Benidorm Sunset

Must you register your rental property?

We know how concerned people have been about whether they need to register the properties they rent out or not.

In our article we outline the situation in the Valencian community:

abacoadvisers.com

If you live elsewhere you might be interested in this article from Spanish Property Insight that provides information by region:

spanishpropertyinsight.com

A rejuvenated Imserso

We are delighted to announce that it looks like Imserso, the Spanish government sponsored holiday scheme for pensioners, is getting a second wind.

We had had misgivings that it might have had its budget cut again, but it looks as though it’s going from strength to strength.

To find out more about what’s new and whether you are eligible for reduced price holidays in Spain:

abacoadvisers.com

Banks asking questions

It doesn’t matter how squeaky clean you are, if a bank asks you where you got your money from or to present your ID, you can start to get a little anxious.

However, you should feel reassured to know that activity amongst Spanish financial institutions to prevent money laundering means that there is an increased likelihood at the moment of banks asking you questions.

From the queries we have received it seems as though all Spanish bank account holders are being asked to confirm their ID. This is nothing to worry about and if it helps prevent the illegal practice of money laundering, is to be welcomed.

Read our article to find out more:

abacoadvisers.com

Renting a car

If you look on most expat forums there is bound to be some kind of entry about the pitfalls of car rental. Fuel policies, visa cards, excessive child seat charges, the list of complaints goes on.

We’ve summarised  some of the concerns there can be in our article ‘Car rental in Spain’:

abacoadvisers.com

We also talked to Coys Rent A Car who are a well-established business doing their best to provide a transparent service:

abacoadvisers.com

You might also find their Coys website of interest:

coysrent-a-car.com

Dicing with death

We’ve featured this treacherous walkway before in the newsletter but now the safer option is about to open and might attract those who aren’t quite so ready to risk their lives for a hike.

The renovated King’s Walkway in the province of Malaga opens to the public on March 28th and provides a slightly safer route than before:

caminitodelrey.info

Thank you, thank you, thank you

We’d like to write this 9,000 times for every one of the 9,000 breakfasts our clients have helped to buy for needy children in Torrevieja.

We are delighted that your generosity is making such a difference and we know that it’s much appreciated by the children too.

The money you have donated has provided biscuits, fruit juice and milk to help school children start their day with enough energy to make the most of their studies.

However, the school year isn’t over yet. We have calculated that we still need 7,000 more breakfasts before the children break up in June.

We are hoping that you will be able to continue supporting us and ‘Alimentos solidarios de Torrevieja’  by contributing to our collections in the Ábaco offices.

Car seat laws in Spain

If you’re expecting family over this summer and aren’t too sure what child seats you need, this would be a good article to refer to.

We know from personal experience that the police are checking that you are safety seats properly, so don’t be caught out:

tumbit.com

Corvera v. San Javier – the challenge continues

In fact, it has heated up a little with AENA’s (the private/ public controller of Spain’s airports) increasing involvement. More opening date promises have been made, no doubt to be broken.

However, San Javier is not taking it all lying down. Staff are protesting about the proposed closure and are making their views clear:

murciatoday.com

Ironically, San Javier has just received an award. It has been named as the best airport in Europe in 2014 in the under-two-million passengers category by the Airports Council International.

The award is based upon the customer satisfaction index which includes access, check-in friendliness, security, parking, airport facilities, food quality and general service.

Which all begs the question. Exactly why is it closing?

murciatoday.com

From the horses mouth

‘Word on the Street’ like many other websites and publications has been trying to make sense of the rules and regulations around foreign driving licences in Spain.

It looks as though the confusion has been noted and there is an attempt to clarify, exactly what we do/ don’t have to do on the Guardia Civil’s own website. It’s in its very early stages but shows lots of promise.

Its potential goes way beyond traffic issues and already includes some scam alerts too. There is also the opportunity to sign up for their new newsletter. It could be even more popular than ours:

n332.es

Who would you like to teach you Spanish?

Could it be Penelope Cruz or Enrique Iglesias?

Chances are that ex-footballer Vinnie Jones would not be your first choice or even your last. However, mobile phone company, Three, have chosen him as a tongue-in-check advocate of the Spanish language. I think I’ll stick to Rosetta Stone:  

thelocal.es