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Relocation to Gibraltar / Working in Gibraltar

Please find below some comprehensive details on working in Gibraltar and relocating to Gibraltar.

For a specific search for jobs in Gibraltar please click here.

It is not a surprise to people who live and work in, or near, Gibraltar that thousands more European expats are moving over to join them. Gibraltar is approximately two and a half hours from the UK and have on average 300 days of sunshine each year, with a great selection of stunning beaches, access to a variety of outdoors sporting pursuits such a biking, windsurfing and sun bathing. Gibraltar is an English-speaking community and thus language barriers do not exist helping to make Gibraltar an ideal place for relocation.

If you wish to work in Gibraltar, business generally around several key sectors: tourism, banking, online gaming, accountancy and all the various legal and IT services that these require. There are also various opportunities for more casual employment in bars and restaurants throughout town.

Around 20,000 people are permanently employed in Gibraltar, consisting of both locals, and foreigners living just across the border in Spain.Over 50% of Gibraltar’s school leavers go on to further education in the UK, more often than not returning to the Rock once they have qualified. This conveniently means that local UK trained professionals are readily available to run local businesses, the most common being law, business and accountancy graduates..

With neighbouring Spain having earned a relatively poor reputation for the lack of good job opportunities, low wages and generally inferior employment conditions and contracts, many people come to Gibraltar in search of a comparatively stable and professional environment in which to operate. Here they can enjoy a Mediterranean lifestyle, crossing the border as often as they like, while benefitting from the reassuring ‘Britishness’ of Gibraltar’s working and living environment.

Gibraltar mirrors the UK system in that you will not normally be dismissed without being given the legally required notice and pay off, in accordance with your contract. This rather obvious professional courtesy is often ignored in Spain, leading to many a story of poor treatment, particularly amongst expatriates.

The process of relocating to Gibraltar need not be a big problem and with a number of companies helping, both financially and organisationally, with the relocation process it can be similar to just moving down the road! The availability of services to help in your relocation to Gibraltar process is wide from helping you source accommodation to pet relocation.

The open border means you can live in Spain and work in Gibraltar with ease, and that your daily commute becomes a walk over the runway with a sea view to keep you company. Somewhat better than sitting on a dirty commuter train!

The availability of quality employment is ever increasing with the growth of many sectors including the online gaming industry now representing a major source of employment opportunities. Gibraltar has been relatively well established for many years with most of the vacancies in the banking, financial and legal sectors, although the recent boom in online gambling has led to more options in other sectors.

Catch 22!

Many people are caught with the question of whether they can relocate to Gibraltar with out having secured a job to go to. The answer is only answered by you, but the fact remains that in most cases to gain a job you have to be personally interviewed, and often have to have a local address, which means coming to Gibraltar. RecruitGibraltar ideally personally interview all its candidates prior to putting them forward for a vacancy so we expect candidates to be able to get to Gibraltar at some point in their process. Some companies will fly you over subsequen to a phone screening but this tends to be for the more senior roles so cater financially for the fact that you may have to pay to come over.  

You may wish to take a few days holiday and come over to see if Spain or Gibraltar meets your expectations and have a few interviews while you are here. The alternative is that you fly over subsequent to a phone interview, when a vacancy that meets your expectation arises, to personally interview. Most candidates find that without being here though you will find it harder to gain employment.

Gibraltar has a distinct benefit for non Spanish speakers in that being bilingual is not necessarily a prerequisite for employment and thus opens up many opportunities for  a job.

Income Tax system in Gibraltar

There are a few different types of income tax systems in Gibraltar and the selection of the correct one will certainly make a difference to your ultimate payment amount. For more information see our comprehensive guide by clicking here.

We can arrange a totally free consultation with a local tax advisor to clarify your best choice once you are here, so please contact Ian Hancock on Ian@recruitgibraltar.com or call 00350 20077900 and I will be happy to get this arranged for you.

Salaries and working in Gibraltar

Work permits can be issued to foreign nationals, and there are two completely different groups of persons EU and non-EU nationals. After staying more than 6 months in Gibraltar, EU citizens can apply and receive a 5-year renewable work permit, while the non-EU nationals are only eligible if there isn't a local resident willing to do the same job, see below for further information.

The working hours in Gibraltar are very similar to those of the UK, albeit some hours can be from 9 - 6 or take the opposite of working 'summer hours' during July and August and finish at 3.30pm each day. The working conditions are also very similar as the legal treatment of employees is the same as the UK.

As a guide the average wages in Gibraltar are typically 20% lower then in the UK (sunshine tax!), for basic positions such as secretarial and administration pay of £12k - £17k with PAs taking up to £25k. As you would expect specifically skilled roles such as IT positions command higher wages and can be anything up to matching UK wages. There are some locally based industries that always need specific skill sets such as Company Administrators and those with Trust experience and thus these candidates tend to get snapped up immediately.

The provision of health care and pensions are relatively standard and again similar to those of the UK but certainly not the norm in Spain. As you will be working in Gibraltar you will be paying social security here but you can 'passport' the payment back to Spain via form filling etc.

Please note that if you work in Gibraltar but live in Spain then you pay income tax in Gibraltar.

Language

As a British overseas territory, the sole official language of Gibraltar is English, and it is used by the Government and in schools. Most locals are bilingual, also speaking Spanish, due to Gibraltar's proximity to Spain. However, because of the varied mix of ethnic groups which reside there, other languages are spoken on The Rock.

Gibraltarians often converse in Llanito and is an Andalusian Spanish based vernacular and unique to Gibraltar. It consists of an eclectic mix of Andalusian Spanish and British English. However, it borrows words and expressions of many other languages, with over 500 words of Genoese and Hebrew origin. Among more educated Gibraltarians, it also typically involves code-switching to English.

Tourism in Gibraltar

Tourism forms a large part of the economy in Gibrlatar and there are many hotels and tourist attractions on the rock. The main attraction here are the monkeys or apes and you can find out more about them by clicking here.

Health, Cost of Living and Driving

The cheaper cost of living means real savings. There is no VAT charged in Gibraltar. Interest is fully allowable on mortgages in Gibraltar, and property in Spain is cheaper than in the UK

At the time of writing, Gibraltar is served by direct, twice-daily British Airways flights from Gatwick, the Monarch “Crown Service” from Luton and trips to and from Manchester fly four times a week. Gibraltar is 2 ½ hours flying time from London and three hours to Manchester. A multiple-lane auto-route, a few minutes drive from the border, links Gibraltar with the major airport at Malaga which offers regular international flights to most parts of the world as well as links to many of Britain’s regional airports. Malaga is reached in less than an hour and a half of hassle-free motoring through the spectacular Andalusian countryside.

Although Gibraltar is self-governing, its legal system is based on English common law, its Chief Justice is appointed by the Crown, and judgments are recognised and upheld internationally. Access to the courts is swift, efficient and less costly than in the United Kingdom - factors that, coincidentally, attract growing numbers of ship arrests and similar Admiralty matters to the jurisdiction.

The journey to work is generally stress free: just a short walk (Gibraltar is 5km long by 1.6km at its widest point), or you can drive in on the uncluttered Spanish roads.

Gibraltar is family-friendly. There are income tax benefits for married couples and those with children. Gibraltar schools operate on the UK curriculum and exam structure, they have a good reputation, and are freely available to Gibraltar residents. There is a fee-paying English-based International School nearby in Spain.

There are quite specific rules governing who can live in Gibraltar so for more information on work permits for Gibraltar click on this link.

Property and Money

The prices of property in Gibraltar has been steadily rising, as has property globally, but the ever diminishing space available certainly means prices will continue to rise. There has been a swathe of newly erected property for both residential and commercial use mainly finished to a very high standard. The high end properties are mainly built with 'high networth individuals' in mind who have to own a property in keeping with their welth in order to qualify for the minumal tax category status.

There are still plenty of properties for the first time buyer however with many of the older tower blocks seeing internal make overs reminscent of 'Changing Rooms'. Many of the blocks come with swimming pools included albeit they tend to be fairly small.

Access to rental property in Gibraltar is achieved via stroll along man street to the many estate agencies that line the path or a short search on the internet. The lack of available property has served to push prices up and led many people to seek accomomdation across the border in La Linea but even now the town sees the available properties snapped up quickly. Other areas to consider around Gibraltar are Alcaidesa, Duquesa, Torreguadiaro and Sotogrande. A search through the local free papers such as the Friday Ad or the Sur in English normally will get you on the right track.

Special tax incentives are available for individuals buying residences in Gibraltar and handling at least a portion of their investments through local financial institutions (High Net Worth Individuals) as well as for relocating executives. These incentives will not be affected by the current restructuring of corporate taxes which when implemented will provide a benign, low-tax climate for local and international companies. Gibraltar has no capital gains tax, inheritance tax, gift tax or wealth tax.

The new Gibraltar budget was announced in June 2007, and contained a number of changes affecting individual taxation as detailed below. We strongly recommend that you visit the Gibraltar goverment website for specific infomration and a tax calculator - http://www.gibraltar.gov.gi/

 

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