luego

 [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_eek.gif\"] [addsig]

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[bluebwoy]

I have a question relating to this topic. Has anyone living here illegally recently left spain on a direct flight to the u.s. from BCN or Madrid, and if so what type of questions (if any) were asked by spanish authorities upon leaving the EU and U.S. authorities upon entry in the the good ol\' US of A.



Any info would be greatly apprecciated as I am planning to make a run home this summer to stock up on pancakes and and mexican food.



hasta luego

 [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_eek.gif\"] [addsig]

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[silo]

Mexican food??? There are some great restaurants in Barcelona.[addsig]

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[gringa]

Joshua,



I am living here legally (since Sept. 10, 2002), so I\'m not sure if you\'ll be questioned or not as far as the Spanish authorities go.  I went back home (to San Diego via Atlanta) for Christmas and, much to my dismay, I was picked for the security check and everything in my suitcase had to be searched.  I had to take out everything inside and put it back in.  This may or may not happen to you. (Luckily, I didn\'t have much inside my suitcase) I left for the States on Dec. 21 and my visa had already expired on Dec. 14 (I was still waiting for my residence card to be processed).  I thought I would be asked something about this, but wasn\'t.  I just held my breath while he stamped my passport and walked on through.  In Atlanta, same thing...passport stamped...waved on through.   Coming back into Spain from Chicago on Jan. 8...again, no questions, no hassles. Hope this helps!!  Jami [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif\"]  [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_lol.gif\"]  [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_love.gif\"]  [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_nod.gif\"]  [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_psychotic.gif\"] [addsig]

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[SDCheech]

Gringa ~



A quick question: how do you go about getting a residence permit?  Is this different than a work permit?  Did you have to get a legal job there first?  I am so confused as the whole process of moving to Spain legally seems like this big catch-22!  I understand that if you are moving there to teach English, you need to first find a school to sponsor your visa and then you return to your country of origin to start processing the paperwork? Right?  Does a residence visa work differently?  



Sorry to be asking so many pesky questions, pero estoy muy confundida...I want to be there legally but it seems almost impossible.



Someone please advise!!!



Gracias! [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_confused.gif\"] [addsig]

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[cadykat]

well all I know is that it is one big catch 22..... its totally impossible you have to get a visa from a job and thats it... I think to get a residence visa you have to have A LOT of money and be able to prove that you can live there with abominal amount of money and survive without a job then they will grant you the visa... at least this is what I think.... plus you called yourself a confused person... its confusa.. just to let you know so people dont think your calling yourself an airhead!!!

un beso

katy[addsig]

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[ignatius]

First I would like to say that this site has been extremely helpful in many ways.  It is nice to get information from people who have personal experience in Spain.  It has also helped me to not set my hopes too high since it looks as though the English teaching market in Spain is not lacking in supply.



At the moment, my husband and I are trying to figure out what visa will work for him.  I am going to be a student for a semester, and will have a student visa for that time period.  However, my research has indicated that there are no visa options for my husband--which is what you guys have already indicated--I just wanted to verify that I have read correctly.



Thanks [addsig]

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[Angmaj]

I have a quick question to anyone willing to help.  What do you guys do about your returning flights to the US?  I just bought a ticket for July to Sept (i didn\'t want it to seem shady so I made it for 2 months instead of 3). I was told through STA that I could change my return flight for up to a year for only $25.00, which is great (although breaks visa rules).  BUT what will happen if I just don\'t take my return flight?  Isn\'t there a "NO SHOW" fee??  I also heard they are trying to crack down on  illegal immigrants by asking airlines to submit passenger info.  From what I know of Spain, seems like this will NEVER last, but I don\'t want to trust a hunch.



Any input will be greatly appreciated!!



Hasta ahora,  GRACIAS

Andrea[addsig]

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[ncjenn]

Do what i always did, keep a copy of your passport, instead, stating that you were told by the guide book to leave your passport at home to avoid it being stolen.  If anyone asks to see your docs, you show them the photocopy. In all my time in Spain and France (about 2 years) no one ever asked to see my passport.

Unless you look like Jack the Ripper, you should be OK.



 <IMG SRC="modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_wink.gif"> [addsig]

Yeah, I tried this \"just take a paper copy passport with me\" method but then I hit Gibraltar. It's a freaking rock, no big deal right? Wrong. They wouldn't let us in with a paper copy (it's a British colony) so be careful with the attitude that you don't need your real passport. It certainly didn't work for me.

Jennifer  

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[ana_p]

I lived in Madrid for almost 4 years, went home to California once or twice a year and never once was asked about my long stays in Madrid. Was just in Madrid last month however and while there talked to a lot of people about the impact immigration from other countries (e.g. Argentina, Cuba, Latin America, etc...) has had on Spain. I've heard things have gotten stricter bc of that. Regardless, seems that it's really more up to whoever scans your passport when you actually leave or try to re-enter the EU. Within in Madrid or other places in EU I wouldn't really be worried.
 

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[Tracy]

ncjenn,

Definitely when you're traveling to other countries, you need your REAL passport. Perhaps you'd forgotten that Gibralter was British.

At any rate, to comment on the whole immigration thing, please read, Immigration in Spain, putting thing in perspective, 2003.

I learned a lot by researching this article and came to the conclusion that, for now, people who choose to overstay their 90 days simply have to be a bit more careful. I still have not found ANY news articles in English or Spanish that detail the likes of an English language academy or institute being investigated on the grounds of hiring illegal immigrants. And if anyone finds anyhting, PLEASE LET ME KNOW.

But Spain's biggest problem is with Africans and Latin Americans-- or anyone that might look like that.

Also, I did read about Spain making the airlines turn over passenger info, but that won't come to fruition for a long time.

Tracy

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[jer]

It is  a proven and irrefutable fact that stamping (or lack thereof) of passports has no rhyme nor reason to  it.

It can happen or not depending on many factors, one of the most important being (sad but true) the mood of the customs officer at passport control  :blink:
 

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[Tracy]

So true, Jer.

 

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