Hi
I have had a property in Spain for 5 years and have recently completed on a property on the Polaris world resort of Hacienda Riquelme near Murcia

I am considering taking my pension at 50 (next year) and moving to Spain. To supplement my pension we have thought about undertaking some Property Management, I have always done a little photography (including weddings) and am also thinking of buying a nice large people carrier for airport runs and transporting golfers. My wife is also a very good curtain maker.

We appreciate none of this is very imaginate but we do not need to earn a great deal.

Now for the problem.  We would like to do everything legally and we dont speak Spanish (but will try to learn) I assume we need some kind of licence especially for the taxiing.

Can anyone suggest where we should go for all the information we need to get started,

All information gratefully received.
Many thanks
Teresa & Pete

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Hi Bottomp,

To start a business you will need to use a gestor to register your business name to become and SC company(partnership).

It is not worth becoming an SL (LTD) on this scale as your costs to run such a company will outweigh the benefits.

This will then allow you to operate your business on a self employed basis ie claiming for all expenses including any mortgages you have and also living expenses.

You wil find it very very very hard to run a legal taxi service in Spain,licenecs are supplied by the Town halls and you have to work through them after taking a course in Spanish.

All the guys that advertise airport runs in the local bars and press are doing this illegally and for cash,if you get caught by the authorities or worse the Taxi drivers,who pay an awful lot for their licences there will be dire consequences.

 

I saw 4 taxi drivers surround once such guy at the airport and slash his tyres,i have also seen another driver follow someone back to their house and a few days later the car was burnt out.

So be aware!!!!!

It is fairly easy to set a business up here but you do have to use the right people at the right time.

As estate agents we have to have a licence to carry people from the airport on pick ups for completions etc... this covers insurance and legalities.

Regards

Georgia

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Hi,

You can take a look in the costa blanca news today, www.costablancanews.es

There is an article in there this week about how an Englishman set up his own taxi service in the inland village of Castalla. The article is in Costa Folk colum. You can also visit his web site www.castallataxis.com

Hopefully you can get a few pointers from this.

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You wil find it very very very hard to run a legal taxi service in Spain,licenecs are supplied by the Town halls and you have to work through them after taking a course in Spanish.

I was told this weekend that the chances of getting a taxi licence if you are not Spanish is between slim and none. does Spain have a Private hire equivalent which is for pre- arranged bookings only and not hackney? I had thought about buying a mini bus (in the future) and registering it correctly, as I have a PSV, to carry out shared airport runs, but not sure how I would go about that.

I also thought about opening an aquarium store as I am sure the expat community would enjoy keeping fish, just as they do in the UK. I haven't seen that much demand for it though as the only shop I saw in Aguilas had shut down!

Mark

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Hi MARK,

I looked into this once for an ex taxi driver who was moving over.

It is bordering on the impossible to do this individually,everything has to be done through the town hall and the licences are very expensive.

It has always been a niggle here for me as there are never enough cabs and even the Spanish moan about it.

I read something in the press last year with the taxi drivers in San Miguel moaning that they had to literally work 24 hours a day to keep up and there was only 3 of them in the town.

I was told by a lawyer that there is a way around it by acting as a chauffeur service and in essence private hire but i never pursued it.

As far as the aquarium shop goes,i am a keen tropical fish keeper and there are a few around me but nowhwere near the quality that we used to have in the UK.

It is a very popular pastime here and i think you would attract quite a few people in the right area,the thing that is nearly non existent is marine fish,out of the five shops near me i have only ever seen a handful of clownfish and not much more.

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A niche in the market then for marines? That could be interesting. Not sure about corals and stuff though as making the water for them would be wasteful, and I am sure that wold be frowned upon. Timke to get my head into a few books to find out more information. I'm on a crusade .

Mark

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i have always fancied keeping marines but the time and effort it takes to keep them has always put me off slightly.

I had a friend in the UK who had 8 tanks on the go and i am sure he never slept as everytime i was around there he was constantly tending them.

I transported my 6 foot tropical tank when i first came over here but even that keeps me busy as the water here seems to green up a lot quicker.

 

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Marines are not difficult at all if you do it right. Start off with a nano (small tank), a few kgs of live rock and a couple of clowns, shrimps, crabs and snails. You'll be amazed what comes out of the rockwork! You can buy tanks ready to go for marine in all price rages now, but you do get what you pay for. My small tank was £120 with everything except the livestock. It is pretty pants, but an exceelent starter to the marine side of the hobby.

The water going green is more to do with the amount of light the tank gets and the nutrients in the water. With the strength of the sun in Spain and the length of the days, if you also have a light over the top it may be too much. If you have genrally poor water quality out of the tap, then the water in the aquarium is going to suffer anyway. Perhaps you could get a small UV designed for pond use. That will help remove the algae spores in the water by disrupting their cell structure and forcing them to clump together, they can then be removed by your filter.

Anyway, to get back on topic. If I was to advertise the service as a "Chauffered airport transfer service" I could get away with it? Failing that, I would have to register as an agent .

Mark

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hi georgia, re your post below, 

As estate agents we have to have a licence to carry people from the airport on pick ups for completions etc... this covers insurance and legalities.

I was under the impression that you need SP plates and permission from the airport authorities to pick up anyone other than friends and family so i would be most interested to know what the licence is that you have and where it can be obtained from.

Thanks
Roy

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I was under the distinct impression that to legally taxi people around you had to have a Tarjeta De Transportes  This covers you for if your paying passengers are in an accident. 

However, I know people who transport others (not family, not friends) for money who will have problems if caught out but many do it all the time, although it's wrong. They do it as taxis are often difficult to get hold of. (Doesn't make it right.) In fact friends of ours who ferry anyone who'll pay them, were going to the airport to collect friends (non paying these were) &, as they approached Murcia airport ,smoke suddenly came into the car & they only just managed to open their doors & leap out before the car burst into flames ! Imagine if you had passengers in the car at the time that occurred !! Thankfully they were on their own.

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does any one know how i would go about obtaining  the    Tarjeta De Transportes ???
thx 

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Hi Roy

I believe you may have problems as not many are legalised but I will send you a contact who will be happy, I believe, to advise as he hates illegal taxi operators. Go check your mail.


Just realised you can't get to your PMs with being new so you must add your name to the list on this thread .Justin, help required please regarding PMs to new members.. Justin checks it.

This message was last edited by morerosado on 5/29/2008.

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Hi Morerosado,

Thank you for your help,  did not receive your pm but I will ask to have this activated!

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Hi Chelsearoy

He won't mind me giving you his email details here, I'm sure, as he is forever going mental at the illegal "taxi" drivers.

clydegrove@btopenworld.com  It's ready available in another forum (Torrevieja one) anyway.


This is his website too http://www.clydegrovegolf.com/

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Thanks Morerosado,

I have not contacted him yet but I have found out from my lawyer and gestoria that the Tarjeta de Transportes is only relevant for commercial vehicles - only transporting goods, absolutely not passengers, fare paying or not!  The only way to be legally covered carrying fare paying passengers is by having the 'SP' licence - Servicio publico - which as Marksfish correctly mentioned some posts ago is VERY difficult to get, verging on the impossible and in any case EXTREMELY expensive IRO 30k euros.  Although I am happy to pay to 'be legal' this seems extortionate and unfair as in the UK you only need hire and reward insurance!  

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A friend of mine used to run a completely legal golf holiday firm and had a mini bus with the company logo on it. He got untold grief from Spanish taxi drivers at the airport and golf courses. On one occasion they reported him as illegal and his vehicle was impounded while his lawyer worked frantically to get it released. Needless to say he was not compensated for losing a day's earnings while all the checks were made and he was found to be cosha.

All this also in the face of being under cut for business by illegal merchants.

Regards

Andre

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Hi

Without sounding negative, If I were You I would take a great deal of advice before even considering starting up any kind of business in Spain.

As for being "Legal"  You would probably be undercut by the many people who are not legal in the Property management business. The costs of becoming a legal taxi are great and even if you can afford it the chances are you would never get a licence anyway.

If You have say 10 properties to look after,   if You can find them

Key holding 10 X  10 Euros a week 5200 per year

Meet and greet if your clients can let, say 100 lets PA ,X 20 euros  2000 per year

cleaning / laundry same 100 times 40-50  euros 4000-5000 not all profit

total 12200 euros, it would not cover the cost of  Tax, Insurace, Taxi Insurance/Licence A People carrier ?

and all the hours work when you could be on the Golf Course/ beach

Anyway all the best

F

 

 

 

 

 

 

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I agree with falklands.  It's very tough and competitive for property management these days as so many do it without being registered.

We know a lot of the taxi drivers around here often check the local classifieds to see who are offering airport runs.  They have been known to threaten people too, and rightly so if those people aren't running a legal business here.

Justin

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Taxi licenses are local and need to be aplied for and granted by the Council or bought from a previous holder. You can also be hired by a taxi-licensed person to work for him/her.

The Transport Card ( Tarjeta de Transporte) is applied for in the provintial  transport office corresponsing to residency. A gestor, lawyer or bureocracy-familiar friend needed for this.

Transport Offices In Andalucia:

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Hi Maria,

Are you saying that all you need to start a taxi business is a Tarjeta de Transporte??  As I mentioned in a previous post both my lawyer and my gestor told me this certificate ONLY allowed you to carry goods - not people!!!   Any clarification on this would be greatly appreciated.

Regards

Roy

 

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