The pros and cons of deciding residency when relocating

Many of you know, I specialise in astrocartography, the art of mapping the planetary lines to find a supportive place to live, love and work. Astrocartography has unfortunately been more and more dumbed down in recent years. There was a surge of interest in astrology, astrocartography in particular, both during and after Covid. AI and ChatGPT has played a part also. We are now seeing a flood of self-taught astrologers all over the internet, and many astrological associations accepting magazine articles now unfortunately allow the use of AI.

For years now, we have seen posts like “Move to your Venus line and you’ll find love” “Move to your Jupiter line and find joy.” The hill I will die on is how important it is to have a deep knowledge of your natal birth chart and your current transits before deciding to relocate. Modern technology gives the impression that it is now easier than ever to relocate. My experience this past year has been very, very different.

But I digress for now.

Your natal birth chart contains your soul’s lessons in this lifetime. Your soul on some level chose to be born at that very moment, not ten minutes earlier or three weeks later. Then we layer in your immediate environment, especially in your formative early years. Two people born the exact same minute, side by side, in the exact same hospital will begin to live very different lives within hours of being born. That is the influence of parents, immediate birth family, and immediate environment.

Your current transit chart represents your current lessons. Transits usually manifest as external events and come along to shake us up, showing us we have the choice to live life differently. Whether we accept that lesson or not is called free will. Our choice. Grow or not.

So it is almost always a transit which triggers the desire to relocate. It is hence no coincidence that I chose to make what was supposed to be a permanent move to Italy in late 2014 when my transiting Neptune was trining my natal Neptune. A transit which lasted almost three years. So this transit manifested in overborrowing from the bank (Neptune – representing illusion in this case!), using the money to overextend my photography business (I sold nothing during three exhibitions!), then packing it all in to move permanently to Italy, where I lived for what ended up being just two years, rather than the initially planned permanent move. Why? Because Pluto was simultaneously conjunct my natal Saturn for two years – leading to plenty of loss and death in my life (most notably the death of my late daughter’s father), causing me to radically change my long-term plans.

So ten years later, having sold my house in Ireland after a mere two years, taking a year to travel and to decide where to move to in Italy (as distinct from actually buying in Italy), I however unexpectedly found myself buying an apartment near Vibo Marina in mid-2025. This decision was made primarily to get residency, as I rightly figured it would be more seamless than dealing with bureaucrats in a larger city. Even though my soul still pined for Tuscany.

Would I do this again?

The short answer is – Nope!

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My relocated chart and astrocartography for Calabria are supposedly really supportive – as I live between two Moon lines (an aspect which usually symbolises ease around creating a home base).

They are also flowing lines – one conjuncts my Ascendant, the other quintiles my IC. The unexpectedly challenging transit of Jupiter opposing Saturn has led to endless battles of will with an unreal amount of “figures of authority” – the bank, the phone company, the electricity supply company. Plus more workmen than I care to count – who technically count as figures of authority as I need their expertise.

There will be another post written about the common themes in the charts of workmen and manual labourers for sure!

So what benefits has having an Italian resident’s card given me so far?

In short – none whatsoever!!! Yup!

I bought an overpriced car in August thinking I would get great back-up service from the garage I purchased it from. Six months later, I am still trying to get a fully functional second spare key. Car insurance took seven in-person visits to the office to take out, and the car is not even covered in the event of a serious crash. I had to pay an extra 20% to take out additional insurance for fire, theft and malicious damage. Yikes!

For someone who is Mars trine Uranus natally – that’s not too good! I could far more easily and cheaply have rented a car as and when I needed one.

I had to buy a mobile phone simply to accept calls from the bank before even opening a bank account.

My local bank couldn’t be arsed opening a temporary non-resident bank account for me as they knew a residency card was coming down the track in a few weeks.

The bank also adamantly refused to reissue me with a debit card with my name on it, which recently meant not being able to pay a water bill online. I have a perfectly working Italian debit card but no actual proof on the card that it is mine.

The number of online Italian government accounts I now have to sign up to is unreal. There are five or more.

I still don’t have the much-lauded Tessera Sanitaria – the Italian health card. My emergency European Health Card has only been accepted by my local doctor, but I get charged for letters written. I’ve made one in-person unsuccessful application to apply for the Tessera. My nerves can’t yet stand the thought of applying again!

You can in fact nominate someone else to do some of the bureaucratic admin for you – but no one tells you this!

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Digital nomads the world over are now discovering that the digital nomad lifestyle is not all it is cracked up to be. Being on the move constantly, booking flights themselves, sourcing accommodation, dealing with WiFi issues and ongoing ever-increasing online security options is driving lots of digital nomads to eventually go back to their home country.

Lots of locals resent digital nomads and I can fully see their point. Most of them live a budget lifestyle, don’t pay tax where they are visiting and contribute the bare minimum to the local economy. The Digital Nomad Visa in Italy has been a total flop and I can totally understand why. It’s far easier logistically to simply do a 90-day stint and return after another 180 days have passed, moving onto another cheaper country in the interim.

This global lifestyle then also over time takes an enormous toll on our nervous system. Something as simple as an uncomfortable bed can lead to tons less work being done the next day.

So for those of you considering permanent relocation, my advice to you is – wait.

Then wait some more.

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If you are considering several countries, please narrow it down to three. That is plenty. Then if your plan is to make a permanent move, go to your proposed long-term destination – not once but twice for 90 days each time.

Plan your move using your current and upcoming astrological transits, your relocated charts and astrocartography map. Prepare to adjust as necessary as the months go on. Don’t plan your move around whether government visa regulations may or may not change. You can still work it so you get a solid block of three to six months somewhere. Joining expat groups is great initially but long term will not help you fully integrate. I now speak English 80% of the time here in Florence but have the security of knowing I speak decent Italian. Hence extra in-person one-on-one lessons to improve.

These last few months I hear more and more stories of people going back to their home country after a mere two or three years abroad. I witnessed it personally when living in Lucca 12 years ago. The common reasons are always the same – and top of the list is always not speaking the language. Not being able to handle the bureaucracy is usually number two. Close family falling ill unexpectedly is often number three. After that, it almost always comes down to how much effort you put into integrating with the local community.

There are lots of Instagrammers out there telling you to move now before visa rules change. But what if you move and get caught between two systems whilst moving? I timed my move very strategically yet was still caught out by several medical emergencies. Yes, I am still having problems with my teeth nine months later. And that is so not funny. I’ve now had to find a dentist in Florence who thankfully is way ahead of the Calabrian dentist in terms of technology. And yet and yet, the Calabrian dental team were, in fairness, well ahead of my Irish dentist.

If you go ahead and buy and think you can happily work online while having repairs done to your new abode, think again. You can’t! Workmen will let you down, turn up when it suits them, blithely ask for full payment upfront (if they can get away with it), then leave work half finished. I’ve dealt with up to twelve workmen already. Yes, fantastic bargains can be had in the housing market, and most of the time the properties are fine. But you do have to do your due diligence in order to avoid nasty surprises after. Apparently in Italy there is a penalty for selling your main property within five years of purchasing it – did the notaio (lawyer/attorney) tell me? Nope! Course not – sure why would they?!

Financially plan on spending at least 25% more than expected when you move. The cost of storage also adds up fast. Most of the practical stuff you may be attached to (kitchen equipment for example) will need new plugs when you land here, so it is far more time-efficient to donate them and buy new ones here. I ended up dealing with three separate removal companies as my modest pile of possessions made their way from Ireland to Calabria. There are guaranteed to be unexpected repairs to any property you may purchase. Anticipate medical emergencies too. The cost of car rental has escalated enormously; however, there are still long-term car leasing options. These options are hard to find so you do need to ask around. Google won’t give you all the answers!

In short, would I go down the residency road again? Still too soon to say. On the other hand, it has indeed given me some stability in Italy but not in the way I expected, as I am now seriously looking at selling my property in Calabria as I’ll need to put those funds towards purchasing in Tuscany. Calabria is stunningly beautiful with exquisite beaches, but I’ll never know for sure whether the locals simply see me as a clueless foreigner with tons of cash who they can rip off. The amount of energy it takes in fending off workmen who all have a cousin that they insist they need to call in to help them do whatever work I say needs to be done is beyond exhausting.

I have written a whole separate article about the complexities of the local postal office which, after ten months in Calabria, remains fairly incomprehensible.

Moving between your home base and proposed long-term new location needs to now be managed more carefully than ever. If not, your nervous system will be shot to pieces and you’ll end up falling ill as a result. I mean it. Which is where disciplines like yoga and Pilates make an astounding difference.

The one constant thing in my life since May of last year has been regular weekly yoga and Pilates. That combined with the stunningly healthy diet of fresh fruit and vegetables in Calabria has combined to keep me sane – somehow! I paid extra for private classes and it has been worth every penny.

In short, there are pros and cons to becoming a resident. Like life, you get to choose. Whatever you choose, take your time.