Retirement in Morocco

Hi Phil666,

First of all, i invite you to have a look at the Living in Morocco guide, it might help you to know more about Morocco.

Thank you,

Priscilla
Expat.com Team

Hi Priscilla,
Thanks for  the  advice.
The 90  day  rule   ie  for Europe ( Bulgaria)  as  probably  for  many in  the  Uk as now made it  not  worth  buying, renting for  90  days is  still  an  option.
Cheers  Phil

Hi...
I appreciate your comment..😊 i am agree with you

Hi
Morocco will be much closer to Uk now, bypassing Europe is one reason and worldwide friend group another.
For Retirement Morocco is a good choice and many of us expats live here.
Decision and location depend on individuals. It's Not working if you are looking for home from home style, but if your adaptable, can accept other cultures and development it can work for you

Hi and welcom you
This is my whatsapp *** if you want advices about moroccan culture or questions about the law

the Living is cheap, but not in big cities like Rabat, casablanca center, you can start a small business in popular areas

Hello Phil,
                 I'm retired, a Brit living in Morocco, I live on the Atlantic coast near a town called Safi, in a small village called El Beddouza. Beautiful quite area with fantastic beaches and good cities within driving distance.

Its less than 3 hours to Marrakesh or Casablanca. Its a bit easier for me as my wife is Moroccan.

The cost of living is what makes Morocco really attractive, renting a small villa is quite cheap, and before covid air links between UK and Morocco were excellent, a return flight to UK could be as little as £150 with easy jet.

There is the 90 day rule for visitors, however its not that difficult to get a residence card. If you have any questions message me.

I've never been to Beddouza. I'm also retired and live in Essaouira which I love. Have you been here to Essaouira? How does Beddouza compare? Just curious?

I'm British born, I lived and worked here for many years and travel the world
I'm not sure what culture you can possibly inform me about and from what prospective related to context to this chat subject.

Morocco is good for retired or tourism  people.

KneeOn lite

What about doctors and hospital treatments.
Do you have English neighbours

There is a doctor and hospital for everything, you just need money. You can get good cheap cosmetic stuff here Abd other small ops. If you got big problems or unhealthy stay at home.

About the neighbors, it's Morocco so Moroccans living here with multicultural foreigners and usually a bunch of tourists.

Very few doctors are qualified in Morocco.

That's not true

I am an American living here in Casablanca (married to a Moroccan woman). I have had one medical experience here where I had to go under anesthesia. The care was ok and what I expected but not what I am accustomed to. I make the best of what's available. Something more serious I fly back home but will have to keep in mind that the cost will be ten times more. There is also another option of flying to India but I am ok with what's available here.

Ohh that is far from being true. I have Moroccan friends who are doctors and Harvard trained.

Hello my name is john from usa
Im looking for ways to get residency card from scratch.
P.s: Im not married to moroccan.
Thank you for your info. Indeed its beautiful country

There is a list of reasons why you can
Working with state approved contract
Owning a business here
Owning property
There can be others like retirement and bringing money here
All are about you paying taxes here and spending.

You can renew your visa a few times every 3 months

In the end they don't want people living here and not paying their way
Seems reasonable to me

There's lots living here cheap and earning overseas
Not paying taxes here
Those are the people the state are searching

Hey John,

Fellow American here. Are you in Casablanca? Send me your contact information.

Hi John,

I am looking for the same info and asked in thread about it if you want to read it:

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.p … 89#5021174

Another way open small company

Thanks much  Natyis88

I would imagine doctors in Morocco are
Trained surely
I would add that i fell on my hand dislocating one finger and bending the other.  In Morocco the hospital doc told me nothing was broken but uk hospital confirmed a broken finger etc

Hello Elena, Yes I've been to Essaouira quite a few times and I quite like there. There is no comparison to El Bedouzza as this is not a tourist area. It is however a really beautiful place with fantastic beaches.

I've always found doctors and clinics to be OK, as my wife is Moroccan she has doctors that her family have used for years. You just have to find the right ones.

Mentioning doctors, my wife recently found a lump on here breast, of course she was really worried, and asked a nurse friend where to go and who was the best doctor. She was told about a new clinic that had just opened. We drove there on the same day. Saw a doctor (trained in France) she was given a mammogram and some new kind of scan, waited a little while till the scans were ready. Then took them to a specialist, who saw here the same day, and gave her the all clear. It all cost less than £150 and was done within a day. The NHS would take months to do that, so I've found doctors to be good here. Also there are some good private clinics.

Most of the doctors I've met are very well trained, You cannot practice medicine and not be qualified.

@KneeOnLite hi may I ask about property there to buy and to rent? Looking to rent while finding my place on this earth. Is it expensive like that coastal area going south

@Kingshams2 Good luck and welcome to Morocco when you arrive.  I have a 10 year residency now but generally first card is for one year.  Make sure you have a rental lease and all papers are translated into Arabic. Youcan get a criminal background check in Morocco also.

Thanks Phil666 and Cathylesher.

If anyone can point me in the right direction of a certified translator in Agadir I would be most grateful.

Thanks all

@elena3129 Hi we are also looking at Essaouira  as our next destination  for retirment..we are in Thailand at the moment but are looking at being closer to Europe with out being in Europe, Morocco seems the best destination for that...how do you find the  life in general in Essaouira  is there a good expat community? is the cost of living reasonable? Is there plenty to do? How is the health service there? Hope you dont mind me all the questions just trying to gather as much information  as possible .😊

No problem! I've been here for 5 years & I've really enjoyed living here! This is a small town with a nice expat community which seem to be grouped by language, French, German, & English. I mingle in the English group that meets every Friday for  happy hour at Ocean Vagabond 6pm-7pm. It's a fun catch-up hour & a good place to ask other expats questions about anything. There are some in the group who have lived here for 15 years +!

What is there to do? Essaouira is a very walkable town & a popular activity is walking on the beach, promenade, in the Medina & around town, there hikes you can do in the countryside of Essaouira as well. There are a number or restaurants, bars & galleries, as well as a few small museums. A Gnaoua music festival comes around every year in June, & various other events come through town as well. Of course, because it's known as the Windy City, kite surfing & surfing are very popular sports. Also, there are various yoga classes all over town, amongst various other classes such as cooking classes, art classes, etc.

And finally, the health care consists of a new clinic & a city hospital. I would say that this may be the weakest point of living here. If you're healthy, it's not an issue, there are a few doctors in town to see. One o know for certain speaks English well enough & the other I haven't been to so I know he speaks French but don't know about his English fluency. If you have serious or chronic issues, a larger city might be more suitable for you. Most expats I know with serious problems go to Marrakech or Casablanca for care & better equipment. Also, there is an Irish doctor in Marrakech that many expats go see. Facilities are just more sophisticated in Marrakech than they are here.

As far as cost of living, I'd say it's very reasonable, A budget of $1500 a month will get you far but that depends on your lifestyle, members in your family, etc. Rent is reasonable, food is extremely fresh & a very good value. And eating out won't break the bank.

So this is my brief impression of living here. I hope it helps a little!

@elena3129 Thank you! This was the best write up. I was trying to determine how much I would need to retire there.

@elena3129 Thank you so much Elena this has helped a lot. All being   well we hope to visit next year  and then make an informed decision  my husband has been before on holiday many years ago for me its a new experience 😁.

My husband is from Belgium  so with his french and my English we should get along well with both communities.Hope to see you at Ocean Vagabond at some point in the future😊

.