How do I get a work visa if I don't have a job?

May 17, 2006 10:23 AM

Working in Europe: Visa Conundrum.

I have been applying for jobs as an English teacher. Most schools that have replied with interest are either willing to help me get the work visa or don't seem to care if I have one or not. Schools in SPAIN, however, offer me this delightful tidbit:

"We'd love to interview you for a position! However, we only hire teachers with an EU work visa. You have one, right?"

Of course I don't. I was under the impression you needed a job before you could get a visa. So now what? What is the process for getting a work visa if you don't already have a job?

posted by BuddhaInABucket to work & money (6 comments total)

The potential employer has to sponsor you in your application, so yes, if you're not eligible in any other way you'll need a job offer for a visa.

What these people are basically saying is they won't sponsor you -- they're only going to take people who have a work visa via other means: residency, marriage, etc.
posted by bonaldi at 11:11 AM on May 17, 2006

Most places that have their acts sufficiently together to hire in advance are going to want someone legal, i.e. with a visa. But they're not going to want to go through the whole rigamarole of sponsoring someone from the States because it's a giant pain in the ass AND specifically, when it comes to teaching English, there are plenty of native speakers in Britain from which to draw. Spain in particular I'm sure doesn't have any trouble getting people there to teach. It's an awesome place to be, after all.

So it is a conundrum. The options would seem to be to go to a country that's less popular than Spain, where a school might be inclined to sponsor you for a visa. Or become an illegal immigrant, in Spain or elsewhere, where you might get hired by a less scrupulous school or by individuals, probably for less money and almost certainly only once you're there. And you'll be illegal, obviously, which is not ideal on a number of levels, but I don't know if you're planning to do this for a few months or a few decades. . .
posted by veggieboy at 11:51 AM on May 17, 2006

I've heard Wall Street English in FRANCE will help get their teachers a work visa. I've also heard the pay is low and that it's a crappy place to work - I guess that's why they're willing to help with visas when most other schools are not.
posted by hazyjane at 3:30 PM on May 17, 2006

If you're specifically looking at Spain, I'll tell you that everyone looks the other way on the visa issue. There are plenty of ways you can work under the table. Come hear and talk to some people at English bars and you'll get a bunch of tips. If this is your plan, you will be in good company. Any specific questions, email me at wynnwilliamson at gmail dot com. I live here and know many people who do this.
posted by BigBrownBear at 4:08 PM on May 17, 2006

I'm an American English teacher currently working in Indonesia, pursuing Italian, and thus EU, citizenship through my great-grandparents' Italian citizenship; I qualify, but it's a bit of a paper chase and it's going to take about a year to get everything together, get home, head to the consulate in LA with all my documents, and get my "certificate of citizenship," with which I can then apply for a passport at said consulate.

So if you've got any relatives who are, or were, from what are now European Union countries, you might be able to qualify for citizenship through ancestry - note that not every country grants citizenship in this way - removing the visa problem once and for all! Check out the websites of the embassies in the US for the countries where your ancestors are from - there might be a way for you to just skip this whole mess.

Good luck!
posted by mdonley at 7:07 PM on May 17, 2006

You can work anywhere illegally but it is pretty risky. Especially if you put money into an apartment, furnishings, etc and were expecting to stay there for awhile. If caught, you will be immediately kicked out of the country. It depends on your desires, really. If you want to try and stay somewhere for a longer period, then you want to go the official route.

I know that Madrid has a seemingly large amount of english teachers, native and foreign. If you want to give it a try, you can try to go to school with an student visa and work part time. At least you can build up contacts which may help you get a work permit. St Louis University has a huge program in Madrid. Students don't need work permits if they have a part time job.
posted by JJ86 at 5:58 AM on May 18, 2006