Tenerife Expat News
Free WiFi in Tenerife!
A new free wifi internet service has finished its test phase and will be rolling out coverage over the Costa Adeje areas of Playa de las Americas and Los Cristianos in Tenerife. The new WiFi Mundo system offers free wifi in Tenerife that can be accessed by phone or laptop, along with a range of other services.
Read More: Free WiFi in Tenerife!Lifeline links up with Tenerife Business Pages
Tenerife Lifeline and Business Pages Tenerife plan to work closely with each other in the coming months. There is a great deal of synergy between a book that helps you to live on the island and a Tenerife Directory that lists so many useful contacts.
Read More: Business Pages Tenerife
If you are moving to Tenerife and thinking of running a bar, then you will be interested in a new blog about Tenerife Bars for sale. You’ll find down to earth advice as well as a handpicked selection of the best bars on the market at the moment.
Canary Islands Twitter Users
What a great way to keep in touch with what's happening in the Canary Islands in real time! The live Twitter stream below is coming from English language Tweeters on the Canaries. Tweeting Canaries is a comprehensive list of Twitter users based on the islands of Tenerife, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, La Palma, ElHierro and la Gomera who Tweet in English.
Read More: Canary Islands Twitter Users
Spanish Tax Reclaim
Almost a billion Euros of Spanish Tax reclaim is waiting for foreigners who sold their property in Spain, have you claimed yours? If you sold a property in Spain 1997-2006 and you were not a Spanish resident, then the European Court have ruled that you qualify to reclaim a large chunk of the tax you paid. You can now reclaim this at the best no win no fee rates!
Read More: Spanish Tax Reclaim
Marketing in Tenerife
If you run a local business theres a great new resource to help you improve your marketing in Tenerife and the Canary Islands. Leslie Beeson, the author of Tenerife Lifeline has started a new blog based on his professional marketing experiences so expect a constant stream of valuable content.
Read More: Marketing in Tenerife
Tech Tourism Tactics for Tenerife
Technology based tourism tactics are having a positive impact as increasing numbers of holidaymakers book their Tenerife Holidays directly through the internet. More and more companies serving Tenerife's tourism industries are starting to experiment with social media, and their presence on the internet is growing. However once tourists have landed, Tenerife's technological infrastructure leaves something to be desired.
Read More: Tech Tourism Tactics for TenerifeExchange Rate Hides Changing Market
The weak Pound has masked an underlying trend in tourism that will affect many expat owned businesses on the island. The nature and demographics of the British tourist is evolving and business owners in Tenerife need to adjust to changes in their market because even an improvement in foreign exchange rates may not bring back their custom.
Read More: Exchange Rate Hides Changing MarketCrisis Prices for Tenerife Flights
The general drop in tourist numbers is set to get a lift with a flurry of cheap flights to Tenerife. Responding to the financial and tourism crises, airlines are dropping the prices of flights from the UK which is expected to boost tourist numbers and benefit residents.
New Traffic Regulations affect Tenerife
New laws traffic laws have been passed, of which the most important for drivers in Tenerife are as follows.
Read More: New Traffic Regulations affect TenerifeThe Easy Guide to Non-resident Tax in Tenerife
Most people baulk at the idea of taxes and having to fill in a long form in Spanish can turn even the most muscle bound Adonis into a quivering lump of jelly. Non resident tax returns are due by the end of December, so to avoid seeing grown men cry, we have put together a simple guide to non resident taxes for Tenerife Property owners.
Read More: Easy Guide to Non-resident Tax TenerifeTenerife Women - a new site just for the girls!
Sometimes you stumble upon something new that is such a good idea that its almost unbelievable that it didn’t exist before, and www.tenerifewomen.com is just one of those websites. Why on earth didn’t someone think of an online women’s magazine in Tenerife before?
Interviews for British passport applications in Tenerife
On 2 March 2009 the British Consulate will be introducing interviews for some applicants. In 2007 the UK Identity and Passport Service introduced compulsory passport interviews for all first time applicants aged 16 or over, and this brings passport applications in Spain and Tenerife in line with this.
Read More: Interviews for British passport applications in TenerifeLifeline for Recession-Hit Expats
Expatriate British and Irish residents in Tenerife may be more likely to feel the recession pinch than other residents on the island. Both retired and working residents are particularly vulnerable to a combination of factors brought about by this recession and according to Tenerife Lifeline, a lack of information has made dealing with these problems even worse.
Read More: Lifeline for Recession-Hit ExpatsBank Repossession in Tenerife
This article describes the actions that a bank will take when they repossess your property, but it is best to try to negotiate with your bank first. Even during the course of this process, you may be able to reach an out of court settlement with your bank such as a dacion en pago, which creates a clean break with your outstanding debt.
Read More: Bank Repossession in TenerifeHanding back the keys of your Tenerife Property
If your property is not in negative equity, then there are a variety of solutions that you may be able to negotiate with your bank, and one of these is called a dacion en pago. A dacion en pago means returning the keys to the mortgage lender and in exchange the bank will not hold you liable for the remaining mortgage debt.
Read More: Handing back the keys of your Tenerife PropertyTips for negotiating your problem mortgage in Tenerife
As the recession bites in Tenerife, the biggest monthly bill that man expats need to face is their mortgage. If you are having problems repaying your Tenerife mortgage, then the following tips may prove useful when dealing with your bank:
Read More: Tips for negotiating your problem mortgage in TenerifeOutstanding mortgage debt
It is a common misconception amongst expatriates that handing over the keys for your property in Tenerife will settle the matter with the bank. This is not the case unless a dacion en pago has been signed at a notary between borrower and bank.
Read More: Outstanding mortgage debtElectricity Bills in Tenerife overcharged
Since the change to monthly billing for Electricity in December, expats in Tenerife and all over Spain have been baffled by the amounts taken from their accounts. One elderly couple from Marbella were horrified to find that their latest monthly electricity bill quoted the sum of 169,340 Euros – enough to heat 200 homes in the depths of the winter!
However, the confusion is not restricted to expats, as electrical companies are being investigated because have been overcharged for electricity following a change in the billing system in Spain.
Read More: Electricity Bills in Tenerife overchargedMortgage Help for Borrowers in Spain
If you own a home in Tenerife and you are having problems repaying your mortgage, then you may qualify for a moratorium on half your mortgage payments under a Spain wide government scheme. The measures, designed to help homeowners, allow for the deferment of mortgage payments, reducing their monthly costs by up to 500 Euros.
Read More: Mortgage Help for Borrowers in SpainPutting Tenerife Recession into perspective
"If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs ... " - Rudyard Kipling
A voice of reason speaks out about recession in Tenerife
There are so many people who are now feeling so depressed about the global economic situation that not only have they become resigned to the fact that they are in deep trouble, they have also told everybody else that they are soon to be in deep trouble.
Read More: Putting Tenerife recession into perspectiveAccident black spots renamed
The government are starting to put up signs to warn drivers of accident black spots and some of these will also see radar traps installed as an additional measure to keep drivers’ speeds down. They have decided to rename them. These were previously known as ‘puntos negros’ (black spots), but now a risky section of road will be called a ‘tramo de concentración de accidentes’ or ‘stretch of accident concentration’.
Read More: Accident black spots renamedPatrimonio Tax Abolished?
As a pre-election pledge in December 2007, Zapatero promised that he would do away with Patrimonio tax. He confirmed that he would again when the socialists acceded to power earlier this year and again in August. However people received conflicting advice from Tenerife tax consultants, lawyers and even tax officials. Many of them said that the abolition was not confirmed.
Read More: Patrimonio Tax Abolished?
Tax Rebates for Renters
From 1st January 2008, you can deduct 10.05% of the rent paid if renting your main home in Tenerife.
Read More: Tax Rebates for Renters
Minimum Wage in Spain Rises
The minimum wage is to rise from €600 per month to €624 in 2009.
Read More: Minimum Wage in Spain RisesDriving without insurance in Tenerife
It is no longer necessary to carry the original of your vehicle insurance documents with you while you are driving in it. There is a database in Spain known as FIVA which contains all the vehicles and the insured’s names of vehicles in Spain. The fines for not being insured €2.600. In addition, you can lose penalty points even if you have a foreign EU DL, for example a UK one, with the new cooperation system between the various EU countries.
Read More: Driving without insurance in TenerifeEmergency Lights to Flash Blue
The colour of the flashing lights on emergency vehicles in Tenerife will soon all be blue, in a draft change to the traffic regulations. All fire, police,civil protection and ambulances will be fitted with blue lights, while amber flashing lights will be used for vehicles causing an obstruction on the road.
Read More: Emergency Lights to Flash BlueChanges to traffic fines
Changes to the traffic laws in Tenerife are soon to come into effect. Below are details of fines, suspensions and other important changes
Read More: Changes to traffic fines
Franco memorial to be removed
The obelisk dedicated to Franco at Las Raíces (El Rosario) is to be removed, by a unanimous vote in the Tenerife Cabildo.
The monument marks the spot where Franco met on the 17 June 1936 to make the final plans for the military coup in Julyof that year.
Read More: Franco memorial retiredMobile SIM cards now require registration
If you own a pay as you go SIM card in your mobile phone then you will have to register your name and address with your network provider or lose your number.
Read More: Mobile SIM cards now require registration
Expats move for the weather
Better weather is the top reason that UK expats prefer living abroad, according to the latest poll conducted by Alliance & Leicester International (ALIL).
Top ten reasons expats rate their new country over the UK:
1. Better weather (57%)
2. Better quality of life (56%)
3. Higher standard of living (53%)
4. Safer / lower crime rate (49%)
5. Slower pace of life (36%)
6. Higher income (30%)
7. Better food (28%)
8. The expat lifestyle (27%)
9. Mixing with the local people (26%)
10. A more social society (19%)
Bank deposit guarantees rise
Spain has increased its bank deposit guarantee from the previous 20,000 Euros to the new, higher level, of 100,000 Euros. Bank deposits in Tenerife are protected by this system.
Read More: Bank deposit guarantees