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Working In Ibiza/extended Stays
Sorry, but we can not help find you work in Ibiza. (I spend most of the time avoiding it like the plague.)
The following general information compiled with the help of friends who do, or have worked in Ibiza.
Legal stuff
Check with the appropriate authorities, this information is !!!! SUBJECT TO FREQUENT CHANGE !!!! and offered as a general guide.
This information was correct(ish) at the end of in 2004 - it is being updated at the moment (April 2007).
Firstly if you intend staying in Spain for more than three months, you used to need a 'Permiso De Residencia'. To get this you needed to prove that you had a personal income of around €35 a day, or if you are an EU national a contract of employment. This has changed, now you need an 'E' number. To get this you will need a contract of employment and an address. To get a contract of employment you will need an 'E' number. Catch 22: It is stupid...
Your employer may/should will be able to help sort this out. - You will need to queue (stand in line) for literally hours at the local police station....
US and Canadian citizens can not legally work in Spain without employer sponsorship. If you are from North America, you can extend your stay for up to 180 days with proof of income at the National Police Office. After that you are out.
If you are national of a country that can legally work in Spain (check with you local Spanish consulate) you will also need a contract of employment to receive local health care, if your contract is for more than three months, you are obliged to apply for 'Residencia' - read on:
Most employers will help you apply for the E number. The last friend I had who applied, required the following :
Passport and two photocopies (or I.D. card), three passport-sized photographs, originals and copies of both a valid work contract and their accommodation contract/lease.
Applications are processed at the Police station near to McDonalds in Ibiza Town. You will need a good attitude and a lot of patience, as queues start forming pre 8am during the week. (If you can get your job and accommodation sorted early in the year, apply before the new season rush.)
Accommodation.
Accommodation can be expensive, and the Gay bars do not tend to offer accommodation with the job (there are exceptions) but the owners may be able to help you find accommodation, expect to share. Finding someone to share with can also be a problem.
Check out our links page for links to the Local papers in Ibiza, who have classified advertisement sections, also check out/put a message on any Ibiza related bulletin board you can find
A room in a shared house goes for around €15-€20 per day. You can rent a house in Ibiza from €700 per month upwards. (Rental agencies take 1 month rent as payment, and you will also need to pay a months rent deposit.
Finding A Job
Hiring and firing in Ibiza has been pretty informal, but as European employment rules take effect, 'casual work' has become more of a problem.
There are thousands of summer jobs available every year, obviously most based around the tourist industry, which include working as a, holiday rep; receptionist; in hotel entertainment/sports; shop assistant, bar/restaurant work, and club/ PR Work.
In any event, unless you are applying to a hotel chain with a personnel department, or for work as a holiday rep with an overseas holiday company, you will have to go to Ibiza to find a job.
In essence: (if you cannot ask around at the end of the previous year) get out to Ibiza around the end of April/beginning of May, where you will be able to find most of the owners out there, decorating the bars, or working in them waiting for things to kick off. Go out socialising, and ask around. (At least ring around, check the web site or Sparticus for telephone numbers.)
Don't look like (or admit) that you are aiming for the first club that opens and that you intend staying in a drug fuelled stupor for the rest of the season. The owners have seen it all before and are looking for reliable staff that turn up, to the right place at the right time and can hold a coherent conversation, (as well as count).
Make yourself contactable - You could also purchase a local 'pay as you go' mobile phone, so any potential employer can actually contact you if and when something does come up.
If you have a European compatible GSM phone (the ones that take a chip) you can buy a Spanish number (just the chip) in Ibiza and use your own phone. Note: your phone may need 'unlocking' from you home network to be used on another network. This can be done through your own mobile telephone company, or through a third party (which can be much cheaper and quicker.) China town in London is great, unlocking costs around £5.00 (€7.00) In Ibiza it will cost about 20 euros as long as the shop is not associated with the phones original network.
Looking for a gay job on the gay scene, will limit your options, so it may be worth your while taking any suitable job until a 'gay' one materialises. The turnover of staff is brisk; so even if there is nothing available within the first week or so, don't give up hope.
Most owners only employ someone they have met and like. Some owners hire staff that they are, or can appear to be, shagging - or at least someone that will have the punters gagging for it.
Speaking Spanish can be a plus with Spanish owners. German is very useful and English just about essential.
Generally in most jobs, you will be required to work six days/nights a week (sometimes seven in high season). This may not leave you with much time for the socialising you may be looking forward to. (But if you want to go clubbing you can at anytime from 11pm through to 2pm the next day.)
You should start looking as follows:
Holiday companies, three months before the season starts to allow time for group interviews, training etc... Generally you will not be guaranteed any particular area, (or any country in some cases) - unless things have changed.
Hotel work - If the larger chains are not interested, you should at least ring around as many hotels as possible. Numbers are available from your local Spanish tourist board office who publish a directory for Ibiza - you can ring and ask them to send one.
Better still, go to Ibiza, and do the rounds. Have a c.v. with you (with a picture) and a local telephone number to contact you on. Previous experience with a well known hotel chain can be a great benefit.
CLUB /PR work can be much harder to find, you will need to be in Ibiza by mid-May, and start hanging out, asking around. The more friends you can make the better chance you have, as most club jobs appear to go to friends of friends... PR jobs are now licensed, and a licence costs, so there are fewer jobs available than in previous years. In any event it helps if you are young, fun and look shagable.
Bars/restaurants hiring starts in May and most appears to be done face to face. You will need to be there. Or to have arranged a job the previous year.
Languages (English/German) are more important than Spanish, which is generally not essential, in the gay bars. Staff turnover can be very high, or non-existent, it appears to go in phases. One bar had the same waiters for six years, then six sets of staff the following year. Again, get out to Ibiza, ask around all of the bars/restaurants, and keep at it.
Shop Work - The tourist shops open in May, and some do take staff on for the height of the season. Most are owner-managed, so get out there and be friendly, and ask. You may find two part time jobs as manageable as one full time. (This may effect residency/health care provision.)
LINKS
  IBIZASUN.COM - On line version of the local 'English' Ibiza Newspaper.
ELMUNDO-ELIDA - On line version of the Balaeric islands Newspaper. (Spanish)
ULTIMA HORA - On line version of the regional Ibiza Newspaper. (Spanish)
DIARIO DE IBIZA - On line version of the local Ibiza Newspaper. (Spanish)
ESCAPE-ARTIST.COM - Looking for work around the world? - information on everything to do with finding, moving, working and buying property abroad.
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