Hi!!! Im just new hear in allnurses. Just want to ask anyone who has knowledge in how to apply as a nurse in Spain. It seems all of the threads here concerns working in the USA. My initial information is that EU countries are now actively hiring nurses. maybe someone can enlighten us on the options.

Thanks in advance.

You can visit POEA's website. There is a link specifically for deployment of OFWs to Spain and nurses are included. The Spanish Gov't and the Phil. Gov't has a Memorandum of Agreement for deployment of OFWS (nurses included) to Spain. It is still on it's pilot program and there are only a handful of agencies that were pre-qualified by POEA to do so. Learning Spanish is an added req't.

http://www.poea.gov.ph/

is it possible to be able to work in spain as a nurse even though one has a pending US Immigrant visa application? How long is the contract there in Spain? I doubt if i will ever be issued a US visa yet in the coming months...or even years *vomits*

Filipino nurses working in Spain...pls share any info's.

Thank you for the info sir Lawrence. Will look into the website. Just want to appeal to everyone here if there are anyone who's working in any of the European Union countries, maybe you could share any info.

Thank you very much.

I guess i symphatize with reeyah here. So many of our colleagues are stuck waiting for the retrogression to be lifted.That's the reason why I started this thread, so that we can evaluate other options. Again I'm appealing to those who can share some information.

Thank you.

I think you will find things a bit hard now to find a job in the EU. Currently immigration requirements for the UK is to employ from UK first then EU before rest of the world and I am sure the rest of the EU will have similar requirements. Also which every country you want to work you will have to be proficiant in their language

I know Spain as thier own agreement with the Phillipines

I hope you are able to get sorted, this retrogression is hard for us all no matter which country we come from

Originally Posted by reeyah

is it possible to be able to work in spain as a nurse even though one has a pending US Immigrant visa application? How long is the contract there in Spain? I doubt if i will ever be issued a US visa yet in the coming months...or even years *vomits*

Filipino nurses working in Spain...pls share any info's.

If you have a pending petition in the US, then it means that you are being petitioned by an employer and would not necessarily be available when your visa came thru. That is not something that you want to do, the agency or employer would have every right to fine you, meaning a large cancellation fee for the funds that they spent on you.

If you have signed a contract with an employer, you are legally bound to it, and if you decide that you do want to work someplace else instead, then you need to notify them to cancel your petition.

I just would like to follow up this inquiry. Is there really a possibility that we can find a nursing Job in Spain? Who among here are already working as a nurse in Spain? Can u help us with this plight please? What are the steps we need to take in applying to work there?

Thank you very much in advance! Muchas Gracias!!

You need to pass the Spanish exam that the country has to prove your skills as being 100% fluent. Then you need to pass their nursing exam as welll for licensure.

Even though there is a letter between the two countries, Spain is still under the EU and as such priority goes to nurses that hold EU passports first. Chances are that you would be working in the role of the caregiver in someone's home, like what was going on in Canada, or what has been set up for Japan, not in the role of the RN in a hospital setting.

Things are not always as they seem. Suggest that you look into it closely before signing on the dotted line. There is much more to it that you need to be aware. And the time in the role of the caregiver is not counted as RN experience when later applying for a job. So you need to consider that as well.

It is also not going to be as easy or quick as you may think you still need to go thru their immigration process for whatever job, and that is not known as being fast.

Dear Suzanne:

Thank you very much for that reply. You are really a great person with your always-ready-advises to us Filipino nurses. You are a wonderful gift to us!

Suzanne, are you saying that I should not push through with this plan? I am a US registered nurse and just like the hundred of thousands caught in this retro thing, I am desperate to find an alternative country to work as a nurse (or even caregiver at this point in time).

I have chosen Spain because I can speak the Spanish language (not very fluent though) but I am currently studying the Spanish language to be fluent.

Suzanne, are there links that you would recommend in order for me to get a nursing license in Spain? or the application forms where I can download and apply online.

By the way, my priority date is July 2007. Far far ahead right??

Thank you Suzanne and God bless you!

Paul