Unless you are retired or fabulously wealthy, a move to Corfu, Greece will mean finding work in new and un familiar surroundings.Make the transition and you’ll be following hundreds of expats before you.

Many working expats make a success of their move abroad.

Here in Corfu many expats believe it will be easy to find work and sustain a living, this is ‘nt always the case. The key ingredients in the recipe for making a success of a career is plenty of careful planning and lots of research.

Your first consideration is wheather you are legally allowed to work , the answer to this question is of course Yes .As a member of the EEA you are free to work wherever you like.The legal standing on this is that you should obtain a residence permit to start work ,however as a lot of the employment is seasonal in Corfu many many expats work without such permits.

If however you decide to start or bring a business to Corfu we suggest you apply for a permit,these days this is very easy to obtain and is now completly routine.

The best advice I would give anybody who is even thinking of starting a business in Corfu is find yourself a good english speaking Lawyer and Accountant,these make running a business very easy,secure and most of all legal. You can pay an accountant a monthly fee and they will keep your books up to date and advise you of any income or VAT (FPR) that is due.

If you are only working seasonal ensure that you are registered on the employees books and that they are paying IKA on your behalf this is similar to our NI contrubutions.When this has been paid for 2 years you are entitled to Benifits such as unemployment payments if you don’t work in the winter months.

That brings me to the winter months if you are working within the tourist industry,the chances of working from November through to May are very limited as there are No direct flights into Corfu (at the moment) limiting any tourism related work..

So bear this in mind before making the decision to move to Corfu.

All I can advise you is to do your “Homework” before making one of the biggest decisions you will ever have to make.